Adhura S1E2
Now: Episode 2 "Shadow Boy"
Language of Origin: हिन्दी (Hindi)
Adhiraj is taking a bit of a swim and all seems find and dandy but oh course...SPOOKY VIBE, bruh! He is all alone, of course. He starts getting a little off kilter and starts hallucinating that someone is pulling him underwater until he passes out. He quickly regains consciousness and gets the fuck out of the water and takes his anxiety pills. As he pulls them out he can't help but notice his mysterious scar on his left hand. Ah, snap.
Supriya is in her office and she was on the phone with someone named Apu so her back was turned. Apu is heard on the other line basically begging her to come back as she has been gone 8 months already. Sounds like a side plot to be unraveled soon.
The phone call gets ended abruptly when she heard footsteps and without turning back, she says for to come on in! Except when she turns around, there was no one there. Huh. Weird. But then Vedant materializes at her door asking to come in.
She uses that creepy event for the benefit of their conversation. She elegantly transforms this incident to missing the busy city of Kolkata as to why she thought she heard those phantom footsteps. She uses that comparison to now ask Vedant to what he misses the most? He answers very innocently eating dinner with his family. So adorable. Thinking he is opening up to her, she takes this opportunity to ask him if he remembers what happened at that incident with the puppies in the first epiosde. Looks like he immediately shuts down and claims to not remember anything. He grips his hand with the same marking Adhiraj bears.
Not wanting to push him further, she sympathizes with him saying that often times when people get scared that our brains will not allow us to retain any memories. Which leads Vedant to ask if that is true then does that mean he really killed those puppies? She assures him he is not a psycho and goes to close a window that opened due to a gust of wind.
He says a creepy line that he is not alone but doesn't repeat it when she asks. Rather if he isn't a psycho, then why isn't he allowed in the assembly hall with the rest of his peers? This kid ain't a dummy, y'all. He damn well knows he's being excluded.
Switching scenes now to Adhiraj driving back to the campus grounds when he gets a flashback with his gramps.
Timeline: 1st Day of School for mini Adhiraj
10 year old Adhiraj and his grampa make a stop at an outdoor cafe. He's sad at the thought of his gramps leaving at the risk of being all alone with no family since he is all he has. Grampa tells him either one way or another he must stay strong! This kid sitting at the table next to him overhears the conversation and walks up to the table and calls him a crybaby. Aaah he's just teasin' he actually says that if he sticks with him, he'll get unlimited chocky milk!
And that's how Adhiraj and Ninad became best friends.
Interesting interaction as Ninad wants to be friends in return for protection from bullies.
Timeline: 2022
Adhiraj walks up to the aforementioned Raman Cafe but it looks...different. He walks up to one of the people working there asking what's up with that, man? Turns out, it got sold to someone else 10 years ago. Big sad now.
Back in school, Supriya is walking Vedant to the assembly hall just in time to join everyone else. However, Dean Swamy and Prakash were chatting but stopped dead ass the second he stepped in, amongst with all the kids as well.
Sathak is sitting not too far away so his friend Kabir and Dhruv snicker about his presence but Sarthak just looks away, still clearly traumatized.
Knowing she is about to get her shit rocked, Supriya is the one who approaches Dean assuring him that this is the right call as he is way more self aware than everyone else is giving him credit for. Dean has no choice but to trust her because she is the school counselor, afterall.
Everyone is still getting in their seats and all. Malvika actually goes on over to sit next to Adhiraj instead of her husband, Dev. Why? I don't know. Is assigned seating for this reunion thing? You're guess is as good as mine. Judging by their body language, they seem to be a bit rocky there. Trouble in paradise? Dev said something to piss her off, I bet.
They both make small chit chat. He honestly didn't think Malvika and Dev would end up together needless to say MARRY each other but yeah. Life, man. Malvika expresses her condolences to the passing of his grandfather. Awww. The topic of Ninad comes back up and yeah....Malvika says that she has not kept in touch with him nor anyone else since graduating. Adhiraj expresses remorse to their yet to be explained fallout. He was hoping to apologize to him today if he had attended. But he like...completely ghosted him. His BFF! So sad. I mean, he's tried looking for his buddy but all searches became fruitless.
