S01.E08: Under Pressure

[Tara Ariano]

Veeral tries to railroad Ragini into taking his name at an emotionally charged marriage ceremony; Meghan reaches her breaking point with her monster-in-law Lisa's criticizing ways; Christian and Maria have difficulty convincing Peter to attend a 20th wedding anniversary party.

[VanSensei]

Some musings for this episode:

 

1. Maria looked beautiful in that black dress. Glad her and Christian are getting...somewhere? And that Peter realizes maybe, he can wait.

 

2. I, as a guy and of that demographic of "people probably getting married in the next 5 years" do not care at all whether whichever woman I marry take my last name. Some people do, some don't, it's up to her.

 

3. Fucking butter on toast, the MIL is passive-aggressive. It's so obnoxious and if that were me, I'd have already flipped.

[Straycat80]

I'm so happy Josh and Meghan get to move away from the wicked witch of the south, the MIL. If I was Meghan, I would have scooped that banana pudding that fell on the floor and fed it to the her. That would have been great payback for all the rude comments and criticism Meghan had to put up with from that woman.

So if you have a huge Indian wedding in California you are not legally married? You just have to sign a marriage certificate afterwards? I thought when you did that you had to have a witness like a city clerk or a notary. And once again I can't believe this couple didn't talk about Ragini taking Veeral's last name or not BEFORE they got married.

So I guess the producers decided it was boring always showing Christian playing video games and Maria cleaning while he bosses her around. Let's have them plan a 20th anniversary party for his parents in one week. Yeah, like that was real. Who paid for this party? Not the kids!

And the same conversation between these two:

Maria: you talk over me

Christian: you're dumb

I didn't buy the last scene between them where he says she did a good job and he loved her.

First of all there was a table between them, she looked like she was glad to be as far a way from him as she could get. No touching at all.

One good thing was Peter dodged the bullet, for now, no appropriate girls came to the party for him to marry. They probably heard about what a great (sarcasm) husband his brother was and stayed away.

So there is a reunion show next week. Previews looked good, Josh and Veeral's talking about who was going to kick Christian's ass. Oh please reality TV gods let that happen!

[Primetimer]

Which moments from Arranged's season finale fail the sniff test?

Read the story

[MelineB13]

I call shenanigans on the banana pudding drop.  Everything from the fact that it looked like vomit (well more than a normal banana pudding) when she pulled it out of the oven to the over explanation of "I'm going to set it riiiiiiiiight heeeeeeerreee" - it was clearly a reenactment.  

[VanSensei]

Also, Christian's shtick of dressing like someone contractually obligated to be in every Pitbull music video ever was at like, 11.

[beeblebrox]

What banana pudding needs to be baked? Their recipe looked gross. The disapproving looks made it more gross to me. Seriously, I'm married to a Southerner and have never had a baked banana pudding. I love cocktail attire for pigs in a blanket and Ritz crackers. That cracked me up. Christian is such a monumental jerk. Maria asked perfectly reasonable questions, etc to a response of "shut up!" Christian deserves whatever ass kicking Veeral and Josh have for him.

[mojito]

 

I love cocktail attire for pigs in a blanket and Ritz crackers.

It's a southern thang and just too uptown for you Yankees. You just don't realize how hard it is to bake those perfectly cylindrical blankets and then stuff them with wieners. And clearly, you don't know anything about the Ritz. 

 

Run Peter, run!

[Pepper Mostly]

Oh, the Perfect Southern Cocktail Party, with elegant nibbles like real Ritz crackers! Klassy! none of those cheap, knockoff crackers, mind you. Dear lord. And those two hags cackling over the banana pudding! Godawful.

 

Did I hear Nina say there weren't any "broads" at the party for them to scope out for Peter? Broads? She's in Guys and Dolls all of a sudden? My theory is that the word is out in the Gypsy community about what a living hell it is for a young bride in their family, and the whole community is locking up their daughters.

 

Veeral and Ragini are completely, totally staged. You can see that the parents can barely contain their mirth in the talking heads. Even Ragini can hardly keep a straight face sometimes. Don't you sign the marriage certificate with your maiden name? The whole thing was ridiculous.

