Honour Killing: Rishton se badi Pratha | 
Saturday, December 18, 2010
And today we had the first casualty of Honour killing. Amreek was shot dead. A through-n-through head-shot.
Rishton se badi Pratha. One of the two Hindi sitcoms that I watch, the other being “Saas bina sasural”. Well, both shows are about young love. While SBS is light-hearted drama serial, RSBP deals with the social evil called “Honour Killing”.
But why am I writing this post? Well, I guess I’m bit shook up after watching today’s episode. Not that I didn’t know what’s gonna happen in this story. In fact I knew it from the very first day itself that these lead characters are gonna end up dead and the body count is gonna start from the Best Friend. Whenever Amreek used to do something to help his friend escape, I used to quip “Son, you are gonna be the first martyr of their love”. And today was the day.
A little background for those who don’t know about this show. The story revolves around Abhay & Surbhi, who had to elope from their home as their families won’t accept their relation. Abhay’s sister is married to Surbhi’s brother Ranvijay who is a ruthless goon in Noida. Amreek is Abhay’s childhood best friend who helps them remain hidden while they find a way to leave country. Both their families are hunting them like dogs so that they can defend their ‘honour’ by killing them for braking social norms. [Yeah, that still happens in India]. This cat & mouse game was on since the show started on 15th November. Until today. Today marked the first serious turn of events. The first killing in the name of honour.
Scenes leading to this event– Ranvijay finds out that Amreek is helping the couple. So, he forces him at gunpoint to lead him to them. Amreek takes them to an old fort to mislead him. But when the cat is out of the bag, Ranvijay shoots Amreek through head. And that scene is still very fresh in my mind. During the last 3 minutes of today’s episode, my blood was already racing through my veins and when that shot was fired, I felt like that bullet hit MY head. Ears started ringing and I felt like I’m gonna black out. See the final 3 minutes yourself -
Rishton se badi Pratha. One of the two Hindi sitcoms that I watch, the other being “Saas bina sasural”. Well, both shows are about young love. While SBS is light-hearted drama serial, RSBP deals with the social evil called “Honour Killing”.
But why am I writing this post? Well, I guess I’m bit shook up after watching today’s episode. Not that I didn’t know what’s gonna happen in this story. In fact I knew it from the very first day itself that these lead characters are gonna end up dead and the body count is gonna start from the Best Friend. Whenever Amreek used to do something to help his friend escape, I used to quip “Son, you are gonna be the first martyr of their love”. And today was the day.
A little background for those who don’t know about this show. The story revolves around Abhay & Surbhi, who had to elope from their home as their families won’t accept their relation. Abhay’s sister is married to Surbhi’s brother Ranvijay who is a ruthless goon in Noida. Amreek is Abhay’s childhood best friend who helps them remain hidden while they find a way to leave country. Both their families are hunting them like dogs so that they can defend their ‘honour’ by killing them for braking social norms. [Yeah, that still happens in India]. This cat & mouse game was on since the show started on 15th November. Until today. Today marked the first serious turn of events. The first killing in the name of honour.
Scenes leading to this event– Ranvijay finds out that Amreek is helping the couple. So, he forces him at gunpoint to lead him to them. Amreek takes them to an old fort to mislead him. But when the cat is out of the bag, Ranvijay shoots Amreek through head. And that scene is still very fresh in my mind. During the last 3 minutes of today’s episode, my blood was already racing through my veins and when that shot was fired, I felt like that bullet hit MY head. Ears started ringing and I felt like I’m gonna black out. See the final 3 minutes yourself -
[ Continued in Full Post ]
It’s not that I’m very emotional and I get lost in reel life and get too much attached to it. In fact, I can be totally indifferent while watching movies and sitcoms. But this was different. Maybe having been in an abruptly ended relationship has something to do with it. At some level, I feel connected to THIS story and issue. And even though I knew this was gonna happen sooner or later, as that's the theme of this soap, I was hoping against hope that this doesn’t happen. Till the last moment today, I was hoping for a cliff-hanger end of episode. You know, something like Ranvijay fires his gun and Amreek falls on ground, looking like he’s dead. And in next episode, they’ll show that the bullet only grazed his temple. Typical Hindi sitcoms. But that’s not what happened today.
The bullet went clean through his head. That’s the first thing they showed about the gun shot. His head jerked from the shot, blood trickled down his cheek and HE SMILED. He smiled knowing that he helped his friend, bought them some time, helped them live. He gave his life for his friend's love. I'm still captivated by that frame. And this was only the beginning. In next episode, Abhay & Surbhi are gonna get caught by Abhay's father at airport. And sooner or later, even they are gonna end up dead.
How can people be so cruel like animals...!! Killing someone in the name of honour...!! Is it more valuable than our loved one's life...? This is not just a story of a sitcom. This thing is happening all over India. Even at this age. The Nitish Katara case is still fresh in mind. And that of Nirupama Pathak. Heck, there are (Khap) panchayats in India who hail Honour killing and flaunt it as their right. And an Indian politician, Member of Parliament no less, supports them. Acts like these are why I feel ashamed to be part of Indian society. I have no words to express. And headache is building up.
Labels: Audio Video, Ponder, Social Issues
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