Kya Paate Hain Kya Khotein Hain...

Jaane Wo Kaise Log The... (Dev)

Disclaimer: This is just a rough character sketch of the main protagonist of the show, and is not meant to victimize/white-wash him. This isn't justifying/glorifying him either.

Devrath "Dev" Dixit, epitome of a modern day tragic hero. And his name adds even more tragedy to it. "Devrath" from Mahabharata, who swore to celibacy, so that his siblings could prosper, "Dev (God)" who has to take harsh decisions; for the betterment of all, and who can forget "Devdas", that tragic romantic hero who died at his Paro's doorstep? Such a heavy weight name, isn't it? So, life wasn't going to be ever easy on him. And on top he came on ITV, to give tough competition to our bahus and betis, so he was anyway doomed.

So, whenever you saw Kuch Rang..., you couldn't help but feel for him, and most of you felt sad for him in a way or another. And he is that one character with whom I connected, and understood the most, even at times when I failed to do so with the others. I am not immune to his faults, but that's for another day, this is just for reminiscing the beautiful tragedy that Dev is...

When his father collapses, an innocent, naïve 8-year old Dev prays to God for his recovery, without knowing that his father has passed away already. And as a child does, he blames the one he had put his faith upon, and starts hating him.

The boy, who has to turn to the "man of the house" overnight. But one doesn't turn into an adult in a blink, especially one so young. The process involved is quite harsh, so every time a piece of naivety is ripped away, a hard shell takes its place.

Ishwari, upon realizing that it's only up to her now to head the household with little to no resources, is forced to delegate some of the responsibilities to her elder children. And Dev is simply chosen to be better educated because he is the brightest. But for him to assume the mantle, he has to be made compliant. She therefore, manipulates conditions, where Dev sees her being humiliated by her employers, and is made to realize that to ensure that his family will be happy, he will have to be the best.

Simultaneously, to ease her burden he takes up part-time jobs. But, the world isn't nice, and the more he sees it, the more he loses himself.

He sees his family losing everything in a blink of an eye, he sees his mother fighting the world to give them a better life, but he also sees himself helpless, for he is too small, but he is still big enough to feel guilty. And thus the transfer of faith takes place, as even after their countless prayers God wouldn't do anything, but his mother does. So, Ishwari becomes his God.

(The society we are brought up in leans towards patriarchy, but while we generally only see the autonomy it snatched from women, we ignore the repercussions it has on men. And its biggest victim is Dev. Dev may not carry the superiority complex carried by most men, but he sure does carry the guilt factor. So, every time something is snatched from his family, or a simple wish has to be forgoed, he feels the shame that he "the man" has failed. He does not take it out on anyone else, but internalizes it, blaming himself for failing and closing himself more and more. And every speck of smile he sees on his family faces, means he has succeeded, that he can then deserve to be happy.)

By the time he grows up, he has turned to this driven, successful man whose primary aim is his family's happiness. But that does not mean that he is completely cynical, he has the kindness inherited from his mother too, who believes in charity even in hard times. That despite being rich, he will not condone the poor. That despite being the breadwinner, he does not consider himself superior than others, or neglect the sacrifice done by Neha. But, he has learned to prioritize, the one who will always come first will be Ishwari, then Neha and his siblings, his work, his employees, and then charity.