Remember Dhritarashtra (धृतराष्ट्र)? What is the first thing that comes to your mind when you remember Dhritarashtra, a pertinent figure in the epic Mahabharat? I bet he isn't one of the characters you respect or adore. You probably despise him for his role in Mahabharat but what if I told you there is an alternate perspective to it? Have you ever been in Dhritarashtra's shoes and tried to understand things from his perspective? You don't have to go through the trouble, Poet Ghanshyam Kandel in his masterpiece धृतराष्ट्र has done that favor for you.
I came to know about Ghanshyam Kandel's Khandakavya Dhritarashtra after it was awarded Madan Puraskar 2073, one of the most prestigious literary awards in Nepal. I was fascinated by the title and wanted to read it, read it I did. Here are my undiluted thoughts after reading the book as my persuasion on why everyone should read this book. I haven't even read the foreword by Prof. Dr. Madhav Prasad Pokharel and views of Dr. Ram Prasad Gyawali while writing this. I just wanted to put on my first impression after reading this "book of the year."
1. Unique Storytelling: Telling a story in itself is tough, imagine telling a story in poetic form. Let that be an epic loved by many and pick one of the most despised characters as your narrator. Now, dismantle how people know the entire story in less than 60 pages. If pulling this off isn't a literary miracle, I don't know what is. How and what I know Dhritarashtra has changed after reading this book without my prior projection of him offering any resistance.
2. Understanding Disability: This book does have a social message on disability. The discrimination in Mahabharat against Dhritarashtra based on disability is the epicenter of everything that followed. This alternate narrative is fascinating and justifiable. I am very touched by the following two lines which will help us understand disability better than any two two lines put together as an effort.
3. Redefining your Mahabharat heroes and villains: Let Ghanshyam Kandel redefine your hero 'Krishna and Co.' and villains through his narrative. Several other books have offered an alternative narrative to the epic Mahabharat, but nothing is brutal than poem destroying our perceptions.
4. Horrors of War: Wars offers nothing of value to humans but why is war inevitable? Poet closes with philosophical question and discussion on why we resort to wars after all its terrors and horrors we know it invites. Ghanshyam Kandel's pick Dhritarashtra is an ideal narrator to reflect the horrors of war.
5. A gem: I remember an essay by Laxmi Prasad Devkota के नेपाल सानो छ? while reading Dhritarashtra. It is a not a long read but is powerful, thought provoking and has an embedded social message. This book is an art, modern art maybe...why? You'll know once you read it.
Disclaimer: This is not a book review but is my reflection upon reading it. The post does not intend copy right infringement with the photos of the part of the pages from the book.
I came to know about Ghanshyam Kandel's Khandakavya Dhritarashtra after it was awarded Madan Puraskar 2073, one of the most prestigious literary awards in Nepal. I was fascinated by the title and wanted to read it, read it I did. Here are my undiluted thoughts after reading the book as my persuasion on why everyone should read this book. I haven't even read the foreword by Prof. Dr. Madhav Prasad Pokharel and views of Dr. Ram Prasad Gyawali while writing this. I just wanted to put on my first impression after reading this "book of the year."
1. Unique Storytelling: Telling a story in itself is tough, imagine telling a story in poetic form. Let that be an epic loved by many and pick one of the most despised characters as your narrator. Now, dismantle how people know the entire story in less than 60 pages. If pulling this off isn't a literary miracle, I don't know what is. How and what I know Dhritarashtra has changed after reading this book without my prior projection of him offering any resistance.
2. Understanding Disability: This book does have a social message on disability. The discrimination in Mahabharat against Dhritarashtra based on disability is the epicenter of everything that followed. This alternate narrative is fascinating and justifiable. I am very touched by the following two lines which will help us understand disability better than any two two lines put together as an effort.
3. Redefining your Mahabharat heroes and villains: Let Ghanshyam Kandel redefine your hero 'Krishna and Co.' and villains through his narrative. Several other books have offered an alternative narrative to the epic Mahabharat, but nothing is brutal than poem destroying our perceptions.
4. Horrors of War: Wars offers nothing of value to humans but why is war inevitable? Poet closes with philosophical question and discussion on why we resort to wars after all its terrors and horrors we know it invites. Ghanshyam Kandel's pick Dhritarashtra is an ideal narrator to reflect the horrors of war.
5. A gem: I remember an essay by Laxmi Prasad Devkota के नेपाल सानो छ? while reading Dhritarashtra. It is a not a long read but is powerful, thought provoking and has an embedded social message. This book is an art, modern art maybe...why? You'll know once you read it.
Disclaimer: This is not a book review but is my reflection upon reading it. The post does not intend copy right infringement with the photos of the part of the pages from the book.
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