TRIBUTE | Raghavendra Pratap Singh

Elysia

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Posted: 26 October 2012 at 1:41am | IP Logged

Please refrain from basher/provocative behavior. This is meant for those who appreciated Harshad Chopda and his character Raghav on the show. Thank you.

This is a small tribute to the character of Raghav and the actor who portrayed him. The news of his leave pushed me to write about the impact that his presence on the show had on me as someone who fell in love with Raghav through Harshad Chopda.

Without further procrastination, I introduce my final thread in this forum:

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Please sit back with a cup of steaming hot tea and chocolate chip cookies and read in your own time -- that is, if you want. This is going to be long because I want to make sure that I cover everything that has ever crossed my mind.

I spent many months writing feedback, debating, chatting, and whatnot with strangers as well as friends. Regardless of the end, I'm grateful that I got this experience and that I got to know many beautiful human beings through a common interest.

--Ana

Edited by Elysia - 26 October 2012 at 5:10am

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Elysia

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Joined: 16 September 2008

Posts: 8301

Posted: 26 October 2012 at 1:42am | IP Logged

You know, there is a quote that comes to my mind when I think of Raghav. It is a quote by Tahereh Mafi who wrote one of my favorite dystopian novels titled Shatter Me.

"All I ever wanted was to reach out and touch another human being.

Not just with my hands, but with my heart."

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Raghav is a name that I instinctively connect to a rugged mechanic in a business suit with a heart of pure gold -- a character that shone like a beacon of hope in a show which was otherwise full of darkness and despair. Raghav is a name that I connect to checked shirts and messy hair and worn sneakers. It's a name connected to intensity and purity and power. It's connected to confident smirks and warm smiles, to punishing fists and gentle hands, to a figure of threat and a shield of protection; to fierceness and kindness and strength. Yes, Raghav was all of those things. But above it all, he was hope personified. His fists and threats were meant for enemies. His gentle nature and protection were meant for the weak and the people that he loved.

We always saw Raghav as a hero. But Raghav never saw himself as one. He would put his own life in danger -- for anyone and everyone -- and barely think twice about it before he launched himself into a deadly fight to protect the ones weaker than him. He lost more in blood and sweat and worry than any of his enemies ever did -- even the times when he won the fight. He took whatever was thrown at him, blow after blow, but he never blamed God for any of it. He always blamed himself.

The following video is a recollection of scenes that show how we see Raghav. However, the song conveys how Raghav sees himself.

To me, Raghav is a man worth admiring; for his courage, his selfless nature, sacrifices, and unconditional love; for his strength and vulnerability, his sharp mind and tender soul, his respect, concern and timeless inner beauty; for his protective, loving ways, generosity, and straightforwardness; for his utter and absolute unwavering trust in the people he loves, and his secret wish to be loved in return; for his passion and for the tears that he shed -- and for every price that he paid in blood.

In memory of Raghavendra Pratap Singh, I write.

April 9th, I hesitated. I'd been following the show since it had been launched in December 2011, and I was so depressed from the violence and despair, from watching episode after episode with no hope for Jahnvi and no punishment for her abuser. I had decided to watch the supposed hero's entry and then leave the show. It was curiosity, nothing more and nothing less.

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I still remember when Harshad Chopda came on screen in Raghav's checked shirt and sneakers; his hair damp and messy, light stubble on his face, and that hell-fury blazing in his eyes. I thought that here's another angry, young man and a stereotypical hero on Indian TV. I wanted to move on from the show. But something about Raghav intrigued me. Maybe it was the fact that his anger seemed to have deeper roots than what initially met the eye. Maybe it was the intensity of his expressions, his rugged look, and mysterious aura. All I can say is that I couldn't label him stereotypical and move on yet -- I had to see more of him and know.

To me, he was a broken pattern. And he demanded my attention.

Thus I stayed and watched. His broodiness continued to intrigue me. It was how he was so silent and reserved, yet observant and present. There was something poignant about him that just pulled at the writer in me. No, not just the writer in me, but the human in me. I connected with his soulful eyes and the very sadness that seemed to coat him. I needed to know what had shattered him, because I could tell that something had.

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With every episode, his character strengthened -- even when his screenspace was little to none. In a just one or two second shot, Harshad breathed so much life into Raghav, he brought so much intensity to him, built him layer by layer -- Raghav became tangible to me in a way that for those two seconds, I'd sit through 20 minutes of torture.

I wondered about Raghav, and frustration with lack of his character development drove me toward making demands. I wanted more of him -- and I was happy to see that I wasn't the only one. Raghav was a character that seemed to connect with others than just me; some were another target audience entirely, e.g. fathers of young boys and girls. Maybe they saw exactly what I saw in him -- the potential to become an epic hero on Indian TV, an icon to young men who had been led astray and needed to get back on the right track.

