by Meghna
Recently, I
saw the Bollywood movie Aashiqui 2. After watching it, I first cried my eyes
out (it was soo sad!!) and then I started thinking. At 2 am, I began to ponder
the notion of standing by someone, being there for someone… How long do you
stand by a loved one who’s not doing well, who is being self-destructive and
takes you down with him or her? Where do you draw the line? In order to explain
what was going on in my head I first need to tell you very briefly what the
film was about. Mind you, this is gonna be a major spoiler alert!
The story
revolves around two singers, Rahul and Aarohi. Rahul is a superstar who cannot
cope with his success and developed a drinking problem. Aarohi is a poor girl
struggling to become a singer. When fate brings them together, Rahul helps
Aarohi to become a superstar too. On this journey they fall deeply in love with
each other. Unfortunately, Rahul cannot get his drinking problem under control
and as Aarohi becomes more and more successful, he falls deeper and deeper into
a pit of darkness and clings tighter and tighter to alcohol. Aarohi stands by
him and uses affection, love and care to try to straighten him out. Rahul tries
and tries, but just cannot stop anymore. As the ending draws near, it is clear
that Aarohi is getting worse and worse while trying to take care of Rahul. She
suffers too from Rahul’s addiction to alcohol. Still, she stands by him. In the
end, she is willing to leave all her success behind and give up her dreams to
be with Rahul. The movie ends with Rahul’s suicide.
How many of
us have met people like Rahul? I’m not just talking about romantic
relationships here. I’m talking about all kinds of relationships. A friend, a
relative or a significant other who was or is on a self-destructive path and
sinks deeper and deeper into misery. Well, I met a couple of those people. I
watched as other people I knew offered a helping hand and eventually I began to
offer my own helping hands too. I’ve also watched the Rahuls turn away from
those helping hands and move into a space beyond helping hands. Luckily, some people
got their lives on track all on their own. Others are still struggling. I’ve
seen the helping hands wither as they poured all their energy into the other
person, like Aarohi. Yet, they never give up like Aarohi. Love really is very
powerful.