[mojito]

 

Did I hear Nina say there weren't any "broads" at the party for them to scope out for Peter? Broads? She's in Guys and Dolls all of a sudden? My theory is that the word is out in the Gypsy community about what a living hell it is for a young bride in their family, and the whole community is locking up their daughters.

You heard it at least twice. 

 

Hey, don't forget, they had to slaughter the hogs, too, for the cream cheese topping. Ain't you got no 'preciation for the finer things in life?

[Pepper Mostly]

Hahahaha, guess not, mojito! Here in Boston we only swill down Sam Adams and Fenway franks, while wearing Patriots t shirts and Red Sox caps.

[VanSensei]

You know, this is going to sound completely pessimistic, but I give Ragini and Veeral maybe 4-5 years.

 

They're so different in culture, in what their outcomes are and what they want out of each other that it will eventually come crashing down. Now, they can fake it like a lot of people can - faking it under a guise of false happiness is easy. Like many things in the grand annals of human history, however, it'll all come crashing down and culminate in something bad.

[Angel3186767]

Wow, where do I even begin with this show?

I agree with some of the other posters that say that the storyline between

Ragini and Veeral is beyond scripted. These two just always appear to be acting and even when they are 'arguing', they both have a constant smirk on their faces. I am also so tired of Ragini's constant reminder of how much of an independent, control freak she is. We get it! You are a successful, educated woman. Guess what, so are millions of other women. But we also have to make compromises when we decide to marry. If not, don't bother with the whole marriage thing.

Meghan, Meghan, Meghan. I could write a book on this girl but I will say that I do pity her slightly. Dealing with that piece of work passive-aggressive MIL, would test my patience. Also, to some who questioned baking the banana pudding; that actually is a common way to cook it. I bake mine for about 8 minutes to brown the meringue. But her dish really looked gross, so I'm not sure what went wrong. Also, loved the MIL using the word 'classy' to describe the elegant spread of pigs-in-blanket, cheese wiz on ritz crackers and banana pudding. LOL!

Lastly, Christian and Maria. Free Maria!!! He is an ass and she is too good for him. But the main problem is that they are just too young. We have 17 year old twins (a son & daughter) . While my daughter is very mature for her age, our son is emotionally and mentally still a teenager; which is fine. He will mature light years in college. I can't imagine him stepping into the adult role of being a husband for at least 10 years. He needs more 'seasoning' as does Christian. Hopefully, Peter will wait many years for marriage. All he needs to do is look at Christian & Maria. That will help his future decision on marriage at a young age :).

Edited June 3, 2015 by Angel3186767

[The Evil One]

Oh this show! Why can't I quit you?

I will say this - based on the premiere, I thought I would hate Meghan all the way through, but that bitch MIL had me rooting for her. I hope Indianapolis and Nashville do her a world of good as far as establishing herself and getting hubby to cut the cord with Momma. I also hope she uses that master's degree to do something other than perform crimes against Ritz crackers.

Ragini and Veeral ended as they began - the fakest fakers who ever faked. I can't even with them. You've been dating for how long and the fact that Veeral knows his way around a boat is a surprise? You live on an effin coast! Congrats, Veeral, you made it on TV. Now check your bucket list and disappear. As for Ragini, after several posters mentioned her nose job in the previous episode, it was ALL I could see tonight. I agree, in profile, it's so textbook ski jump nose 101. The lip fillers were noticeable in episode 1, but the nose escaped me.

Finally, RUN, Peter, RUN! And FreeMaria! Maria, honey, when he calls you stupid for a week then does a suck up for the cameras at the end, I hope you don't believe it. Christian, you did not find love. You found chattel. Please do not procreate.

[JellyFishQueen]

So... Something to me thinking, and I feel ashamed of thinking this. Were Josh and Meghan sleeping together before marriange, right? They are not arranged at all and the first ep there thin veil premise was they were arranged by their faith. And Josh Mother seems like she would say something about that, and as femenist I want to support Josh Mother "Choices" but AHHHHHHH~!

[Angel3186767]

Oh this show! Why can't I quit you?

