Title : The Palace of Illusions

Author : Chitra Banerjee Divakurni

SOC Rating : 5/5

Genre : Mythology

Publisher : Anchor 

Publishing Year : 2008

#Pages : 360

Mahabharat needs no introduction. But this isn't a book which just simplifies Mahabharat for the commoners, this is a book which describes the epic from the eyes of the most terrific lady of history, Draupadi.

After reading this novel, my love for Draupadi has elevated and deeply rooted itself in my heart. It also answered a lot of questions I had in my mind when I had read Mahabharat. This gives a fresh perspective. The same tales, but from the eyes of a woman. The harsh reality has not been toned down, because of feminine involvement. They are as bitter as they were, probably more because not only do we get to know the men's feelings, we also got to know that of Draupadi's.

 

Draupadi is a woman who has inner turmoils like any other woman, but she hasn't been brought down to the level of the commoners. She is up there with all her regalia and power, mental strength and vigour, but her heart is that of any ordinary woman. Her thoughts have been so beautifully portrayed that one cannot help but feel for that lady. You cannot hate her, maybe you can't even love her, but you cannot be indifferent to her at all. This is also what Karna had done. He had ripped himself into two for Paanchali. We have always thought of Karna as the tragic warrior, but his love life was equally tragic if not more.

The magnanimity of Mahabharata cannot be described, but the minute details of what went through Draupadi's mind have been described so well. We had never looked into those. But those feelings are so real, so natural.

There is a saying which goes like,'What isn't there in Bharat, doesn't exist in Bharat', which means what hasn't been written of in the Mahabharat, doesn't exist in India(Bharat). This is so true. The minutest details of human emotion had been touched upon and Chitra Banerjee Devakaruni dives into it with Draupadi.

Paanchali's curiosity, arrogance, tenderness, concern, power, desire to be loved and an incessant wish to love, make her the woman every woman desires to be. And what surprised me most is that, till her death and even after that, she loved Karna; the man who had instigated the biggest humiliation on Draupadi.

You can't let go of The Palace Of Illusions. You just can't stop reading it. Besides, this novel is a must, because who wouldn't love to read about the mind of the lady that was the pivot of the entire Mahabharat?