Ajaya — The story of the left

I have been an avid reader all along, but I am quite selective about the books I truly enjoy reading. Ajaya, a two part novel by Anand Neelakantan easily tops the list.

If you are a maverick in life, someone who questions a lot and likes to see the other side of things, this book is definitely the one for you. The author is well known for looking things from the other side and presenting them in very acceptable and logical ways to the maverick.

This book is an adaptation of the great Indian war — Mahabharatha, seen from Duryodana’s side. And this book is indeed very refreshing and makes for an interesting read. It is wonderful how the author spins some real facts with fiction in a very interesting way. The first part is quite well written, seeing things beyond good and bad, acknowledging the innocence of children instead of vilifying them. His justifications are quite interesting and he tries to take a neutral stand point.

Mahabharatha is a household story in every Indian home. We are all told again and again of the greatness of Lord Krishna and the Pandavas and how they saved mankind through Dharma. Breaking such a strong impression is indeed difficult, for, I would say Lord Krishna is indeed the villain of his story! I must warn you, if you are a not so open minded, staunch devotee of Lord Krishna, you might end up hating this book as well.

But for an open minded soul, this book is a blessing. Duryodhana aka Suyodana’s stand point is beautifully depicted. I am a strong believer that no one in the world is fully good nor fully evil. We all have shades of good and bad in us and time is what decided which side of us comes to the fore. This book goes on the same lines, though I would say Suyodana is indeed shown to be too good a person which I indeed doubt. However, I love his characterisation and the kind of maverick he was, the kind of man who always stood by his word and would sacrifice anything to save his coterie.

The friendship of Suyodana, Aswathama and Karna is very beautifully depicted during their teenage days. Balarama’s greatness is brought out really well and Banumathi, Suyodana’s wife of whom we have known very little, is pictured to the point in the story.

Ajaya is a tale of emotions, a mind game between two different groups of each of whom fight for what they believe is good. The story does take a dip at some places in the first book, with some elongated portions, but the second part totally makes up for it with the way it is able to make the reader emote with the happenings in the book. Ajaya is a really strong, craftfully designed and a well narrated story of friendship, of fraternity, of emotions and of war. It is a must read for every mythology lover.