I will say this - based on the premiere, I thought I would hate Meghan all the way through, but that bitch MIL had me rooting for her. I hope Indianapolis and Nashville do her a world of good as far as establishing herself and getting hubby to cut the cord with Momma. I also hope she uses that master's degree to do something other than perform crimes against Ritz crackers.

Ragini and Veeral ended as they began - the fakest fakers who ever faked. I can't even with them. You've been dating for how long and the fact that Veeral knows his way around a boat is a surprise? You live on an effin coast! Congrats, Veeral, you made it on TV. Now check your bucket list and disappear. As for Ragini, after several posters mentioned her nose job in the previous episode, it was ALL I could see tonight. I agree, in profile, it's so textbook ski jump nose 101. The lip fillers were noticeable in episode 1, but the nose escaped me.

Finally, RUN, Peter, RUN! And FreeMaria! Maria, honey, when he calls you stupid for a week then does a suck up for the cameras at the end, I hope you don't believe it. Christian, you did not find love. You found chattel. Please do not procreate.

I totally agree! The MIL has made me reluctantly sympathize with Meghan. She is just awful. But things will never change until Josh learns to defend his wife against his mom.

Veeral and Ragini have lived together for what 4 years and she is still so surprised at what he can and cannot do? I call BS on that. My marriage was far from arranged but my hubby and I dated for 3 years in college before we married after we graduated. By the time we married, we could look at each other and speak in non verbal codes just by our expression.

Also, there is something a little off about Veeral. I'm not one to assume but...

[mojito]

 

You know, this is going to sound completely pessimistic, but I give Ragini and Veeral maybe 4-5 years.

Just in time for Ragini to declare that her biological clock has wound down and she can then marry a guy who's divorced with grown kids who'd just as soon have no more kids and loves that his trophy wife is so involved in work so he can spend more time on the golf course. Seems like she should have gone this route from the start. 

 

In the beginning, did everyone have a hard time remembering that Lisa was Josh's mother and not Meghan's? They seem more like each other's mothers than like their own mothers.

[TeapotWakeen]

I call bullshit. It's not a classy Southern party without Pimento Cheese involved.

 

Wonder if Christian has had to work another day since his horror of climbing the ladder? Marriage doesn't necessarily make you grow up -- have to act like a grown up does. Like.... working.

 

Wonder if Veeral would be better off with Davina from Married at First Sight? She would have over-analyzed all of these decisions to death, but at least Veeral would know the answers. ("You want to take a boat out on the water, to what end?")

[Scorpiosunshine]

I believe Meghan dropped the banana pudding, but I think the TV drop was a recreation, stitched together with actual cry face, as if the cameras jusssssttt missed the drop, filmed the cry face (it did look real; no woman would make that face on purpose), and when Meghan calmed down they had her reenact the drop. It looked like they'd scooped the already-dropped banana pudding into a foil pan. The difference between that one and the real one was obvious. Also, I'm Southern, and we have two ways of making banana pudding,--one requires a quick bake for the meringue, the other is no bake. I thought her real banana pudding (the one In the glass pan) looked fine.

Those two biddies are NOT representative of the South nor of Southern mothers-in-law. Let's say her pudding tasted awful--most people would be polite, just like anywhere else in the world, and if Meghan asked and expressed that she didn't think it was good, maybe then a MIL would discreetly and sweetly (not passive-aggressively fake sweetly) give her tips, just like anywhere else. Southerners are not these freaking caricatures , but there are always snotty bitches wherever one goes.

Josh is one of those guys who sits back like a king while his wife spirals into a depression trying to live up to his nasty mother, when he should come to her defense to his mother (she's HIS mother; I'd do it for my husband, if I had one and if my mother were a bitch, so moot point all around lol). He doesn't have to be disrespectful, so that's a cop out. He should reassure Meghan that he doesn't wanna be married to his Mother...unless he does.

I think Josh is selfish anyway, and that really came out in the last episode. Did anyone catch the way he snapped at her at Match Day? I know he was nervous, but still; that was very telling to me. Idk ..I feel for Meghan and hope she tests Josh's promise to follow her, too; she needs to spread her wings for herself a little.

