Ahaan Kothari has three prominent introductions in Karmma Calling season 1. The first is when he turns up dead on the beach on the day of his engagement. The second is when Yana calls him a ‘tragic billionaire’ while introducing him to Karma, and the third is when Zane says that Ahaan should not have to be a part of Karma’s revenge plan since he was innocent. Perhaps the most powerful moment with Ahaan was when Karma admitted in the final episode of the season that she had fallen in love with him against her plans.
Ahaan was introduced in a way that was meant to make the audience hate him. He was supposed to be just as bad as his parents so that one could feel that Karma was right in making the plan to break his heart. But his goodness was the start of Karma’s moral ambiguity. It wouldn’t be right to say that Ahaan did not take advantage of his privilege. He may be conscious of not following in his parents’ footsteps, but he enjoyed the wealth that they had accumulated. If that wasn’t the case, he would have moved out of their house long ago. Ahaan chose to take up a waiter’s job in a local restaurant, where he read his poetry for free on the weekends. However, he still went back to the comfort of his home, and his parents were treating his new job as a rebellious streak. If Ahaan really wanted to break away from them, he should have moved out of their house and tried to make it on his own. That would have made him truly different from them and free from their sins. Additionally, it was said multiple times that he had studied at Harvard. Why wasn’t he using his degree then and just waiting tables? If this is not a case of bad writing, then Ahaan is using some very subtle manipulation tactics against his parents.
Throughout season 1, Ahaan has been the good guy. But that doesn’t mean that he cannot go bad or that he won’t be making enemies throughout the show. Ahaan had ended up dead on the day of his engagement, and there are a number of possibilities in season 1 that could be the reason for his death.
The first person that comes to mind is Krish, who is obsessed with Ahaan. His intentions are not just to use the Kothari name to get a good job or a good life. He plans on using them to work his way up society, which is why he said that he wanted at least one Kothari under his control. Krish probably planned on manipulating Ahaan to suit whatever nefarious agenda he had, but Karma got in the way of that when Ahaan fell in love with her. It is entirely possible that Krish is in love with Ahaan, and his actions are a result of romantic jealousy. Krish slept with Zane at the end of season 1 of Karmma Calling, and his arc is not going to be pleasant in season 2 either. Maybe Ahaan had come to know about Krish’s lies and some possible crimes, and he was threatening to expose them, which is why he killed him. Otherwise, maybe Krish was told by someone to kill Ahaan if he wanted to protect his secrets or for some other collateral. Krish killing Ahaan is entirely possible when he realizes that he never had his friend’s best interests at heart.
The second possibility is far weaker, but maybe Vedang is the murderer of Ahaan. Vedang has not exhibited any red flags so far, but that could change in Karmma Calling season 2. Maybe Vedang would discover that Karma is actually his childhood friend, Ambika, and he understands that she is with Ahaan only for revenge. Currently, Vedang has kept his feelings in check since Karma has turned him down, but he might be a little more insistent when he discovers the truth, and that would lead to him being a little obsessed with her. Maybe he kills Ahaan out of jealousy. The more likely option is that Vedang and Karmma discover some dirt on Ahaan that proves that he is a bad person after all. Vedang kills him so that he doesn’t harm Karma in the future. A third option is that Ahaan discovers some secret of karma, and Vedang kills him to protect her.
These are the most likely options that can be derived from the current narrative. A third option that may emerge from Ahaan’s past. Because of his mistake, a girl was bound to a wheelchair for life, and Ahaan felt guilty about it. Maybe the girl’s brother killed Ahaan because he was angry at how he was able to move on in life. After all, the brother did not hesitate to vandalize Ahaan’s car (at the restaurant) when he saw him there. One must wonder whether this was the only scandal in Ahaan’s life. There could have been things that aren’t talked about anymore or that Ahaan handled himself without involving his parents. Maybe Karma discovers them and uses them to her advantage to deliver justice that is multi-fold in its effect. When Ahaan’s body was discovered, Karma may have been shocked, but she did not look sad. Even the shock wasn’t as noticeable as it should have been. Indrani had whispered in Karma’s ear, asking her about Ahaan. That must mean that she had sensed some plan of Karma’s that was playing out. If Ahaan was walking on the beach so close to his ring ceremony, maybe he had a fight with Karma, and she probably provoked it to get this particular result? In Karmma Calling season 1, Karma’s descent into moral ambiguity had started, but she is yet to be truly corrupted. Ahaan’s death could be what starts it, leaving out any arguments about justification. Karma is only the ‘good person’ because she is against the Kotharis, who are clearly the villains. But her actions are not just meant to balance things but to destroy the balance completely, which will only happen when she no longer cares to toe the line between good and bad, and Ahaan’s death is going to be an important step in that process.