The ceremony finally commences with Dean Swamy starts it off by giving condolences of his own to the recently deceased Dean Vyas. Suyash being an immature butthole then heckles "COACH GAS!". Yeah, no one's laughing, bro. He proceeds to call what is called the "Sword of Honor" that is none other than our main character! That's the equivalent to the best student award.
All Adhiraj can do is take a deep breath and take his stance at the podium. Also, flashback time.
Timeline: Last Day of School in 2007
Teenaged Adhiraj is sitting on the stairs when in walks Dean Vyas gives him his parting words to pep him up. He tells him to continue swimming when he yeets over to America along with the backhanded comment that his "useless" friend, Ninad, won't be distracting nor holding him back. Da fuck is this shit?
He does his speech and references the chocolate milk comment but ahhh....Ninad is not even in attendance. All he can do is just stare at that empty seat.
Timeline: Back to 2022
Everyone is cheering our main man on as he steps towards the stage. So it turns out that this Sword of Honor is like an outstanding MVP type of award. Just as quickly when he starts his speech, VEDANT snaps up out of his seat and slowly walks towards Adhiraj.
Yes, he literally got on stage. Oh boy. Adhiraj plays along and asks this adorable little boy what he needs. In a creepy demonic voice Vedant whispers, "Adu, you're back."
Then he faints.
He is immediately taken to the school doc (or Indian equivalent) and there doesn't seem to be any kind of explanation for his behavior. The doc seems a bit unconvinced that Vedant's fainting twice now in three days could be due to stress that Supriya implies. Doc is whisked away before he can dive deeper in this conversation. She looks down at the still unconscious kiddo and observes the same scar on his left hand.
Adhiraj is walking down the hallway when remnants of his past come hurling at him once again.
Timeline: Back2Skool
Teenaged Adhiraj is bouncing his basketball when someone calls for him and said something is going on with Ninad. In the locker room he is being bullied relentlessly with Suyash being the leader. While the other guys are punching a covered Ninad in a sheet, Suyash is being an asshole and sarcastically reading from his homemade comic.
Here his BFF runs in the locker room and rams Rajat and everyone else pummeling him. All while Suyash continues to humiliate Ninad's writing as he is now at the Shadow Boy part of his story and condescendingly reads how he can "cOnTrOl PeOpLe'S mInDs".
Everyone eventually stops the madder he gets defending Ninad. Before they take their leave, Suyash says that reading his comic inspired him writing of his own and throws at his feet words that spell out "homo" then they run off like giggling school girls.
Adhiraj tells Ninad that writing this comic totes ain't helping his case. If he is writing this "shadow boy" he speaks of, he goads him to then step out of the shadows. Fight back. Ninad says that it's useless that they'll just get a slap on the wrist while he'll get expelled. This makes Adhiraj reconsider leaving to the US after graduation so he can protect him. Ninad is adamant he should never entertain such a thought. In fact, he'll be there for his grandfather like he is there for him.
Timeline: Back2Current
Adult Adhiraj hears Ninad's voice saying "I will never forgive you." He snaps out of his retrospective by one of his peers informing him that Suyash is looking for him. He literally doesn't reply back and this dude is like...uhhhhh okay. I'll keep walking....
While walking, Adhiraj runs into none other than Supriya who just came down the stairs. He asks how the little kid, Vedant, is doing even confessing that he said something only he would know. She shuts that down reasoning that being that it is something he may have wanted to hear could be due to the Barnum Effect (well, today I learned! Look it up, interesting concept) She says that's how horoscopes usually work.
Later in the evening, there is a campfire hangout. Nah, not at camp but you know what i mean. People are already chatting amongst themselves about Vedant, the alleged puppy killer who is being possessed by the late Vyas. Uh yeah. Meanwhile, Dev walks up to his wife, Malvika, to apologize to whatever offensive statement he made and that she is his greatest achievement. Malvika snaps backs saying she ain't a trophy wife. And storms off to sit down.