Edited June 4, 2015 by Scorpiosunshine

[JellyFishQueen]

Does anyone else think Meghan would be better off growning up in the 60's? She seems to want the white picket fence, being married to a working husband have 1.2 kids at home and doing southern style. Like fancy dinners and playing cards with the doctor husband wives ya know? Like I feel like this show more focus on Meghan husband college education and we barely see Meghan do anyone with school. Just refference to it, but everyone knows the bread and butter is hubby job.

[Scorpiosunshine]

Yes, JellyFishQueen; I agree.   I wish we could have heard more about Meghan, her schooling, her plans. Josh isn't more important just because he's going to be a doctor.

[The Evil One]

 

Josh isn't more important just because he's going to be a doctor.

 

Don't be silly. In that world, Josh is more important because he's a MAN.

[mojito]

Is there a reason why this show focuses on the husbands' parents and we don't see the husbands dealing with their MILs?

[Cabarb]

I started this season really not like Meghan at all, but her horrible MIL has really made me root for her.  To be honest, I resent that a little bit!  Josh is the worst.  It is his job to handle his people  If his mother is making his wife feel bad about herself, he has the responsibility as a husband to make sure it stops.  For him to sit there and say there is nothing he can do about it is ridiculous.  The scene at the furniture store with Meghan and the MIL was so fake.  The woman who was hell-bent on upstaging Meghan at her own wedding is not going to give him so quickly and easily and stop being a controlling bitch.  I'm not buying it for a second.

 

Don't even get me started on Veeral and Ragini. Everything about their entire "story" is fake.  You don't live with somebody for years prior to marriage, but still claim to not know what they want or need out of the relationship.

 

As for Christian, he wouldn't still be standing around breathing if he talked to me the way he talks to that poor girl.  Free Maria!

[qtpye]

I found the ending where Christian said that the best thing about marriage is spending time with Maria completely fake and producer driven.  Christian clearly hates being with Maria and always will.  He was in no way ready for marriage(very few people his age are) and is taking all this anger and resentment out on his wife. 

 

However, he could not refuse the marriage because that would mean he would have to get off his parents teat and go out and support himself.  Since Christian's only goal in life is to sit on the couch and play video games all day with his brothers...this would not have worked well for him.  He seems to have no career and/or education ambitions, whatsoever.  The sad thing is this sets Maria up for a very miserable life.  I imagine if she left her husband the Gypsy culture would look down on her as a tainted woman.

 

Great job Gypsy parents...you have raised an entitled worthless spoiled brat of a kid, but his wife has not left him after six months, so that means you guys are successful in your culture?  Obviously, after such an amazing success the only solution is to force your nicer son into the same kind of arrangement.

 

At least the other couples are older and have good career prospects.  Actually, none of the other couples are actually arranged, either.  They are just regular couples looking for reality t.v. fame.

 

It looks like Josh wants to kick Christian's ass in the previews.  Maybe Josh can channel some of that anger to tell his mother to lay off Megan.

 

I also do not understand what the southern mother in law has against Megan.   I mean she supposedly hand picked this girl for her son, so why the hell is she so critical of her?  If Megan does not live up to her high monkey faced standards...then that is on her.

 

Edited June 5, 2015 by qtpye

[JellyFishQueen]

I call BS on the smackdown for Christian, he's proably going to show-up and talk about regret how he treated Maria and all the other couples are going to be like. Oh we were wrong, Christian has changed after all.

[ChristmasJones]

Fakety fake fakers who fake.

 

That is my summation of this series.

[ethalfrida]

Fakety fake fakers who fake.

 

That is my summation of this series.

FOR REAL!!!

 

Regarding the lack of education within its culture as far as we've seen on other shows, education does not rank very high as a goal. Right now he IS making a living from the TV show. So he is not exactly idle. But wouldn't it be great if these shows were not producer-driven? To me it would be more entertaining to see natural interactions between the couples.

 

And don't mention the southern belles. I mean, who, in 2015 says a woman's place is not in politics and is in the kitchen catering to her husband? I love the catering to the husband part but also love being a recipient of attention and spoiling. Not a one way deal. But to try and make us believe some woman in these times believes a woman is only good for domestication is an insult! 

[sookisooki]

Fakety fake fakers who fake.

 

That is my summation of this series.