When his family was introduced, I wondered if half of them were penned down as intricately beautiful as they came across on screen. Needless to say, Harshad's chemistry with Neha, Sumukhi, Yash, and Akanksha was mind-blowing. It made me believe in the relationships portrayed by them. It made me feel them. They came alive to me; vivacious relationships, sweet relationships, stormy relationships, infuriating relationships. Oh, the many aspects of each bond portrayed on screen kept me captivated and I couldn't leave for the life of me.

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I never gave Harshad a second glance in years. I knew of his existence. People spoke of his talent, of his portrayal of characters such as Prem and Anurag. I had seen his pictures. He was handsome, I thought. But I had always sought more from an actor than his appearance. If an actor had the ability to make me live his character through his performance of him, then I didn't care for what he looked like. Maybe it's the child in me that has always loved stories and substantial characters. They being my escape, I sought something in actors that would provide me with that same escape and make me live another life apart from my own -- as schizophrenic as that might sound.

Harshad made me live Raghav's life. And I'll always appreciate him for his hard work, his absolute dedication to the character, and the honesty with which he performed every scene because it made me experience Raghav, not as a fictional character, but as someone who I could've befriended and known. The thing that is so easy to forget is that actors like Harshad only know how to give, not take, through their work. We, as viewers, take. We take what we want from him and when we've had enough, we throw him away like what he gave us never mattered.

It did matter. It'll always matter. That one moment when he made you cry for Raghav. That moment when he made you laugh. That moment when he irritated you because he made a stupid decision that led to even more stupid consequences. That moment when he warmed your heart with a smile or sexy glance, reminding you of why you believe in love and romance. It all matters because it gave you something.

Raghav might or might not exist outside the fictional world. But he was damn good in the fictional world and he rocked my life for seven months. That is something I'll always remember.

I guess what I'm trying to say is thank you. It's funny how words sometimes fall short of expressing what kind of an impact someone has left on you. But words are all I have to give in return for what Harshad has given us through Raghav. There will always be people who won't know how to value his hard work, who will tear him down just to watch him crash. But with every fall I believe that Harshad will rise higher, taller, and stronger than before. His journey as Raghav has helped him grow as an actor is what I feel. And he will continue to grow. He's underrated and underappreciated. It doesn't matter; because the greatest of all artists have been underappreciated at least once in their lifetime.

Edited by Elysia - 26 October 2012 at 3:26am

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Elysia

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Posted: 26 October 2012 at 1:43am | IP Logged

R A G H A V x G A Y A T R I

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There have been many mother and son relationships portrayed on TV, but few of them have seemed to emote the kind of powerful connection between Gayatri and Raghav. Their bond was unique and not explored to its fullest. We never saw how they'd been when Dev had lived and how their relationship altered over time. But Harshad and Sumukhi were such earnest performers and understood their characters so well that they gave me what I wanted so badly from their relationship in the few moments they shared, providing me with what I needed to imagine their past and future in my head.

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We followed their relationship for seven months through resentment, disappointment, anger, and the slow but steady progress toward resolution and acceptance -- forgiveness. We saw Raghav reach out to Gayatri, mostly being burned by her, but in the end his mother finally took hold of his hand and held on. Some of their verbal confrontations were meant to hurt each other and others were meant to convey their individual pain with hope of understanding and reconnection. Indeed, some of the most beautiful moments on the show were the ones between Raghav and his mother as they carried something tragically beautiful about them, e.g. when Gayatri told Raghav that one day he would be rewarded for all the sacrifices that he had made. It restored his faith in a God and in himself.

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I don't know how Harshad and Sumukhi were off screen, but on screen they shared an inexplicable connection that often left me speechless. Their scenes together were always charged with emotion and powerful -- in spite of weak dialogue, they always managed to make every word between them sound purposeful and deep. They'd managed to give their relationship layers that kept me hooked to every one of their interactions, hoping to discover more of them. They never let me down. Harshad always conveyed the amount of respect and love that Raghav had for his mother through the manner in which he would regard her -- e.g. the way that he would hug her, as if she was a goddess and it was an honor that she embraced him. His manner of speech changed when he spoke to her -- i.e. he would be more respectful and careful with words to make sure that he didn't hurt her.

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Though rushed and cheated of time, I feel that Harshad and Sumukhi managed to make Raghav and Gayatri multidimensional -- to the extent that I could read between the lines of their relationship, understand whatever situation/scene of theirs without it having to be spelled out, e.g. when Gayatri was held captive and Raghav was forced to tie her feet. There was a second's eye-contact between them that made me realize how hard it was for Raghav to tie up the woman whom he'd put on a pedestal and worshipped.

Furthermore, there were their intriguing clashes of belief at times when Gayatri wanted to follow one path and Raghav wanted to follow another. Their relationship was as flawed as it was perfect. That was the beauty of it.

