Nov. Diwali 2010 Issue - Introduction to the Section 'Sach Ka Saamna'

Sach Ka Saamna !!
“The mother-in-law/daughter-in-law relationship is one of the most complicated human connections. It comes with a built-in conflict before the relationship even begins: two radically different views of the same man. One woman always will see him first as a man; the other always will see him first as her child.”
The above statement was made by Elizabeth Graham, who wrote the article, “The Other Woman”. Does the term “The other woman” remind you of one of the bollywood movies “Pati Patni aur Woh”! But here we aren’t talking about that “other woman”; we aren’t discussing an ‘extra marital affair’! We are talking about the other woman who is for some women your son’s wife or for some your husband’s mother! For times immemorial the relationship between a mother-in-law and a daughter-in-law has been unique. It has often been the butt of all jokes, with many cartoonists always finding enough matter to fill pages depicting their relationship. Like the following saying which depicts an aspect of this relation - "I wish my daughter: the sun of the winter, I wish my daughter-in-law: the sun of the summer." And I’m sure if a daughter has to compare her mother to her mother-in-law she will give a similar point of view!
With changing times, the trigger points between these two women have also kept changing. Earlier these women had their lives revolve around that one man. For the MIL the only concern would be losing her son to his wife, and for her son’s wife, her only concern would be to make her presence in her husband’s life above his mother and sadly they would leave the poor man to sort it out for them who would further ruin the situation! HAHA!! Well today the story might be slightly different. Many a times both the ladies of the house are working and therefore have strong egos that clash! Or then it is the kids who bring in new set of issues which lead to the difference of opinion between the two! Basic lifestyle changes and adjusting to each others’ habits can also be a trigger point. For years a tradition followed gets suddenly revamped by the daughter-in-law can be a killer! And the worse is yet to follow if the family reciprocates positively to the changes she brings in! Similarly it’s a battle lost for the daughter-in-law if her mother-in-law’s age old recipes are still a hit with her husband than her high fibre calorie controlled salads and soups! Ultimately the crux of the matter remains to be that the mother can’t look beyond her son who is the apple of her eye and her son’s wife cannot stand this very fact! It’s a classic power struggle between two women fighting over the same man!! WHAT A TRAGEDY!! LOL….
Well others’ Tragedy is often a topic of conversation and gossip for us humans. We love hearing what is NOT happening right in someone else’s life. We all know how enjoyable it is to hear two ladies gossip in the train about their respective mothers-in-law. Ever tried eaves dropping on someone else’s telephonic conversation? It is FUN!! How many of us can confess to the fact that we love reading news about petty domestic violence or small time robberies than read about a global merger on international news? I think we all can!! It gives our subconscious mind a sort of a solace to know that we aren’t the only ones going through problems, but there are others facing graver issues than us. Why are serials like ‘Kyunki Saas bhi kabhi bahu thi…’, ‘Kahaani Ghar Ghar Ki’ etc. such popular hits? - Because they are almost telling our own stories, but on a highly exaggerated scale. The ‘tu tu main main’ between a ‘saas’ and ‘bahu’ is a very entertaining concept which many TV channels have minted money on. But every saas and bahu need not always fight. It may not be an unconditional relation, but it definitely works on a give and take basis. I’m sure they all have their light moments to cheer each other. They can sometimes get along like a house on fire! They can also team up with each other against the ‘OH SO Important’ one MAN in their lives. They can even bond over shopping, gossiping, and of course narrating TV serials’ stories if one of them has missed an episode.
To capture a similar love hate relationship between some of our PP “saas – bahu” jodis, we have created a very light segment exclusively for them. As I said earlier, we love knowing more about others’ tragedies, here is a quick glimpse into not someone’s tragedy but a sneak peak into the lives of a couple of sporting ‘saas-bahu’ jodis who have very enthusiastically answered some of our questions. The plain intention of doing this section was to give our ladies a chance to share a light moment with their respective ‘saas-bahu’ and definitely to create some very interesting content for our readers to read.
All the “saas and bahus’ reading this section please make note of this special disclaimer:
“All views expressed in the following section are purely realistic and non-fictional and any resemblance to a person living or dead is purely intentional.”
Please read with an open mind and allow it to tickle your funny bones and do not stress over the same. Have a crackling DIWALI!!!