This show even ranks above MAFS as being fake.  How lazy can these producers, execs be to not find genuine arranged situations? Pure stupidity because this concept can be a great brand for this fledgling FYI network.

[ethalfrida]

Do you think that this is a possibility? The cultures where arranged marriages are done are also cultures who would not sell out to reality tv so there is a shortage of "real" marriages of that type? Just wondering...

[fliptopbox]

I have seen other shows covering arranged marriage and they were able to find legit couples. Lisa Ling did a show about them in that Our America series, and that was relatively recent. I don't know why FYI couldn't find better couples aside from Maria and Christian. Regardless, I am looking forward to the reunion or whatever it is this week. I'm looking forward to Veeral and Josh confronting Christian about what a little asshole punk he is. 

Also in this episode I noticed Nina (when she was younger and had dark hair) looked almost identical to Christian. It was a little bit creepy, to be honest.

[sleepyjean]

It's funny, when I saw the first episode of this show I thought now maybe we'll see a different view of gypsy culture in America. I thought maybe this was attempt to be the exact opposite of the My Big Fat American Gypsy Wedding/Gypsy Sisters train wreck. Maybe they were trying to show us that gypsies have fine old respectable traditions and class and maturity and common sense. After all, the guests at the wedding for this show wore proper attire and behaved like adults. This turned out to be a train wreck as well, just a different flavor of it. I get the feeling in that culture, they KNOW they children are incredibly young and immature, but they believe that marriage and parenthood is what makes a a child into an adult. Since there's no escape from the relationship, they have no choice but to put on their big girl pants and muddle through. It's very obvious that they do the arranged thing to tie the kids down before they can grow old enough to develop any notions about independence and choosing their own path.

 

Does Christian have a job?

[Cabarb]

 

Does Christian have a job?

 

In a very brief moment a few episodes back, Christian went with his uncle/cousin or somebody to work on a house, saying that was the business he would be going into.  If I remember correctly, it was only a few minutes long and we didn't see Christian actually do anything.  I think he refused to even climb up on the ladder.

[Pepper Mostly]

If any of them have straight jobs I'll eat my hat. We've only ever seen Nina hustling flowers in bars. That whole "roofing" scene was so staged it was ridiculous! None of them looked as if they had the slightest idea what they were doing!

[fliptopbox]

It's pretty obvious neither Christian nor his brothers have jobs. And of course the wimmenfolk don't because their place is in the house, cooking and cleaning all day every day. What I really want to know is what does their father do? Not only does he have 5 other people to support, he's expected to pay dowries of thousands for each of his son's bride. Where the hell is that kind of money coming from??

 

Nina and her bar flowers were so obviously bogus (even if she was selling flowers it's likely Maria would not have been allowed in a bar anyway, being a minor), as was Christian's "construction" job. Boy wouldn't even get on the ladder. What a pussy. It's sad that flaky Meghan is more educated than those clowns.

[trimthatfat]

I felt bad for Meghan when her MIL and Josh's grandmother were so critical of the stupid banana pudding. I honestly think going to Indiana and getting some distance from Josh's family for the year will be a very good thing.

 

I would have liked to see real arranged marriages. Christian and Maria seemed legitimately arranged while it seems Veeral and Ragini met online because of their parents. I don't consider that an arranged marriage because if they didn't like each other, they wouldn't have moved in together or gotten married.

In a very brief moment a few episodes back, Christian went with his uncle/cousin or somebody to work on a house, saying that was the business he would be going into.  If I remember correctly, it was only a few minutes long and we didn't see Christian actually do anything.  I think he refused to even climb up on the ladder.

He did end up going up the ladder (with assistance) and helping clear the water on the roof with a broom. Not sure what else the job entailed, but that was his part on camera.

[DangerousMinds]

Meghan says her mother "arranged" them, and Veeral/Ragini continue to claim they were arranged but I don't understand how.

[fliptopbox]

I don't get how Meghan and Josh or Ragini and Veeral are arranged either. I thought they said Meghan and Josh were introduced by their parents (which does not mean arranged) and Veeral found Ragini on a dating site. Neither situation could be called an arranged marriage, regardless of what these people are trying to tell us. Considering the tradition of arranged marriages is still alive and well in certain cultures I don't know why FYI went with those 2 couples instead of actual arranged marriages. How dumb do they think we are? Not that Meghan and Josh and Veeral Ragini aren't interesting (if not mostly staged) but still..