All the alumuni is practically in attendance. Suyash is being Suyash bragging how all the housewives tune in at 9pm every night to see his handsome face on TV. His girlfriend, Nancy, throws a shit ball in his cheerios and says NOPE not anymore. Signifying he is no longer in the show or something. Feeling a little bit immasculated, he says he is focusing on his movie career. She is sooooo bored so she says she wants to head in for the night but Suyash vetos that decision. She brags in his face that she is more famous than he is and she is leaving with or without him. Suyash doesn't give a fuuuuuck. Neither does she and stomps away.
To break the awkward silence Dev makes a macho man remark but Suyash oh so cleverly deflects that back on him how he consoled the heartbroken Malvika when her and Adhiraj broke up on the last day of school.
Say what?
Yeah, he goes on! He says after Malvika got stood up Dev "convinced" her to break up wth him. Yeah, he pieced that together like real quick but Adhiraj took that revelation like a champ and said nothing more than a "Well played." response.
Laughing gets interrupted by a loud BANG!!!! Followed by the bell signifying dinner. Suyash decides to go kiss and makeup with Nancy only to find well, shit. Not only did she leave the campfire hangout but she left the whole all campus altogether. Ouch.
Dean Swamy is reprimanding Supriya for allowing Vedant to attend the ceremony earlier as he had to do a lot of damage control with everybody going to him with questions. She doesn't back down and says that this was a stepping stone to get Vedant to open up to her. Dean says the ends doesn't justify the means, SUPRIYUHHH. Because of this, Verdant is no longer allowed to sleep in the common area anymore and from this point forward, he will be sleeping in the infirmary.
At the dining hall with Suyash being a drama queen about Nancy actually leaving entirely. Parth, who was never a fan of Suyash as he was one of the peers that got bullied by his hands, has a hard time sympathizing with him. In fact, he takes advantage of this to rub it in his face that his show got cancelled and his girl left him so he does the classic Nelson "HA HAA!"
Suyash already being on edge this almost escalates into a fight between these two. Parth is unleashing his justifiable anger towards him basically saying he deserves all the bad juju. Suyash still being a butthole is not making himself any better.
Malvika attempts to deescalate the situation by saying they should do a play of their own as part of their comeback festivities. Even drama queen over here can play the lead role, how about that? While Malvika is talking, Adhiraj observes Surpriya walking Vedant into the dining hall and gets up heads their way while some of his friends joke that he's going to flirt with the counselor.
Wow. Grow up Rajat.
Adhiraj asks how he's doing. He empathizes how hard it must be and even go as far to say he thinks he may be a victim of bullying. With Supriya's blessing, Adhraj sits down with Vedant to see if he can sit down with him to give encouraging words to the young boy. Can't hurt to try, right?
It really is heartwarming to see how quickly Vedant is warming up to Adhiraj. He started off the conversation looking down and avoiding contact but his eyes lit up when Adhiraj asks if he likes superheroes. He asks if he ever heard of Shadow Boy. No? Well he explains that Shadow Boy was once a student here like him himself that was once alone in a cave when Phoenix Boy came to beckon him out of the darkness so that they both can fight the monsters. He uses this story to say that if someone offers a helping hand, don't turn away but embrace it so that he, too, can get superpowers of his own and fight back.
Vedant then has an interesting looks on his face and starts eating.
This day is coming to a close. Vedant is being tucked in to bed. Suyash and his pals are being drunk buffoons. Adhiraj is having troubling visions of some grave accident that keeps coming and going in flashes. He suddenly wakes up and walks over to a coffee table only to see the only copy of Ninad's Shadow Boy comic looking back at him.
Suyash is seen passed out on his bed when suddenly his bed starts shaking uncontrollably with him telling his friends to cut that shit out. He snaps up only to find his room is completely empty. Still reeling in his confusion, all of a sudden a sheet gets wrapped around him. He is suffocating and begging to the powers that be to let him go while he thrashing around struggling to breathe!!
Taking a quick look at the infirmary, Supriya is seen fallen asleep in the chair right next to Vedant except....Vedant is no longer in is bed. Dun dun DUNNNN!! Camera pans over to the next room over where Vedant is seen slowly walking back stopping dead ass in front of Supriya with a very disturbed look on his face.
Episode 3 is next