Why I think Bhallala Deva is not bad..

The first born is always the favorite in the family till a second born makes the entry.

Life for the first born changes from the day the family’s, neighbors’ attention shifts from his/her playful antics to that of the baby. His baby talk, baby looks all seem to be upgraded to “grow up, now you have a younger one to take care of” statements, if not spoken but hinted at.

As we grow up, the first born is compared with the second born, if the second is smarter, studious, playful, and darling of the folks. Also makes the first born move into a cocoon of their own. They seem to make way for the second one’s heroics unwillingly. They seem to be seen weaker than the second born. Less intelligent and less sensitive. The first born is made to feel like a ‘mistake born’.

All thanks to the smart second born. If not for their appearance, the first born would have seen as the perfect one for the family.

That’s exactly what happened with Bhallala Deva in Mahishmati

He was born a normal prince with all princely qualities. Till his cousin Baahubali was born.

Baahubali was in every sense the charmer, smarter, studios of the two. Sivagami, the Queen was fond of Baahubali which also had a fact of him being orphaned. Bhallaladeva was pushed to the sidelines though the two Princess were trained, coached, rewarded equally. Yet Bhallala Deva knew his own mother loved him a little less than how much she loved Baahubali.

It pushed him into a forced silence every time Baahubali shone. This gave his scheming father opportunities to influence his son’s thinking. Knowingly or unknowingly, Bhallala Ddeva distanced from his queen mother’s positive influence. He saw Baahubali was taking a lion’s share of the love he was legally and by birth had right to. Yet, he knew there was no way he can force his own mother to give him priority.

Silently, willingly or unwillingly, made way for Baahubali in every path of life. Somewhere he erred too, coming under his wicked father’s and equally wicked advisers. Yet, when his father asks him to murder his mother so that Baahubali’s growth is studded, Bhallaladeva does not heed to his command. He has the goodness in him still somewhere within him.

The only time Bhallala Deva felt his mother give him the best is when she agrees to get Devasena for him. Who he eventually lost to Baahubali.

But in order to keep her word given to her own son, Sivagami strips Baahubali of his title of the King of Mahishmati (since she gave him options to choose and he chose...well...you know who) and in turn Bhallala Deva is crowned the King. Though Bhallala Deva is the actual hire to the throne that, it came to him not willingly.

Neither the throne nor the people of the kingdom wanted him to sit on it. Somewhere in the past, for having made way for Baahubali, Bhallala Deva lost all opportunities to win the hearts of the people and the throne. Even when he does get the throne finally, as and when the son of his rival is born, due to the design of events unfolding around which he and his dad were the masterminds, queen mother snatches the very throne she gave her son, Bhallala Deva and hands it to the new born Mahendra Baahubali, his nephew, son of his rival cousin Amarendra Baahubali.

A loser in all aspects, Bhallala Deva got the venom of revenge deep into the core of his bones. The transforming events from an innocent new born, into a sidelined youth, to that of a revenger is not something he himself would have wanted to happen yet happens.

If Baahubali was not orphaned, if the Sivagami had not been in a confusion who to crown as the King and preferred the popular, smarter, charming, talented Baahubali, had Baahubali not been born, who knows maybe Bhallala Deva would have been the good hearted Prince.

Haven’t a majority of the first born and a few second born not wised they were the only child of their parents?

Bhallala Deva was not born bad.