The Palace of Illusions - Book review

She rose from the flames with the fumes of vengeance; amidst all the prophecies, she was certain she could write her own destiny. Married against her will, harboring a secret love, gambled in the hall of patriarchy; the fire from which she emerged, now burned inside her, which ignited the biggest war in the world and changed the course of history. The story of the tragic princess of Panchal, the story of Panchaali.

The epic Mahabharata - one of the two most ancient and renowned epics of India said to be written by Vyasa always seemed fascinating to me. Growing up I loved listening to stories of many such mythological tales and the Mahabharata in particular always fancied me the most. The premise of this epic is the tension between two groups of cousins - the Pandavas and the Kauravas which leads to the catastrophic Kurukshetra war. The lessons which Krishna tells Arjuna when the latter is in a moral dilemma at the start of the war is often cited as a separate Hindu scripture - The Bhagavad Gita and is said to hold the answers to every problem man faces. And so quite obviously I was so tempted to read 'The Palace of Illusions' written by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni which unravels the Mahabharata from the perspective of our female protagonist and my absolute favorite character - Panchaali (Draupadi) who narrates the tale.

This is a poignant and tragic tale of a woman in a patriarchal word; humiliated and tested at every point. Yet, we see a force in her - unstoppable and unwilling to step down. The writer brings to us Panchaali with all her layers and we are made to witness the world through her eyes. The book shows us this quirky, curious and impulsive side of Panchaali. We get to know the girl who wanted to know, who wanted to learn and more than anything a girl who questioned the position of women in the world of men. We learn not just about Panchaali but also about the most revered heroes of the epic - Drona, the teacher of both Pandavas and Kauravas who couldn't master his own mind; Bhishma, the great warrior tied to the throne by a promise; Karna, the tragic anti-hero if I may say so, who wants to prove his worth and has his own morals dwindling; Kunti, the strong mother of the Pandavas and the decisions she made in her youth that chase her throughout her life. It is however the gripping narrative where every time Panchaali questions patriarchy and refuses to be played as just a pawn in their game that we are met with many questions. The female characters are strong and brave but their need is only felt to fulfill something that is demanded from them as 'women' or when the issue surrounds a man. How these heroic men seem to make decisions based on morals and values and dharma but still never seem to consider saving the dignity of a woman to be the highest virtue. These questions even after so many years still somehow feel relevant. The narration is beautifully tied together with snippets and stories which makes it a spectacular read. It forces us to see the world through the lenses of a woman who herself is tied by her many vices. I loved seeing the bond shared by our protagonist with the various characters especially Krishna who lovingly calls her sakhi.

This novel will give you a much needed shift from the usual recital of Mahabharata and you will witness the anguish of a lady torn by fate. Even though I have read the Mahabharata story numerous times, this novel still kept me engrossed till the very end and is engraved in me forever. I highly recommend this novel to everyone - it is simply beautiful and tugs at your heartstrings.

Book details :

Title : The Palace of Illusions

Author : Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

Genre : Mythology, Historical fiction

No. of pages : 360

My rating : 4.5/5.0