#he could have NOT married shiv this is very true. and I think the choice to marry her even after she lied to him about sleeping with nate | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

herawell · 2 years

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Here are my headcanons about Bharata and Mandavi's marriage (copied and pasted from my last-night Discord dump):

So Rama & Lakshmana go to Mithila, Rama wins Sita in the swayamvara (and she chooses him too if you take her lifting the shiv dhanush as canon) and although there's nothing to support it, I hc that Lakshmana and Urmila married out of having siimlar fiery tempers and both adoring their elder sibling

So Rama/Sita and Lakshmana/Urmila happen out of love. By contrast, BHarata/Mandavi and Shatrughan/Shrutakirti have their marriages arranged bc it's convenient to have Ayodhya's 4 princes marry Mithila's 4 princesses.

I don't think Bharata/Mandavi had a bad relationship by any means, simply that their marriage didn't begin with a soul-deep connection the way R/S did, or with a spark the way L/U did.

THeir marriage was one of convenience (at first).

Now in order to fully appreciate my hcs, I need to talk about BHarata's family tree. Some versions have a backstory that Aswapati, Kaikeyi's father, had the ability to talk to animals but per a curse, could not reveal this knowledge to anyone else on pain of death. One day, Kaikeyi's mother heard him talking to some swans/birds and wanted to know what he was saying. Tl;dr she wouldn't back down and he banished her that day

Aswapati and his wife had 8 kids together (7 boys + Kaikeyi) yet she demanded to know a secret that would be his death & he exiled her.

WHich led to Manthara, her wet nanny, becoming Kaikeyi's mother figure. Kaikeyi grew up to be a warrior and saved Dasharatha's life in battle by acting as his charioteer. Yet when she gets married, she has to put all that aside and she's expected to produce a child (which she fails to do first). She's his favorite wife, but at the expense of her individuality & martial skills. And her childhood trauma leaves her terrified of losing his favor/place. The only leverage she has over him is those two boons. In my headcanon, Dasharatha and Kaikeyi loved each other fiercely, but they never communicated their fears/expectations, which led to Kaikeyi's panic on day. She once saved his life in battle, yet she ended up demanding an unspeakable oath from him, and he died loathing and cursing her.

Then there's Rama/Sita. They loved each other enough to go into exile and fight wars for each other, yet he put her through one (almost two) Agni Parikshas, exiled her while pregnant, and ultimately drove her to commit bhumipravesh.

So Bharata comes from a long line of marriages that were based in love but did not work out.

(I also hc Lakshmana/Urmila undergoing a very rough patch after he helps exiles Sita without telling anyone.)

In contrast, there's Bharata and mandavi. A lot of versions have him living at Nandigram while she wastes away in the palace, which... . It makes no sense for her to be alone in the palace just a few miles away, especially when Bharata wants to emulate Rama,who took his wife with him. So I hc that they went to Nandigram together, and there, when they had lost almost their entire family and had the burden of a kingdom suddenly thrust on their shoulders, they had no choice but to lean on each other, and in doing so, their marriage became one of true respect, companionship, and love.

THere's no real canonical support for like 80% of this, but I just love the idea that out of all the marriages that didn't work out in Rmy, here's one that was arranged, but ended up stronger than many of the others.

And because I wanted someone to end up happy.

I also hc that post-Uttarakanda, this is especially important, because Bharata has some complicated thoughts about Rama's decisions, and his marriage to Mandavi has to be especially strong to weather them. (Shameless self-promotion of the fic I wrote exploring this: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26334817)

#ramayana #hindu mythology #bharata #mandavi #headcanons #enthusiasm is common endurance is rare #ally talks

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fandom-mix-16 · 5 years

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Unsolicited, but I’ll talk about Shiv and Tom

(This is a very long post) (SPOILER ALERT too)

First of all, I’d like to be very clear that I have always loved their relationship - good times and bad times; even when it seemed like a mismatch, even when it felt like a toxic relationship, when he seemed to care for her more than she does him, when she seemed to not care at all, yeah, even then.

Because even then their relationship felt true despite a lot of things. I guess that’s what always mattered to me.

We know how much Tom loves Shiv. He says it. He acts it. With Shiv, on the other hand, it’s like there’s always this question hanging above: “Why is she with him when she doesn’t seem to care for him at all?” I’ve seen Shiv do something that completely questions the sincerity of their relationship, but there’s also something about the way she acts while this sincerity is being put into question that makes me feel that maybe it’s just an act, a facade to hide away her true feelings.

You can imagine how this season finale really got to me. It felt like my thoughts were put into writing put into moving picture.

I’ve always believed in them. Sure, this season really was a test of my belief, (I certainly reached the point when I doubted the sincerity that I was sensing since Season 1), but season finale put my mind and heart at ease.

Let’s break it down:

PRE-EPISODE 10

1. The ‘blood sacrifice’ made me extremely nervous. I talked about it pretty extensively (and confusingly?) in my last text post. With this season being Shiv-focused, it would make sense that Tom ends up to be the sacrificial lamb. Even if he doesn’t end up to be, I figured just the idea of him being sacrificed might cause some friction with his relationship with Shiv. The question lies in whether or not she will be complicit in his possible demise. Or whether she would actively help getting him out of that situation if he’s ever placed in it.