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R A G H A V x K O M A L

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The relationship between Raghav and Komal was one that I cherished from the moment that they shared their first conversation. There was just something unique about them. It wasn't a product of screenplay, but more of the layers that the actors seemed to give their characters and their shared relationship on screen, because script wise their scenes were downplayed to an annoying extent. Yet the actors somehow managed to forge an intense connection between Raghav and Komal and the viewers.

I always felt that Komal understood Raghav when no one else did. There was a mutual trust and a shared pain between them that intrigued me. They would share these silent glances that made me wonder what secret they were both guarding, what kind of heavy burden they were living with. I tried to guess it. And because I was so young and naive [insert hysterically laughing emoticon here], I gave the writers way too much credit and imagined something that they hadn't even considered. I imagined that Dev had abused Komal. That Raghav had found out and a fight had broken out between the brothers. That Raghav had accidentally killed Dev. That Komal had covered for him. That Krish had seen. That Raghav hated himself because of the accident, blamed himself for his brother's death whereas Komal and Krish saw him as a hero who had defended them.

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I imagined that it was the reason why he had left home.The writers messed up Raghav's past, his story. What I had imagined hadn't happened. And they didn't even surprise me by introducing something beyond what I'd imagined. Regardless, I'm grateful that we, at least, got to experience the beautiful relationship between Raghav and Komal -- it was a warm bond; because Komal did care for him like a mother cared for her child. She fought to bring him home. She tried to make him forgive himself. She was always there as his silent supporter and at times she'd raise her voice for him, surprising us all.

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Some of their most beautiful moments were when they would hug or when he'd tease her and she would slap him playfully on his cheek for it. I loved the genuine pride in her eyes when she'd look at him -- like he was a savior, not a pariah. And I loved how Raghav always tried to smile back at her, even when he didn't believe in what she saw in him. It was obvious from his behavior around her that he knew exactly how proud she was of him and it motivated him. He never fully opened up to her because it seemed that he wanted to be a pillar of strength to her, not weak. But she always saw his weakness and offered him words of comfort.

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I would've liked to see Raghav's reaction when he would find out about Komal's abuse at his brother's hand. It would've added another dimension to their relationship, deepened it, and it would've been such an interesting track all in itself. Their relationship was never given justice in writing, but Harshad and Neha did complete justice to them both on screen. Without their unique portrayal of the characters, I wouldn't have connected so deeply with Raghav and Komal.

Edited by Elysia - 26 October 2012 at 4:51am

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Elysia

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Posted: 26 October 2012 at 1:44am | IP Logged

R A G H A V x K R I S H

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The beauty and depth of this relationship cannot be put into words. It just can't. From their very first scene to their last, Raghav and Krish were a team -- it was them against the world and it always will be. The writers neglected their bond until it was all but non-existent story wise. But I just know that Krish had been appointed as a much stronger character than what he ended up as on the show. I know in my heart and from his scenes with Raghav and Sia that he was supposed to play a key role in not just them coming together one day, but as their guiding light -- especially Raghav's.

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Raghav and Krish struck a chord in my heart. The most beautiful scenes on the show were between them. The silent communication, how Raghav was the only one who could understand Krish, their head-bumps that were as much as comfort as a display of love and friendship -- and Krish understood Raghav on a level that no one else did. He was uniquely perceptive, special, and he could read people so easily. He knew that Raghav needed him. And he always knew it when Raghav was struggling with himself. There was a connection that cannot be named. They were more than brothers, more than father-son and friends -- they were kindred spirits. It's a fact that you don't see this level of depth in a relationship between a man and a child on Indian TV, especially not a man and a child that aren't even father and son.

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My absolute favorite scenes with them were when Raghav would be upset and vent in front of Krish while the kid would simply listen quietly, eyes wide in concentration, his entire world focused on Raghav. One specific scene that I remember clearly is from after Sia revealed her identity to Raghav and he was furious with Viraj. He went straight to Krish, raged, until Krish pulled him down to sit and started to massage his head. That was so beautiful and funny, all in one -- just a wonderful moment between Raghav and Krish, the best part being when Krish wrapped his arms around Raghav from behind, cheek to cheek, offering silent comfort.

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Krish knew Raghav inside out. What I loved was how Krish was always taking care of Raghav -- more than the other way around. Raghav was the one dependent on Krish. He could talk to other people, but never open up like he did in front of Krish. He would spill his secrets and his innermost thoughts to Krish, trusting him to keep them all. Meanwhile, I felt immensely sad for them both. They were both broken. Raghav felt a strong need to fix Krish -- maybe because of his self-blame and how he felt responsible for Krish's condition. More so I feel that he needed to fix Krish to redeem himself fully. Krish was his redemption, in every way. It was when Raghav told Sia how important it was that Krish got better that it struck me what Raghav actually meant with "Krish is my whole world".

