level up your power poses – 5 hacks from ott series paatal lok
How often have you come across a series where the protagonist is not a super cop or a rebel, but rather is an under achiever who is overlooked for promotions. Hathi Ram Chaudhary from Paatal Lok is crushed by seniors who take away credit for work that he does, and yet you don’t see him firing up or fighting back!!
I have been a watcher of Who-Dun-It’s crime and mystery thrillers all my life and never have I come across a character as fascinating as Hathi Ram Chaudhary. In fact I have become an ardent fan of Jaideep Ahlawat after his work in Paatal Lok 1 and hence when Paatal Lok 2 was released, I could only imagine lapping it up as quickly as I could and that’s what I did! In my coaching assignments with managers and leaders, we often discuss the necessity of keeping the power equation balanced with colleagues in the workplace.
If you are a student of body language used in the cinema, I recommend you watch this one specially for how Jaideep effortlessly pulls off being an under achiever. And if you belong to the corporate world, you can definitely take lessons from Hathi Ram Chaudhary on body language to avoid if you want to be noticed and level up your confidence and power versus your colleagues in the workplace! Here are my favourite moves as depicted by Jaideep in Paatal Lok 2:
Haathi Ram is seen here having his signature downcast look – drooping eyebrows, downturned lips, drooping shoulders and the permanently etched furrows of worry on his forehead as he looks onto television news of another police officer being promoted to a significantly important position. It’s a beauty how Jaideep pulls the drooping posture off – given that he is someone with a large frame.
TIP 1: For the corporate goers, if you are attached to a desk job, beware of the dropping shoulders that come with the permanent posture over the laptop – it can unconsciously make your seniors overlook you during meetings. And if your desk job minimises your interactions with others, you might gain an unexpressive facial demeanour as in Hathi Ram’s case. Being expressive helps to show your enthusiasm while sharing ideas or countering those of others. Of course there is a fine balance between being naturally expressive versus trying too hard, so be careful with that.
Here Hathi Ram is conversing with his counterpart in Nagaland – Meghna Barua played by Tillotama Shome. In this particular scene, he is the one with more information and hence should come across as a bit more dominant. While he is maintaining good eye contact, the shoulders are drooping as always. But for me, what’s significant is the missed raised eyebrows. When we are deep in a conversation, a lot of us have a natural habit of raising the eyebrows – the arch of the brow rises upwards, helping us to emphasize the point we are making. Here in Hathi Ram’s case, his inner brow section is rising upwards in the captured screenshot, making him appear sad while he is explaining.
TIP 2: If you are sure about what you are explaining, that use eyebrow raise helps you look confident of your content. This signal is not something you can deliberately “put on” while speaking. But with practice, it is possible to make the eyebrow raise a natural part of your expression repertoire. It will help you to hold the attention of your listener better, especially if you need to debate out your viewpoint with that of your colleague.
Look at the two officers standing together. Yes, it is true that Ansari is the senior officer and Hathi Ram might not naturally be able to surpass his authority or dominance. But count the number of ways in which he is appearing like he is in his own shell of unsurety – hand folded inwards, neck retracted inwards, lips compressed… The more the signals that one’s body is closed down, the less comfortable one looks in a situation. Given that both Ansari and Hathi Ram are exiting a room in which Hathi Ram had decoded a lot of clues through sharp observation, this under confidence is not expected.
TIP 3: Learn to observe your body signals. If you truly want to come across as comfortable in a situation, there cannot be as many ways that your body is closed inwards as in this case. A fair warning – “controlling” your body language is not the idea here – learning to be ok in discomforting situations by working your way through them is what truly works. And if you are in the presence of a colleague, knowing how your body language is comparing up to theirs can mean the difference between looking like equals versus looking less powerful in the same frame of sight for an onlooker.
This is Hathi Ram talking with his wife Renu being played by the enigmatic Gul Panag. Her role as the spouse, atleast in this series, is one of being supportive of her husband, having accepted him to be who he truly is. She also is very aware of his strengths as a person as she states in one place “Not many have memory as sharp as Hathi Ram Chaudhary.” So what then do you make out of his body language here as he looks up to his wife during the conversation? He dare not even raise his head to look up to her! Again a signal of low confidence in her presence.
TIP 4: When you don’t make the effort to maintain direct eye contact with the person you are looking at, it can lower your power in the equation. Direct eye contact does not merely mean looking at them – it means having your body relaxed, neck straight or atleast not retracted. Beware of not giving anyone the power stare – this is used more in situations where you are looking to show your dominance, not level up your power.
Here we see Jaideep playing Hathi Ram with unsure movements. He was standing and speaking with Ansari, previously his junior but now his boss, and as he is leaving the office, he remembers that he needs to salute his senior. So he retracts and then offers his salute. Such hesitating movements are also seen when his bulky frame is going around all over the place in a fruit seller’s locked store, hunting for clues that might give him a hint to the missing person case that he was investigating.
TIP 5: If you wish to show that you are sure of yourself, this is definitely something to avoid – uncertain movements. You must have often come across people who make their mark upon you with their precise and calculated movements – each step being purposeful. This gives a signal that you are in control of your thoughts and actions, a strong nonverbal indicator of confidence.
CONCLUSION
A bow to both the actor Jaideep Ahlawat and the director Avinash Dhaware as this series is a delight to watch the underdog as the true protagonist. As a watcher, one would only end up pitying him. It is only in the very last scene (I don’t want to spoil it for you) that you feel the first tinge of empathy and hence true respect for Hathi Ram.
Hathi Ram is undeniably a great character who inspires one through his actions and passion for his work. But unfortunately he neither gets recognition nor any promotion although he is a great soul. The reason is that speaking up and showcasing you are up for the next role that could come your way is more if not equally important. In this article, we explored some ways in which you can atleast match the power equation to that of your colleagues so that you are not unnoticed by your seniors. I hope this helps!
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