Given how she’s acted for the most part of the past couple of episodes, my belief was certainly wavering. Most evidence points to, “If he’s chosen to be sacrificed, she will be happy to bring him to the chopping block.” But part of me refused to believe that what I was sensing was an illusion; a creation of the mind that desperately wants to believe that there’s something pure about these vile characters, some light to hold on to. Maybe I am trying to hold on to something “good”, but I can feel it in my freaking guts that there’s more to Shiv Roy than being Shiv “fucking” Roy.

2. The preview text for this episode states, “Shiv proposes taking her open marriage with Tom to another level,” and then there was the clip from the preview when they were on the beach looking like they just finished a heavy conversation.

Of course my stream of thoughts took me to the direction of “Shiv will ask for divorce?!” because what other levels are there after an open relationship? (Having never been in a relationship I guess I should have expected that people get creative.) Tying this with the previous idea, I kinda panicked. Why would she ask for a divorce if she doesn’t want to extricate herself from the mess of being the wife of the fallen ‘Roy’? Which would mean that Tom ends up as the sacrifice which would mean that even if she didn’t have a hand on placing him there, she didn’t do anything for him either.

My mind was everywhere. I think I was doing statistical probability even in my sleep. This was such a crucial moment for them that I know my questions and doubts will be answered whether I like the answers or not.

So I came home from work (it’s Monday evening here), wanting to devour the episode and savor every minute of it as well. This is it, I thought. What I’ve been waiting for and what I’ve been dreading.

DURING EPISODE 10

3. The dining room scene. When everyone was pointing fingers at each other I knew it was only a bit of time before they point it at Tom, and AGAIN, I’m just nervous how Shiv’s going to react to this. THIS IS CRUCIAL. When they started to propose the idea of Tom as the sacrifice, Shiv can be seen struggling.

She knew this would come. She knew she’d need to say something, and she knew it was something that he’s not gonna like. When they were ganging up on him, she looked like she wanted to defend him in front of them but was trying hard not to. The strategic, political Shiv kicked in.

It’s logical to not side with him. That move also has the added bonus of not making her look vulnerable in front of the entire family and general counsel.

You can see it wasn’t easy for her to say that Tom makes sense because he’s family but also not family.

4. The beach scene. I liked that she offered to talk. She offered the ‘I love you’ to set him at ease. To tell him that her actions were made out of love. And when this didn’t work, she told him she wouldn’t let anything happen to him.

She was clearly uncomfortable to say it but she knows she has to because this is what’s bugging him. She get that he thinks she’s putting him aside like all those other times she did. She was uncomfortable though, not because it isn’t true but because that territory is foreign.

Then the heavy talk came in. Man, it would be a lie if I say I wasn’t waiting for them to have that conversation for some time now. If they are to be equals (some time in the future hopefully like a true married couple), conversation helps A LOT. Putting your thoughts and feelings on a platter and serving it up to your partner real nice develops a healthy relationship that builds on trust and love and all those things.

I was hurting when he said “I love you. I do. But I wonder if the sad I’d be without you would be less than the sad I get from being with you.”

I FELT THAT. Like WOW! TOM?! I also felt that divorce is just hanging around. And that freaking scared me! Because right then and there I was sure that the sense was justified. It’s there. They care for each other. She loves Tom. She cares for him more than she lets on, more than it seems, but she does. So why should they separate just when the true feelings are out?!

5. Shiv’s talk with Logan.

If one needs more proof about Shiv’s sincerity, this was it. Apparently when Logan told her about the blood sacrifice last episode she already offered someone else, someone not Tom (not happy it’s Kendall but that’s another story). She did that for Tom prior to the heavy talk. This wasn’t some last minute attempt to give Tom a reason not to continue with the divorce. She would protect him even when he didn’t ask for her protection. If that isn’t love, I don’t know what is. She even let go of her chance for CEO. Logan asked her opinion again. He reminded her to set her feelings aside and go for the kill if that’s what’s necessary, and she explicitly told him that she can’t choose. Not when it comes down to Tom or anything else. Her choice is Tom, and not even CEO-ship can change that.

So there ya go, this relationship makes sense, and I love it!

I was previously told that this isn’t a relationship to root for and that they hope I was kidding. I said I wasn’t kidding and I ain’t kidding now. It’s clearly not perfect: There’s infidelity, an open relationship that’s one-sided, and sometimes Shiv was just outright bullying him. But there’s hope. It’s that hope that this bond will only strengthen and grow into a beautiful thing that I’m rooting for. It’s these crazy individuals that found comfort in each other and would fight for the other that I’m rooting for. That hope is there, and I’m here for it.

To end this, I like to applaud the writing of these wonderfully flawed characters and the brilliant portrayal of them by Sarah Snook and Matthew Macfadyen. These thoughts and feelings that I have right now wouldn’t be possible if they didn’t make such a damn good job. I’m certainly looking forward to what they have in store for them for Season 3 (and many more seasons, please!) I hope that when this show ends they get the happiest ever after they could possibly have.

Sincerely,

Your #1 Shiv & Tom fan

#shiv roy #my best gal #tom wambsgans #sarah snook #matthew macfadyen #succession hbo #succession #shivxtom

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