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I will always cherish KriGhav because they will never be recreated on screen ever again. It saddens me, but I'm also immensely glad that I have solid memories of them that will not fade. Harshad and Yash had a chemistry that seemed out of this world, as if they were just as close off screen as on screen. They made me experience the bond of KriGhav and I will never forget it.

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R A G H A V x T A N I S H A

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Another relationship neglected by the writers was the one between Raghav and Tanisha. Yet the few moments that we were given were absolutely beautiful. Tanisha was more of a buddy than a sister to Raghav. He would treat her like a younger brother at times which really made their bond unique to me. Tanisha, at one point, did mention how she'd help him with his assignments when they were kids, and how they'd cheat. I loved the way that they'd communicate -- at ease with each other, no pretenses. Raghav would throw pillows after her. He'd chase her around when she teased him relentlessly. He'd protect her from harm. He'd hug her spontaneously.

They were close, even though Tanisha had been away. I always felt that there was more to explore here. E.g. I would've liked to see Raghav pay more attention to how much Tanisha had changed and how out of control she seemed at times, as if being sent away to live on her own had forced her to survive however she could with whatever knowledge and experience she had. I felt that she resented Gayatri, at times, and that she and Raghav had their wrecked relationship to their mother in common. I also sensed that Tanisha felt neglected by Raghav to an extent, and that Raghav carried an amount of guilt for that as well; something that, again, wasn't actually explored on the show, but which would've added a deep and substantial layer to their relationship.

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What shone through was the fierce loyalty that Tanisha had for Raghav; the fact that their relationship was so open that she could tell him to his face when she thought that he was making a mistake. The most beautiful as well as heartbreaking moment between brother and sister was when Raghav found Tanisha after she had been sexually assaulted. Though the scene was cut short, the glimpse that we got of Raghav cradling her head to his chest, kissing it, his expression that of complete despair and horror while she looked broken -- the connection between them in this scene was so powerful that the moment seemed private; as if we, as viewers, should leave them alone to mourn because we were intruding.

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The bond between brother and sister was always tangible to me. There was so much to explore about them. I did, in my head. Harshad and Akanksha, their chemistry and beautiful performances -- they made it possible for me to experience their relationship.

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R A G H A V x D E V

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We never met him, but Dev was a character that intrigued me from the moment that his name was mentioned between Gayatri and Raghav as a cause of separation. The way that Komal would react when he was spoken of, it only intensified my fascination with the question "who was Dev, really?", and I wanted to know him and his relationship to his family -- especially Raghav and Komal.

From what we saw, Raghav loved and respected Dev tremendously. It seemed to have shattered his world that his brother hadn't been as perfect as he'd appeared to be -- just like it shattered Gayatri's world. But more so, I felt that Raghav didn't even have a chance to be angry with Dev for what he had done because he had died -- a part of him wanted to be angry, and a part of him believed that he had failed his own brother.

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I often felt that, despite how much Raghav loved and respected Dev, their relationship wasn't as smooth or as close as it seemed. Dev was the perfect son. Raghav wasn't. Though Dev might've accepted Raghav as he was, I wondered whether there was bitterness between them because of Gayatri's favoritism. I wondered why Dev had given Raghav the property on which he built his garage. I wondered why he hid the truth of his gambling from Raghav, and why he got involved with dangerous people such as Rana. I wondered why he would abuse his wife and whether he felt remorse for it. I wondered what Raghav would've done if he ever found out about this.Raghav and Dev was a relationship that I wish we'd gotten to experience on the show.

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R A G H A V x S U N D A R

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What I loved about the friendship between Raghav and Sundar was how honest it was. Though Raghav didn't open up to Sundar often, there was always a mutual trust between them that spoke of years of friendship. The trust never shattered. Even when Raghav found out that Sundar had kept a secret from him. Sundar was very protective of Raghav and saw him as an older brother as well as his best friend, which was partly why it made no sense that he'd fall in love with Tanisha. It was a relationship that wouldn't have happened unless Tanisha had fallen for Sundar first and Raghav, on behalf of her, had asked Sundar to marry her.

Sundar had so much respect for Raghav that he'd never allow himself to even look at Tanisha as more than a sister; something that she was to him up until the writers altered the relationship. But returning to Raghav and Sundar, it seemed that their relationship was tight because of how they'd stood up for each other throughout the years. Sundar supported Raghav when he ended up on the streets. He stayed with him as a friend when he had no one else to rely on. Sundar understood that Raghav was lonely. Sundar understood that Raghav needed more than a friend in his life, and that he deserved more -- even if he couldn't see it himself.

