Book Review: Mythological Monologues by Purba Chakraborty | #BlogChatterEBook

June 6, 2020 DiaryOfAnInsaneWriter Book Reviews, My thoughts, poems, Reviews 3 comments

Every 80s child grew up on a staple diet of Ramayana and Mahabharata. We grew up with the characters, relived the epics through our games and witnessed our parents discussing the stories on the dinner table or during social gatherings. While playing or during large social gatherings, we put up stage performances exactly the way they portrayed it in the texts.

The truth remains that many characters in the Ramayana and Mahabharata didn’t get a voice in the epics. Fans of mythology would agree that these characters have stories that need to be told.

Purba Chakraborty’s ebook, Mythological Monologues, lends voice to 26 characters across the two epics, Ramayana & Mahabharata.

BlogChatter published Purba Chakraborty’s ebook, Mythological Monologues as part of their Ebook Carnival in May 2020

What I loved about the book?

Purba has woven each monologue interestingly using cross-references from the epics. The best part is that each monologue is from the point of view of the character. So, the reader delves into the thoughts of that character and lives that side of the story.

The language is hard-hitting, direct, and allows the reader a sneak peek into a never-seen-before angle of the epic. Like an expert craftswoman, Purba has subtly woven the emotions of each character through the narrative. The end of the monologue leaves the reader thinking about the infinite possibilities surrounding ‘what-ifs’. The raw emotions within each narrative make the book an interesting read.

Each monologue is complete with brief footnotes to guide the readers. This ensures that a reader with little or no knowledge of the epics can also understand the context.

My favourite monologue from Purba Chakraborty’s Mythological Monologues

Indrajit – I wasn’t aware that Meghnath, the eldest son of Ravana, was also known as Indrajit. I had always perceived him to be evil because he was the son of the demon who kidnapped Sita. However, this monologue turned my perception upside down. Written from the point of view of Meghnath, it reveals the cruel story of betrayal.

The downside of the book:

The monologues contain lengthy sentences that are broken every 5-7 words, so it visually appears like a poem. However, it affects readability. Since the wrong letters are getting capitalized and lack of commas and breaks makes it difficult for the reader to decipher what is being said.
I also believe that the author could have divided the monologues according to the epic to avoid confusion. e.g. Bharata is present in Ramayana and Mahabharata. First glance will always confuse a reader until they reach the monologue.