[ShaNaeNae]

Did any of y'all (southern!) see the reunion? It recorded 13 minutes last night of flashbacks of the season and that's it. Then people on the Arranged Facebook page said they heard it's cancelled. Why would they cancel it right before the last episode, a reunion show?

[Bella]

Did any of y'all (southern!) see the reunion? It recorded 13 minutes last night of flashbacks of the season and that's it. Then people on the Arranged Facebook page said they heard it's cancelled. Why would they cancel it right before the last episode, a reunion show?

 

There wasn't a full episode last night. They ran Married at First Sight an extra hour and put the reunion episode off until next week.

 

Cancellation would not surprise me, but I expect them to air the episode slated for the 16th.

[TeapotWakeen]

Yeah, my DVR recorded part of an episode this week. It ended abruptly, and I thought WTH?  Then I thought, "Hey, I ain't mad at ya..." and figured I'd just wait to the reunion for this madness to wrap up.

[JenE4]

I fell asleep and missed most of this show. But I did manage to see the part where Ragini had to sign her name on the marriage certificate. Presuming that was the moment that she decided to change her name, then she had NOT legally changed it at the time she signed it. She needs to sign her maiden name on legal forms until she actually goes and completes the paperwork to legally change her name. So now the idiot just went and falsified her marriage certificate.

[fliptopbox]

I wouldn't be surprised if the whole situation of a name change was thrown in by production to add drama. I doubt anyone as anal retentive and micromanaging as both of them would truly forget their marriage certificate at their wedding.

 

I just can't wait til next week for the finale. I want to see Christian get a verbal bitch slap from the other two husbands. Double points if they actually knock him out.

[Pepper Mostly]

I want him to burst into tears and run from the room, calling for his mother. But I'm mean like that.

[mojito]

I'd like to see the verbal bitch slap, too.

 

The other husbands haven't had the experience this poor kid has had. First, they're educated. Second, they're several years older. Third, they picked their wives and weren't arranged. In Christian's shoes, I wouldn't see them as peers.

 

Free Maria. Run, Peter, run. (I'd say run, Christian, run, but I think he's already a lost cause.)

[sleepyjean]

It looks like Josh wants to kick Christian's ass in the previews.  Maybe Josh can channel some of that anger to tell his mother to lay off Megan.

 

Previews looked good, Josh and Veeral's talking about who was going to kick Christian's ass

 

I think that's wishful thinking.

 

I saw Ragini say that Veeral was upset with Christian, but I didn't see Veeral comment at all.

 

I also didn't see any anger whatsoever from Josh. I saw a rather mild-mannered guy say something like "If Christian disrespects Maria in front of me, I'd have to say something." And he said something else like "that made me mad" we referring to Christian and Maria. But I didn't see anything even close to anger in his face, in his manner or in his body language. He could've been talking about the weather. It came across to me as him being prompted by the interviewer ie: "what do you think about how Christian behaves toward Maria?" and Josh giving the expected answer.

 

I expect we'll see Josh and Veeral express some mild displeasure, probably with some humor mixed in. I'm sure Christian's mother has coached him on what to say. It remains to be seen whether he absorbed any of it. I expect he'll say sorry, and then repeat a few times how she doesn't talk and they didn't know each other well, but now everything is hunky dory. And he'll think he's doing an incredible job of answering those questions.

Edited June 16, 2015 by sleepyjean

[Bunnyette]

Just in time for Ragini to declare that her biological clock has wound down and she can then marry a guy who's divorced with grown kids who'd just as soon have no more kids and loves that his trophy wife is so involved in work so he can spend more time on the golf course. Seems like she should have gone this route from the start.

Hey it works for my hubby

[Polliwollidoodle]

I just started watching this (yes I know I am behind the times) and find it great watching. I just saw the episode where she does her girls wine tasting instead of dinner with his family. Enjoying this and sorry to have missed it when it first aired. hoping someone stops by and livens up the threads here?