LANGUAGE IN INDIA

Strength for Today and Bright Hope for Tomorrow

Volume 11 : 6 June 2011
ISSN 1930-2940

Managing Editor: M. S. Thirumalai, Ph.D.
Editors: B. Mallikarjun, Ph.D.
         Sam Mohanlal, Ph.D.
         B. A. Sharada, Ph.D.
         A. R. Fatihi, Ph.D.
         Lakhan Gusain, Ph.D.
         Jennifer Marie Bayer, Ph.D.
         S. M. Ravichandran, Ph.D.
         G. Baskaran, Ph.D.
         L. Ramamoorthy, Ph.D.

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Agency, Narrativity Gender in Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni’s
The Palace Of Illusions

L. Kavitha Nair, M.A., M.Phil., Ph.D.

The Mahabharata’s Draupadi as the Sutradhari – A Revolutionary Role!

The life of Draupadi, a celebrated woman characters of ancient India, comes close to, in fact almost reflects, the modern times. From the great seer Vyasa’s version to Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni’s, which is the most recent portrayal of Draupadi, one can see remarkable differences. It is the fire and energy in Draupadi, the spirit to fight injustice and her multifacetedness that makes her the most mysterious and majestic woman for all ages. The interpretations her character has undergone in the various works since her conception are immense.

Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni is an Indo-American writer. She has won many accolades and awards in America. She has written around 17 novels, and has been translated into 16 languages. The latest rendering of the Mahabharata story is The Palace of Illusions by her, which captures the magical world of the epic for its twenty-first century readers. Divakaruni , in Author’s note, says that, “I was left unsatisfied by the portrayals of the women…they remain shadowy figures, their thoughts and motives mysterious, their emotions portrayed only when they affected the lives of the male heroes, their roles ultimately subservient to those of their fathers or husbands, brothers or sons. If I ever wrote a book …I would place the women in the forefront of the action. I would uncover the story that lay invisible between the lines of the men’s exploits.” (Banerjee Divakaruni xiv-xv)

The Novel

The novel begins with Panchaali’s almost obsessive interest in her life’s story:

Through the long, lonely years of childhood, when my father’s palace seemed to tighten its grip around me until I couldn’t breathe, I would go to my nurse and ask for a story. And though she knew many wondrous and edifying tales, the one I made her tell me over and over was the story of my birth. I think I liked it so much because it made me feel special, and in those days there was little else in my life that did” (Banerjee Divakaruni 1).

This is only the beginning part of the article. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO READ THE ARTICLE IN PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION.

L. Kavitha Nair M.A., M.Phil., Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Humanities and Social Sciences
Vellore Institute of Technology, Chennai Campus
Tamilnadu, India.
kavitha1113@rediffmail.com
kavithanair.ismart@gmail.com
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