Reading Indian Mythological Fiction written in contemporary times has never felt intriguing to me mainly because it's the same Epics getting retold with added characters, more unnecessary drama and the same major characters getting their share of spotlight every single time! Irony is, I actually started my reading journey at quite a young age with Shakuntala :)
'Bride of the Forest' stands miles apart from what my perception of Indian mythology had been. Mahadevan creates a beautiful, poignant and ever compelling story with minimal characters and retells the story of Drishadvati, daughter of Yayati. The myth of Drishadvati and her "womb-on-rent" appears in the Mahabharata as the 'story of the salvation of kings by a maiden'.
Drishadvati's eventful roundabout journey as "a child of the forest" to being an "unclaimed bride of the forest" is certain to leave you contemplating and retrospecting a lot of things. At first glance, Drishadvati seems like the perfect precedent of thedesires, the duties and the responsibilities that is heaved upon woman, the very aspect of servitude that is embedded on a girl every since her birth and how she is exploited to fulfil the insolent and selfish desires of men. However, it doesnot need to be told that it is also a remarkable story of women's preservation and the power and pre-eminience of women.
Drishadvati's tale is that of utter sadness, treated with a much lesser value than that of a commodity by her birth father, her prophecy "to bear four sons" that acted as a catalyst for the self-serving Galaav and as an inanimate asset by the four kings as a means to further conserve their lineage. Mahadevan elegant writing engages the reader, like a cinematic movie that unfolds scene by scene. The lyrical prose she starts off with never at one point feels underwhelming and only gets you more invested in the story.
Bride of the Forest, is a classic example of "read between the lines story" because there is so much to interpret from certain scenes philosophical and in context to the modern times. The tone of defiance that Drishdvati assumes as she questions Vishwamitra on a woman's freedom.
She accepts that she is born a daughter, reborn as a wife, and reborn again as a mother. Does that mean she also accepts that she must die thrice and yet never be reborn to be herself?
There is so much to be read and valued and pondered upon in Mahadevan's remarkable book and I would absolutely recommend it to every reader out there!
Reading Indian Mythological Fiction written in contemporary times has never felt intriguing to me mainly because it's the same Epics getting retold with added characters, more unnecessary drama and the same major characters getting their share of spotlight every single time! Irony is, I actually started my reading journey at quite a young age with Shakuntala :)
'Bride of the Forest' stands miles apart from what my perception of Indian mythology had been. Mahadevan creates a beautiful, poignant and ever compelling story with minimal characters and retells the story of Drishadvati, daughter of Yayati. The myth of Drishadvati and her "womb-on-rent" appears in the Mahabharata as the 'story of the salvation of kings by a maiden'.
Drishadvati's eventful roundabout journey as "a child of the forest" to being an "unclaimed bride of the forest" is certain to leave you contemplating and retrospecting a lot of things. At first glance, Drishadvati seems like the perfect precedent of thedesires, the duties and the responsibilities that is heaved upon woman, the very aspect of servitude that is embedded on a girl every since her birth and how she is exploited to fulfil the insolent and selfish desires of men. However, it doesnot need to be told that it is also a remarkable story of women's preservation and the power and pre-eminience of women.
Drishadvati's tale is that of utter sadness, treated with a much lesser value than that of a commodity by her birth father, her prophecy "to bear four sons" that acted as a catalyst for the self-serving Galaav and as an inanimate asset by the four kings as a means to further conserve their lineage. Mahadevan elegant writing engages the reader, like a cinematic movie that unfolds scene by scene. The lyrical prose she starts off with never at one point feels underwhelming and only gets you more invested in the story.
Bride of the Forest, is a classic example of "read between the lines story" because there is so much to interpret from certain scenes philosophical and in context to the modern times. The tone of defiance that Drishdvati assumes as she questions Vishwamitra on a woman's freedom.
She accepts that she is born a daughter, reborn as a wife, and reborn again as a mother. Does that mean she also accepts that she must die thrice and yet never be reborn to be herself?
There is so much to be read and valued and pondered upon in Mahadevan's remarkable book and I would absolutely recommend it to every reader out there!