IWSG: February 5 And Book Review: The Palace of Illusions
Hola and Hello!
Señorida Anastasia here.
The awesome co-hosts for the February 5 posting of the IWSG are Joylene Nowell Butler, Louise Barbour, and Tyrean Martinson
Thanking the Co hosts!!!
February 5 question - Is there a story or book you've written you want to/wish you could go back and change?
No. I wouldn't change a thing I did. Even if I wanted to, I could just go to the Docs app and click here and there a few times:)
I'm not published and write for my pleasures so.... I am not the one to answer this question.
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The Palace of Illusions- Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
Read this only if you have no damn idea about Mahabharatha to understand the rest:
Mahabharatha is an India epic authored by the sage Vyaasa AKA Krishnadwayipaya. There were two kings/brothers once upon the time. The eldest Dhritharashta and his 101 kids are known as the Kauravas and younger brother Pandu and his sons are known as Pandavas. Kayravas denied kingship to Pandavas and skip to Mahabharatha war.
Draupadi is the wife of all Pandava brothere. Right.... 5 husbands:)
Karna is another child of the Pandava brother's mom who's a secret and who appears in the book as Draupadi's secret crush.
There's a youtube shorts(Here it is) which got a decent viewership and which came to my notice twice. It was a video in which Alia Bhatt tells us about her favorite book being The Palace of Illusions. The second time the same video came to me, I decided to read it.
I started reading the 276 page book on December 26 and concluded on December 28. I am a fast reader and could get myself to finish reading a book if I put my mind to it.
The Palace of Illusions is a retelling of the Mahabharatha in our beloved Panchali's perspective. We also call her Draupadi as she's the daughter of King Drupad and Krishnaa as she's also a lady with dark complexion.
Drupad wanted a son- a warrior to defeat Drona- Drupad's rival. From the fire, Drishtadyumna emerged as the desired son. Another kid too came out. But it was a girl! That is our heroine- Panchali! I used to call her Draupadi and that was only untill reading this book. Draupadi loved to be called Panchali and I shall address her so.
Panchali grew up in the castle walls. Her father was protective and caring about her. Her brother was loving. Even when I knew all this from comics, I was curtained from the fact that Panchali was living in a patriarchal world. We often forget this and misjudge her.
Krishna appears as a friendly figure to Panchali. His appearance in the book and his influence on Panchali simply mesmerised me. They were not siblings or lovers but friends. It's a beautiful friendship that touches the heart, stirs the mind and enlightens the soul. Krishna and his friend Krishnaaa (Panchali) is one of a kind! When Panchali rushed tk aid Krishna's wounded hand in the midst of a patriarchal crowd who'd have thought that she's married to the Pandava brothers who were themselves present at the moment, she was changing the perspective of millions indeed.
I had always been angry at Panchali for insulting Karna. But after reading this book…. That changed! I had many times asked myself before reading the book on why she did not choose Karna over the others and how wonderful her life would have been if she had indeed chosen Karna.
In Life, she did not have much choice of Love. Her Palace of Illusions was her love until the book makes us realise how she always had love. She loved unconditionally and was loved. So we all are too!
She was a dutiful wife. Didn't matter if she loved them. That's impossible. She did love them. But there are many loves. She lost her chance at motherhood. She still was proud of her boys and loved them. She didn't have to like Subhadra or be empathising towards Hidumbi. She didn't have to be proud of Abhimanyu. She didn't have to be respectful towards Kunti. She didn't have to do any of those things starting from insult she threw at Karna. But if ut weren't for her, the story would have been broken. She's the heart of our tale.
We realise how much a role model the woman Panchali is! In a patriarchal world she used her power as a woman. I do not believe in Hinduism. But I do think that some time long ago, there were kings in the country of Bharat. There would have been the Great War. If it weren’t for Queens like Panchali… where would our world have been?
The book astonished me as well. It did make me think differently, see things in a different perspective and made me realise the pain behind the beauty of sacrifice, love and destiny. In the end…ultimately nothing mattered and all that mattered was…. Love? Truth?
Chitra Banerjee has done justice to Panchali, the woman who was shamed and went unnoticed for the dignified life she led. What people should be talking about is how Panchali changed history. She is a person beyond the references like the daughter of Drupad, wife of the Pandava brothers, shamed woman in Duryodana's court, Dhrishtadyumna's sister or anything. She is Panchali, the one destined to change history. But Chitra Banerjee showed us in Mahabharata through her perspective that she is the Queen of The Palace of Illusions.
It is a must read and I highly recommend this! You could read this even as a newbie to the Mahabharatha. I promise that within seconds you might find yourself following Panchali and her brother out of the fire or the gardens in the palace of illusions or Karna's unique eyes or Abhimanyu's death or all the way to the end as she levitates into heaven.
Mahabharata in Panchali's perspective is one herculean task that had many obstacles and dangers. But The Palace of Illusions clearly did justice.
I'd love to post detailed blogs about the epics. I am not a fan of superstitions but I do love the art of bringing our celebrated epics into a modernised justification. Would anyone read though?
Señorida Anastasia and her partners in crime
Just keep writing new stuff and improving with every word!
ReplyDeleteI think it is important to write what you want to write for whatever reason, Rida! Just keep at it. I enjoyed your book review. I think it's enriching to learn about other cultures. Have a great February!
ReplyDeleteKeep going, like Alex said. One word at a time. Happy IWSG Day!
ReplyDelete