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The best moments on the show between them was when Sundar would provoke Raghav relentlessly and when Raghav would have enough and chase him around, throwing things at him, or sometimes launching himself at him. They'd fight like children, like brothers. But they were always there for one another. They'd give their lives for each other, no questions asked. This was most evident when Sundar was in a coma and Raghav tried so hard to wake him up.

I wish that their friendship had been given more space and that aspects of it had been developed. For instance, how did they become friends? Where was Sundar's family? I feel that Sundar's presence in Raghav's life was of a much stronger significance than them just happening to become friends. I feel that something led to the very friendship and brotherhood bond between them. That Sundar would follow Raghav anywhere, even to the end of the world.

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R A G H A V x K O M O L I K A

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The chemistry between Harshad and Urvashi was absolutely brilliant. Their brief interaction on the show was one that I enjoyed immensely. Komolika could decipher the cryptic symbols etched into Raghav's skin, even as he tried to hide them -- his secret fears. I would've liked to have seen more of their interaction, i.e. during the time when Raghav's family had been taken hostage and during the time of Sia's coma.

Komolika was one character that could break through to Raghav on a rational level. She spoke his language, in a way. When Raghav pitied V, she countered that pity with a rational argument that hit home. She could tell what kind of man Raghav was and how far he was willing to go for the people that he loved. And she could also tell his weaknesses. When it came to the mind, she and Raghav were somewhat alike. None of them bought V's innocence. They saw through it. They used their rationale to work through problems as well.

I also felt that Raghav wanted to keep in touch with Komolika because he trusted her judgment more than he trusted his own. If they had stayed in touch, I believe Raghav would've called her regularly to vent and at times to turn his thoughts over with her because he lived with a constant self-doubt.

Edited by Elysia - 26 October 2012 at 5:03am

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Elysia

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Posted: 26 October 2012 at 1:45am | IP Logged

R A G H A V x S T R E E T S

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I always thought of Raghav as a man born on the streets. Even when I found out that he came from a powerful/wealthy family, I still thought of him as a child of the streets. They were his real home, his origins. Raghav once said that he had a relationship with the streets and he was right. It was one of his most powerful lines on the show. The streets had saved him. They'd become his home and what he identified himself with. When Raghav wandered the halls of his house, he always looked misplaced; as if someone had picked him from the streets and placed him in a million-dollar mansion. I loved that about him. I loved how he seemed uneasy around expensive furniture and porcelain plates [when he'd actually grown up around them], and how he seemed relaxed around broken cars and leaked oil. I loved how he seemed awkward around sumptuous decoration pieces and tidiness, and how he seemed at home in the women's shelter's humble kitchen.

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Raghav shared a bond with what the streets represented to him and with its people. They were his family too. I.e. the fruit seller at his cart who would always have an apple for him, the manager at the women's shelter who respected and admired him, the women at the shelter who cared for him as their brother and felt safe with him as well, the regulars who came to have their cars and bikes fixed, his friends whose loyalty toward him was just incorruptible because they respected the man that he was, the fathers who came to him for protection of their daughters -- I'm sure that Raghav must've helped many people and we only saw a small portion of it. They all felt that they could count on Raghav's protection and Raghav's aid, and in return they were willing to face the police and demand his release when he was arrested.

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Even the police had a kind of unspoken respect for Raghav. They were intimidated by his person as well as the power he held. If Raghav protected Gurgaon, then Gurgaon protected Raghav. And they knew this. I wish that it had been explored on the show. I would've liked to see how Raghav ended up on the streets, his struggle and first battle with reality outside his mother's wealthy home, and how he built his reputation. I would've liked to have seen more of his relationship with the fruit seller, his gang of rebellious youngsters, and the people that he had helped save. Was he trying to make amends for his own past by helping people on the streets?

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And it couldn't have been easy going from a sheltered, wealthy boy with his needs financially covered to a man on the streets with nothing but his skills as a mechanic to rely on for bread and butter; a transformation that was never explored by the writers either. Even his inexplicable bond to his garage was easily snapped by writers in order to move ahead with his character when we all knew how committed Raghav was to his garage. There was much more to this bond than it just being his place. The property was given to him by his brother. Whatever the reason for his strange attachment to the place, it was strong and not something he would've given up easily -- regardless of what was expected of him. Gayatri understood this attachment which is why she settled for his choosing to be a mechanic, not a business man, in the first place.

Furthermore, the women's shelter was another home to him. He came and went there much as if he lived there and the women were his family. It was strange not to have him visit them after he moved back home. His soul purpose included aiding women in the streets and leading them to the women's shelter, providing the women's shelter with material and help around in his spare time.

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I often wondered who had helped Raghav when he was lost in the streets of Gurgaon. He mentioned it to the pandit at one point, but we never got any answer.

