#KetchupCut: Jigra is for every elder sibling who had to take on the role of a parent

In today’s Ketchup Cut, we’re discussing how the Rakhi scene in Jigra authentically brings out the vulnerability and strength of an elder sibling!

As an elder sister, watching Jigra was a cathartic experience for me. It was my worst nightmare playing out in front of me. Ever since my baby brother came into my life, I had a major shift in my personality. I was suddenly taught to look after him and think of us as a team wherever we went and I did exactly that. Be it birthday parties, play dates or even watching him make friends later, I always made sure I was that invisible protective shield he didn’t know about. Similarly, Satya (Alia Bhatt) would turn the world upside down if anything went wrong with her brother Ankur (Vedang Raina). Given the kind of family they were a part of, things do go haywire like she expects and, from then on, the world sees a side of her that they never should have. Even though the film did not do well at the box office, I not only loved the story but also sobbed hard from start to finish. 

I related to Satya more than I ever have to any fictional character before. Probably every elder sibling would relate to the fact that their younger sibling is sort of like their first child. You want them to get the best of everything in life and shield them from every bad thing out there. After Ankur is arrested under false pretenses, Satya makes it her life’s mission to get him out of there by hook or by crook. Stuck in a foreign country, in a jail with people he cannot communicate with due to a language barrier, Ankur might not have a lot of faith in God but he sure knows that his didi will pull him out of this mess. The scene where Satya goes to meet Ankur for the first time in jail is one that’s etched in my mind even a year post its release. Having barely slept and cried all night, Satya asks the guard before going in if she looks okay, to which the guard nods no. She quickly tries to fix herself up to look strong in front of Ankur because that’s just what elder siblings do. We would be hurting terribly on the inside but we’d pull ourselves together for the sake of our sibling, to be their strength so they don’t fall apart.

Also Read: #KetchupCut: Why Bhaag Milkha Bhaag's earring scene is a masterclass in emotional storytelling!

The two meet but they’re divided by a glass in the middle. Satya picks up the phone and asks him if he is okay. Ankur can barely meet eyes with her because he feels guilty to have put her in this situation in the first place. The two try touching their fingers together from the little space the glass has below. Satya then said something that completely changed the way I look at rakhis. She tells him, “Tu meri rakhi pehenta hai na? Tu mere protection mein hai”. It gives me goosebumps every time I watch that scene and also leaves me teary eyed. As girls, we’re always told that our brothers will protect us when we tie them a rakhi but, to be honest, it's mostly the other way around! I know how many times I’ve had to come to my brother’s rescue which is why this scene just hits different and brings out everything that I feel for my sibling on the inside.

Satya has a simple motto she says in the film, “Maine kabhi nahi kaha mein achi insaan hoon, mein bas Ankur ki behen hoon.”  The film just feels like a warm hug to every elder sibling out there who had to put their own dreams, their childlike inhibitions and their peace of mind aside just so that their younger sibling can easily get a life that they never had! While this movie is quite emotionally intense, maybe it’s also exactly what you need to watch with your sibling this Raksha Bandhan because it describes sibling relationships way better than a thousand words could!

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