‘Anupamaa’ opens with Digvijay asking Anupama whether she will keep dreaming or actually do something. Anupama asks him what she should do. His answer is unexpected: save him from a rat. A big one. Jaya immediately finds this hilarious and teases Digvijay about being scared. He tells her she would be scared, too, if she saw it. Anupama and Banku together get the rat out, and Digvijay, in a moment that surprises even him, thanks Anupama. Jaya wanders into the room and says it is beautiful. Anupama agrees. On her way out, she bumps into Saavi’s diary and returns it to Digvijay. She tells him quietly that she has lost a young son, too and understands his pain. She asks him to give the café a chance to smile again. Digvijay says nothing.
A tiffin opportunity and a kitchen problem
With Paul blocking her from every job in the area, Anupama reaches out to Sneha and asks for any work she can find. Sneha asks why she has not simply taken Jaya back to Ahmedabad. Anupama reminds her that Devika specifically asked her not to. Sneha then offers her something: prepare twenty tiffins for elderly people who have been abandoned by their families. Anupama agrees immediately, then realises she has no kitchen to cook in.She asks Digvijay for permission to use his kitchen. He refuses, saying she cannot start a business from his home. Banku, undeterred, comes up with a workaround: cook outside on a separate stove, and if Digvijay finds out, they will deal with it then. Anupama hesitates but agrees, and the memory of Hasmukh surfaces, Banku’s quiet helpfulness reminding her of her father-in-law and everything he once meant to her.
Mahi holds her ground
At the Shah house, Leela is surprised to find Mahi has cooked and tells her to go back to her own home and handle it. Hasmukh calls her out for threatening Mahi. Leela says Mahi is Kavya’s daughter and will always behave like her, predicting she will burn her own house down.Back at the Kothari house, Mahi arrives for a work meeting. Vasundhara stops her at the door and tells Anil to terminate her job. Khyati points out that Mahi has a signed contract and cannot be dismissed that easily. Anil, siding with Mahi, encourages her to attend the meeting. Vasundhara is left stunned. Meeta complains that Rahi has gone against Vasundhara by taking Mahi to the Shah house without permission, and questions how someone on Rahi’s salary can afford to be so confident.
Gautam refuses to let go of Pranshi
Rahi calls Prem to tell him she is coming to inspect his restaurant. He says he is ready to impress both his wife and his client. She tells him the wife is already impressed, and they share a warm moment before Gautam interrupts, accusing them of romancing in front of Pranshi. He picks Pranshi up and declares that, as the real father, he will decide what is best for her. Rahi immediately takes Pranshi back, pointing out that Pranshi’s tooth is coming in and Gautam will not be able to manage it. The underlying threat in Gautam’s behaviour is not lost on Rahi.
Anupama cooks, and Digvijay finds out
Banku sets up a stove outside, and Anupama begins cooking the tiffins. Digvijay discovers it and confronts her, furious that she is running a business after he explicitly refused her the kitchen. Banku tells him they are cooking outside, not in the kitchen. Anupama tells Digvijay plainly that she has to raise Jaya and cannot keep asking others for money. Bose steps in and takes Anupama’s side. Digvijay walks away without another word.Precap: Paul shows up and destroys Anupama’s food. He then threatens her by telling her to worry about Jaya, who goes to school and could be run over by a bus. Anupama hits Paul for disrespecting both food and a girl child during Navratri.