Edited by Elysia - 26 October 2012 at 4:55am

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Elysia

IF-Rockerz

Joined: 16 September 2008

Posts: 8301

Posted: 26 October 2012 at 1:46am | IP Logged

R A G H A V x S I A

>><<

Harshad and Sriti had an awesome chemistry. Both being experienced performers; they fell into sync with each other almost instantaneously. What I loved the most about them was how their performances were always sort of a give-and-take thing. They played to each other rather than to the camera. Furthermore, they balanced each other nicely -- not just in performance, but in physique as well. Harshad was tall, broad-shouldered, muscular. Sriti was short, slim, tiny. The fact that she fit so perfectly in his arms during romantic sequences really added another level of sweetness to the characters' relationship.

>><<

It'd be a fortunate thing if we ever came to see them together on screen again since their chemistry wasn't quite explored to its fullest on this show. They weren't given the amount of relationship development and space that they deserved, and we never got to see them perform together with the story and camera solely focusing on the awesomeness that they could deliver together. I think what saddens me the most is that Sriti is one actress who has complemented Harshad in performance -- she's been able to match him step by step in intensity ' and we never got to see how much more intensity they could ignite together on screen. We've seen pieces of it, and it's probably all we'll ever see of them now.

>><<

Something that struck from the start about the relationship between Raghav and Sia was how pure it was and how right -- from the get go. Before the writers ruined most of it, their relationship was founded on trust and comfort. Sia never doubted Raghav. Likewise Raghav never doubted Sia. Even when she revealed her identity to him, he still trusted her and supported her rather than condemned her for lying to him. That purity, that incorruptible trust between them, was the essence of RaghaVi.

>><<

Raghav, in love, was a beautiful sight. He was self-sacrificing and unconditional in his love for her. His world centered around the happiness of Sia, not his own. Thus he was willing to let her go -- if that secured her own happiness. The most beautiful moment between them, in my opinion, was when Raghav didn't stop her from leaving. She kept searching his eyes for a sign, any kind of sign that might tell her to stay. She knew him well enough to tell that he still loved her and wanted her. She understood him so well that she wouldn't ask of him what he wouldn't willingly give her. What she didn't know was that he wanted her to stay. But he'd bargained his own happiness for his family's safety.

>><<

Furthermore, he believed in Sia's freedom to choose for herself. He didn't want to pressure her into anything. He never seduced her. He never tried to woo her or win her. She was never a prize to him. She wasn't even an object of desire because that would be degrading her value to him. No, she was a simple woman with scars on her mind and soul and heart whom he'd fallen in love with. She was a woman whom he wished to heal, whom he wished to see happy and content, freed of demons from her past. That was all he ever wanted for her.

Being a fighter, he never surrendered to the pain of losing her. And he lost her more than once. Sometimes she had rejected him, and sometimes she had been taken from him, and then sometimes he had let her go himself. But he fought for her happiness till the very end. Even when his entire family was in danger, he didn't call Sia. He didn't ask her to come and trade her life for theirs. He would much rather trade his own. Which he did.

>><<

The most cherished phase of their relationship was the one that stretched from Sia's realization of her love for him to their confession before she was stabbed. There were so many small, but beautiful moments between the two of them in which you saw them grow closer, slowly but surely. You saw how she became aware of Raghav, how she started to see him in another light, how she began to note his every movement, his every breath. That was a wonderful development for her character. Before, she never gave him much thought. She was always very distant. But eventually, he became all she ever thought about and cared to think about.

Another aspect of their relationship that I loved was how it was about freedom as well. Raghav was a man that Sia never feared to confront, reprimand, or playfully hit. She knew exactly where she had him. That he would never harm her, emotionally or physically. She understood his nature -- the kindness, the self-harming anger, the constant self-blame and unconditional love for his family.

>><<

I still remember her shocked expression when she saw him vulnerable for the very first time. It was when Krish had ended up at the hospital after his asthma attack. Raghav sat down in the hallway, his composure crumbled right in front of her, and she stared at him like she'd never seen a man so lost before. The vulnerability she saw in Raghav made way for the genuine curiosity, trust, and eventual care that she came to feel toward him. Men could break. And when they broke, they were a haunting sight. That was something she learned from Raghav.

You know, Raghav's protectiveness when it came to Sia was always separated from his love for her. Being the protector was something that he felt strongly about because she was weak and a woman. He thought it his very responsibility to make sure that she was safe from harm, but at the same time he tended to push her over the edge in order for her to discover her own strength. E.g. in the infamous Dare scene where he made Krish ask her to play Tag, and then when she wouldn't run, he annoyed her by challenging her to run. That was one of my favorite scenes of the early RaghaVi days.

