Kurukshetra - by Krishna Udayasankar (Spoiler Alert!)

In book 2, it was hard to read about what happened to Panchali in the royal court of Hastinapur. In this last installment of the Chronicles, I found it equally hard to read about Abhimanyu's death in the battlefield. In fact, this time I chose to skip the relevant pages, after trying twice to read. It is one of the saddest events in the whole of Mahabharata and one of the two incidents in which the Anga King Karna fails to do what is right.

Speaking of Karna, it is inexplicable why the author has chosen to refer to him as Vasusena instead of by his famous name 'Karna'. Of course, she has done the same with Panchali by never referring to her as Draupadi or Yadnyaseni (I love this name!). I have always believed that Karna was much better than Partha when it came to valor as well as virtues. In fact, his conduct during Draupadi Vastraharan and Abhimanyu's killing are the only, albeit totally unforgivable, blots on his otherwise stellar character. But I guess the author has done more injustice to Karna than the original scripture has - he comes across as a mighty but vain, arrogant, impatient and weak warrior-king in the chronicles. I am surprised that more pages were devoted to the Shikhandi-Arjuna-Bhishm battle than to Karna-Arjuna one. Certainly, the SuryaPutra deserved better. The author also has skipped describing the encounter between Kunti and Karna after Govinda tells him who he really is.

For that matter, the Pandavas also don't come up smelling like roses either. Their faults and shortcomings have been portrayed as virtues since eons so this is a welcome change. I never liked the character of Yudhhishthir much. In the chronicles all his faults are depicted as, his faults. Well done! The author has also tried to give a much-deserved voice to Nakul and Sahdev (referred to as Sadev in the books!), who through ages have been firmly relegated to the 'also-ran' category.

As the final book of the series, this book was expected to clear up the mysteries from the first two offerings. We get to know what connection Prince Shikandin has to the city of Kashi and its unfortunate Princess Amba. For the record, I liked the twist the author has given to the whole Shikandin-Amba story and he was my second-most favorite character of the chronicles. The first, of course, is now Govinda. We also get to know who the last Firewright Secret Keeper is. The secret of Panchali's birth isn't clearly explained but left to the reader to piece together from the bits and pieces scattered about in the pages. I would have preferred a much clearer version. I also didn't understand why Prince Drushtadnumna was trained to be a commander since childhood.

Sanjaya, in most of the Mahabharata versions that I have come across, is mentioned only during the battle of Kurukshetra. He is supposed to have the power of seeing events happening elsewhere and hence is given the job of narrating the battle to the blind king Dhritarashtra. In the chronicles, however, we see him as a scheming, conniving courtier who does a lot of damage to the house of the Kurus. I am not sure if this is entirely the figment of the author's imagination or do any of the Mahabharata sources that she mentions at the end of each book gave her the idea. But the twist is pretty interesting!

And now, Govinda. What can I say? He has always been my most favorite character from the epic so I cannot claim to be totally impartial. :-) Like I said before, I have always hated Him for being partial to Partha at the expense of the more deserving Karna. I have never understood why He didn't reveal the secret of Karna's birth to him sooner. Anyways, Govinda too comes across as more human than divine in the chronicles. He loses his faith after the dice game and sinks to a life of debauchery and inactivity. He is despised by his own people in Mathura. He is trusted by neither Kauravas nor Pandavas. He is hated for both - being a FireWright and for being the cause of their downfall. He is plagued by doubts, a sense of helplessness and fear at times - just like us mere mortals do. And all this - in addition to the dark curls and dazzling smile - makes Him utterly charming and likeable! I can't say I have liked the Panchali twist to His character much but I don't reject it either. Sometimes I wonder if even the Gods are capable of unraveling the mysteries behind human emotions.

So, it took more than a month to finish the Chronicles but it was worth it. If you want a fresh take on the age-old saga, go for it!