Review: I, Rama Age of Seers by Ravi Venu

To  me, stories of Ramayana , are things that take me back to my childhood, 50 years ago. There was no TV, no cable, no DVD's , no Amar Chitra Katha,  only black and white movies,  and what fired my imagination , were the mythological stories told to us, a gaggle of young cousins, by our grandmother,  at bedtime. 

By and by , I was exposed to the best of Marathi literature, a very richly developed resource, and the classic SriRamayana, Srikrishnayan,  KarNaayan and other stories, told in spell binding fashion, by folks like the late Gopal Neelkanth Dandekar, who were the types who personally lived history, making their writing very attractive. These stories were written from the points of view of the main personalities, though not in autobiographical form.

So  when I received this Book, "I, Rama" from the Blogadda Book reviews program, I couldn't wait to start reading.

I was disappointed. 

While the idea of an aged Ram telling his story to his sons,  Hanuman, and his brother Laxman, with the help of Sage Vashishtha's son  was  interesting, there appeared to be a confusion on whether this was a story being told or history being stated.  Sometimes it even looked like a script being written....

To start with, there are too many supplementary characters here, being treated in primary fashion.  Too much detail, that takes the emphasis away from our effort to know the mind of Lord Ram, which is what I expected the book to be about. I thought an inordinate number of pages were spent on King Dasharatha and the going ons  regarding defeating the asuras, with almost step by step fight details, and descriptions of fighting hierarchies starting with gods coming down from the heavens, forts appearing and disappearing, wild attacking animals emanating from attacked forts etc etc.

The only new learning from this book was the character of Kaikeyi, who has been treated as a kind of warrior princess, who is very smart intellectually and who gets her way each time.

Whether it was fooling the king in a man's garb, at her initial encounter, whether it was about  being offered in trade, as queen , against Dashratha helping protect her father's kingdom, whether it was preferring to take a call later on the 2 boons offered to her, or whether it was about getting the boon timing so perfect with regard to her son's "promotion", that today's management gurus would  greatly applaud  .

 It is a bit difficult to visualize her sitting behind a screen playing the dutiful wife and watching the arrival of the sages at court, after having just returned, from not just fighting shoulder to shoulder with Dasharatha against the Asuras, but even saving him with her amazing charioteering , horsemanship  archery, and bravery. 
 
The book is studded with special effects using laser technology, physics, chemistry, biology, cosmology, intergalactic travel, not to mention conversion of fields into matter and matter into fields, with a alacrity that would shame the Higgs Boson.


The narration is in flashback form, but fails to hold your interest.

For various reasons that have to do with  inadequate editing , proofreading, and crowding of too many characters, this book appears to be an attempt at pouring in into   a small space, the huge research possibly done by the author. And the reader loses concentration.

The whole idea of children/elders listening to stories from mythology , was so they learned about and admired the qualities on the main characters, and how they dealt with problems, with a lot of thought, dedication to certain ethical values, and tough decision making .  Listening to mythology gave you a peep into the minds of the various deities, and  warriors. 

The way, one heard such stories, made us demand for more. Whether it was from a story-telling grandmother, a play , a film or something else.


 This book does not fall in that category.

 I delayed picking it up after I had momentarily put it down while reading. It is not a book that will keep you awake.  



This review is a part of the Book Reviews Program at BlogAdda.com. Participate now to get free books!

 

Book review : Chanakya's Chant by Ashwin Sanghi

I received this book from Blogadda , as part of their Book Reviews Program.

The time span of the book, spans centuries. And what comes home to the reader, on turning the last page, is the undeniable feeling, that really nothing has changed when it comes to those who purport to be our rulers,and those who prop them up.

Chanakya , who lived between 350 B.C. and 75 B. C, was someone we cursorily read about in history books in school. Typically, more attention was lavished on the kings, than those who made them so.

This book manages to open the eyes. It is like watching two movies at the same time, and marvelling at the way history appeared to be repeating.

Chanakya, also known as Vishnugupta, son of Chanak, has seen his father killed at the court of the Magadh king. He escapes to the University at Takshila in the west, and by sheer brilliant learning and strategising, becomes a guru, mentor and advisor to ChandraGupta Maurya, who must rule all the kingdoms in "Bharat" one day.

Pandit Gangasagar Mishra, many many centuries later, is positioned as today's Chanakya, the "moving" hand behind the power at the top in contemporary India.

The book is written in a style that alternates between the two time bands. It is clear that events replicate themselves in some manner of speaking, with similar stuff happening in the two corresponding ages.

Chanakya, works singlemindedly towards installing ChandraGupta Maurya, using everything at his command: money, deception, the then current societal standards, women, weapons, threats, all without appearing prominent himself.

The modern day Gangaprasad Mishra, is hell bent on installing the, intriguingly named 'Chand'ani Gupta as the Prime Minister of India, and the story meanders through her journey as she transits through various levels of power; local, state, and national.

The author has managed to weave in many aspects like changing loyalties , always a function of promises of power; the belief that those educated in the "brawn" aspect fall short of those also educated in the "brain" aspect; the play of religions ; vignettes similar to recent events like hijacking of planes, and leaders being shot and injured in public meetings, even shades of a fodder scam .

Throughout the narrative, which is fairly fast paced, a person who has been reading the papers for the last 50 years, cannot help smile at some scenarios, which resemble rumors which were around in one's teenage years. There is also the England connection. And time and again one stops to think if something similar has happened in the recent past , politically, in India, and could this be an "inside" story.


It could be the passage of centuries, and the consequent dilution in the percentage of impressionable society that we have today, but one cannot deny that Chanakya's solutions appear to have more "class" overall , than those of Gangaprasad Mishra . Chanakya , certainly is more widely learned in all subjects vis-a-vis Mishraji, who, if I were to be honest, comes across as a goonda. Maybe that's what politicians are, who knows .

Chanakya's use of the Vishakanyas, the poisoning of the wells at night in Patliputra, and the antidote being poured in the morning, Chanakya's knowledge of medicinal plants, his ability to sustain disciples over long periods of time, boggles the mind.

What is a bit unbelievable , is the treatment accorded to two kings competing for the Kingdom Of Magadh, now occupied by Chandragupta. According to the story, they are cunningly welcomed in a grand manner, and are convinced to fight a duel, to decide who will rule. A bit improbable if you ask me. Difficult to believe that , say, King Paurus, would submit to this.

But then, this is a work of fiction, embellished by history, and embroidered by the threads of political happenings of the last 50 years.

This is a book of 400 odd pages. Took me some time to finish it. The book is certainly not the type that you cannot put down once you start reading; but having put it down, you are once again enthused to take it up, when free. You dont ignore it. I felt that sometimes the modus operandi followed by both Chanakya and Mishraji was repetitive.

Over all, an enjoyable read. And the download of the Chant is enjoyable.

I just have one question. Why is everything happening more or less in the Indo Gangetic plain ? Was nothing South of the Vindhyas of any consequence ? In power ? In politics ? In diplomacy ? Is that a reflection of what is happening today?


This review is a part of the Book Reviews Program at BlogAdda. Participate now to get free books!