>><<

Harshad and Sriti had a unique sort of ability to create chemistry. What else could you possibly call it when they would charge the air with just one glance? Because glances were all they shared for a long time, in the very start of their relationship. Glances were all they had to work with. What I loved the most was how they would channel the chemistry and add subtle layers to the growing relationship between Raghav and Sia. It was how they each built their characters, entwining them, through synchronized interaction and unique interpretation. I came to know their bond so well that I knew how Raghav would react when Sia ended up in a coma -- even if the writers didn't show it. Raghav wouldn't have cared for colorful clothes, his appearance, at all. He would've been so depressed that he'd have spent hours in Sia's hospital room, staring at her for any sign of life.

He was human that way.

>><<

The beauty of Raghav and Sia was multidimensional. Their relationship was complicated, in a way. They were not alike in mind, yet they often met each other halfway and showed understanding. But they'd both been very broken when they first met, and along the way they had tried to fix each other. In the start, I thought that they were fated to be together. Then later, I realized that they weren't fated to be together. They were only fated to meet. From their meeting, they each made choices that created the bond between them that strengthened over time through experiences and the connection of pain. Raghav often chose to help her, to guide her. Sia chose to let him. She chose to open her mind and her heart to him, and let him in.

They embraced each other's weaknesses as well as each other's strengths. Sia often felt frustrated with Raghav because of choices that he made which led to him attracting trouble, but she never condemned him for it. She knew that his intentions were always pure and that he had a tendency of getting into trouble. But his strengths and his qualities as a good man outweighed his flaws as a human being, and somehow she found perfection in the imperfection that was Raghav.

>><<

Raghav was an anchor to people in his life. But he was often a piece of torn wood awash himself. Sia became a pillar of strength to him on an emotional level. When his anger overrode sense, her voice of reason seemed to calm him down and clear his head. E.g. after V had tortured Krish in his room. In the same way, Sia would, at times, have a panic attack and Raghav would calm her nerves, breaking through to her. They complemented each other.

Regardless of how much we have missed out on in relation to Raghav and Sia, I'm very grateful for what brief but incredibly beautiful moments we had a chance to experience. One of the most breathtaking embraces ever between two lovers on screen was on the day that Sia was about to leave, but someone accidentally pushed her into Raghav's arms. Some of the sexiest scenes in which they shared an ice cream, closed a window in the dark, danced in the rain, flirted, teased each other with kisses, and held onto each other for dear life. And one of the most powerful scenes in which Raghav secured Sia's rebirth by filling her maang with his blood, giving her the promise of forever.

>><<

I've always believed that this quote by William Blake fit their relationship beautifully, as if it was written for them.

"Love seeketh not itself to please, nor for itself hath any care,

but for another gives its ease, and builds a Heaven in Hell's despair."

>><<

Edited by Elysia - 26 October 2012 at 4:49am

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Elysia

IF-Rockerz

Joined: 16 September 2008

Posts: 8301

Posted: 26 October 2012 at 1:48am | IP Logged

AND FINALLY...

I don't care for where the writers took the story and characters because I know the truth.

In my head, Komal never died.

In my head, V spent the rest of his pathetic life in prison and paid for his crimes till his last breath.

In my head, Sia awoke from her coma and she and Raghav lived happily ever after.

In my head, the message was delivered to the victims. That you can be set free; that you can be released from the looming shadow of your abuser. You can have him punished. You can find help and a friend in a stranger. You can fall in love again. You can achieve the dream of a good marriage that the starry-eyed girl dreamt right before she was married to the wrong man. God is on your side, and not your abuser's. Good will always prevail over evil. And you, the victim, were always right.

I'm actually content. I'm content with all of the hard work that Harshad put into Raghav. I'm content that he has chosen to leave as well. He made the right decision for him. Like Raghav, he made a lot of sacrifices whether people acknowledge them or not. I've only ever followed one actor's work. But after Raghav, I'll keep an eye out for Harshad's next. I'll always remember Raghav. I'll remember what an incredible character he was and who made him so lovable.

Indeed, Raghav came as a beacon of hope and he remained a beacon of hope till the end.

THE E N D

Edited by Elysia - 26 October 2012 at 5:09am

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-vandy-

IF-Stunnerz

Joined: 19 September 2008

Posts: 33409

Posted: 26 October 2012 at 5:14am | IP Logged

"All I ever wanted was to reach out and touch another human being.

Not just with my hands, but with my heart."

ely...u wrote this for raghav...i'll write this for hc

i've been watching him for the past 4 1/2 yrs...and not once has he ever given me a reason to complain..to feel dissatisfied as a fan...

for the past few days...i was feeling very low...its not easy to let go off somebody so close to ur heart that easily...doesn't matter if its just a fictional character...

coz for me that character comes alive on my screen with hc's face...

and he makes me live the life of his character with him...

u start thinking like him..u starts seeing things from his perspective...

there's something which draws u towards those fictional characters...

who might not have any hint of reality in them...

but its hc...who makes sure u see beyond wats written in his script...

makes them as close to reality as possible...

to feel the characters...to live the characters...

watching yesterday's epi...somehow raised my spirits...

i know yesterday's epi marked the beginning of the end of raghav...

but...

i was left with a sense of satisfaction as i sat on my sofa...

the remote held on my cheeks...

and my eyes not blinking even once...

i just knew its good that hc is out of this...

i'm sure there are greater heights of success out there for him to scale...

raghav for me...was a name...that actually came as a hope...

i had stopped watching the show long time back...coz i simply abhored the way jahnvi was treated on this show...

the very first look of raghav...the way they showed him in promos...made me feel intrigued...

wen sia bumps into him in the promos...not once was he shown questioning sia...his instant reaction was to safeguard her from her fears...though she was a stranger for him...

this was the first time...one saw a character who as so selfless in nature...

his half tucked checked shirts...his messy appearance...his black vests,...his fights...

all of them became a way of life for us...

his pain...his connection with sia...his redemption in krishh...all of them made u mesmerised...made u hungry to see more...want more...and know more of raghav...

wen his mom slapped him..on their very first meeting...the way his eyes looked at her...

all u wanted to do was...wat lay in his dark past...which had made their relationship so bitter...

harshad and sumukhi proved that wen two actor's at par..perform on screen...the screen comes alive with their interaction...their relationships start breathing...coz of the life they induce in it with their performances...

wen komal came up as his confidant...wen he opened up abt his feelings for sia with him...u wanted to rip off the layers that lay hiding their past...thirsty to know wat made komal so close with him...a person who was accused by his own mother for being the cause of her husband's death...

i don't know if any of u remember raghav and sunder's first few interactions...i simply loved all of it...

i loved how sunder understood raghav so well...how even before raghav could admit...sunder just knew his friend's heart had indeed skipped a beat for sia...

raghav-tashu actually made me miss the fact that i never had an elder brother...i always felt elder brothers were dominating...ye mat karo..waha mat jao types..strict...

but seeing raghav and tashu..i felt there can be a totally different relationship too..

i loved how both gave the space and freedom to each other..but at the same time making sure...that they were taken care off...

i loved how both understood each other so well...

reliving their childhood days...

i actually have no idea wat i should be writing abt my two mard's...

they r the best pair...

it was strange how raghav always found his confidant in little krishh...the trust that he had in him...that he'll never divulge any of his secrets...

i loved how krishh was always there for raghav wen he needed him...

though they were not father and son..

the relationship which they shared was the most beautiful thing that this show had

oh yes...i simply loved the diff ways in which raghav picked up krishh...

each time it was diff...and it made me feel how close harshad and yash were off screen...coz the kind of ease yash used to have wen hc was with him..is unbelievable...

i'm sure...hc picked up yash is more ways than wat we saw of them on screen...

i soo wish we atleast got some off screen segments

as far as raghavii relationship is concerned...

i simply loved the kind of trust they had in each other...and it was mutual...

i had read on this forum how raghav was always an opportunist ...how he couldn't wait to lay his hands on sia...

but raghav...proved that for him...sia was his love...which was pure and he worshipped her...

the way raghav gave space to sia...acknowledged and respected her as a human being...says a lot abt him...the way he put her wishes first...rather than forcing his desires on her...reflected the kind of strong character he had...

i simply loved the kind of relationship both shared...

the way their relationship was set stage after stage...

no matter how much the growth in their relationship was ignored as per screenplay...

harshad-sriti made sure to portray their relationship to its utmost beauty for watever little screen space they got...

harshad and sriti...

wenever i think of these two...as actors...and think abt their chemistry...

i always feel cheated...

there was a lot more that the cvs could've covered...but they never bothered to explore this chemistry...

its our loss i agree...but more than ours..its their loss...coz they lost the opportunity to recreate an unforgettable and hit onscreen pairing...

something that could've lifted their channel from the kind of mess they r in right now...

i've seen channels run on jodis and here the channel missed out on one such golden opportunity...

neways...humara kya hai...

we know we'll get to see such chemistry again...as long as harshad is there...

harshad...with raghav...u made a character who was torn into bits coz of his inner turmoils..his inner pains...get together...and come out as a strong willed person...a messiah for the weak...but his eyes...reflecting his vulnerality as a broken person...who needed solace...

thank for giving us this unforgettable character...where we got to witness few of ur best performances...

may god bless u always...

coz for me

this is no end..

its just the start of a journey which'll mark the being for u to scale greater heights of success!

this is ur victory as an actor...

where...

raghav dwells in our hearts...

where ppl are not ready to see raghav die...

where ppl have stood by ur belief as a person...

Edited by -vandy- - 29 October 2012 at 11:43pm

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