Palace of Illusions ~ Draupadi's take on Mahabharata

Note: This was something I wrote almost 2 years back on my old blog.

I have been thinking of picking up Chitra Banerjee's Palace of Illusions for some time now. Got an opportunity yesterday at Hyderabad airport, while waiting for boarding to be announced. Read it non-stop and have finished it.

The 300-odd page novel is a narration by Draupadi on a somewhat abridged Mahabharata. Of course because she is the narrator, it also includes her childhood in detail, which I'm not sure if it is mentioned in the original.

I have always been fascinated by the Mahabharata as an epic. During childhood, it was definitely one of the most eagerly awaited serials and I can sing the title song even today. Draupadi is one of the key characters in the epic, having said to have played a very important role in bringing about the war at Kurukshetra. So, when I read a review somewhere that the 'Palace of Illusions' gives a perspective of this central figure, I was more than sold on reading it.

There are lots of reviews on other blogs about the books. So, I am not going to do the same here. But I have been thinking of jotting down points on what worked for me and what didn't.

The writing is fairly simple and straightforward - so much so that it is almost as if the characters live in the current world that we live in. The book makes for a quick, easy reading. And, as promised, gives a view on the story through Draupadi's eyes, which may or may not be true, who's to say?

Some of the points that grated on me while reading this book were -

1. How Draupadi's father, King Drupad was shown in a less than a favorable light. Draupadi seems to have acceptance issues with her father and the rest of the family. Somehow, the idea I got after seeing the epic was that of a doting father. The author also makes a small goof-up, when after the Pandavas come back to tell Drupad that all five of them are to marry her and live in the forest etc etc., he (Drupad) asks them how he can allow his only daughter to live like that? Whereas, earlier in the book, we are told of Drupad's various other daughters and how Draupadi could never form any sibling bonds with them.

2. Lack of Arjuna's storyline - Ok, first of all, I did not like that Arjuna was mentioned as 'Arjun' in the entire book whereas everyone else was called Karna, Bheema etc. 'Arjun' just seems so 90s hindi movie name.

Anyway, it is shown that Draupadi is very much ready to fall in love with Arjuna as the swayamvar approaches. However, once it is done and the whole 'You have to marry all 5 of us' is played out, the Arjuna storyline loses steam.

Throughout the book, Draupadi does not once relate her relationship in detail with Arjuna, who was her original suitor. It is mentioned in various places on how Arjuna seemed angry with the arrangement or how Draupadi longed to see the love in his eyes. One would only imagine that she would relate her year of being Arjuna's wife in a little bit more detail.

For the most part of the narration, she keeps talking about Yudhishtir, who is a slightly boring character for most readers. She also talks about Bheem's love for her at various times. However, not once does she talk about any kind of love that Arjuna might have showed her ever or vice-versa.

3. Obsession with Karna - Karna is undoubtedly one of the most popular figures in the Mahabharata, in spite of being associated with Duryodhana.

In the book, Paanchali & Karna have been shown as a couple of star-crossed lovers. Paanchali, for her part, keeps comparing her husbands with what Karna might have been. She keeps doing scenario analysis on 'what-if I hadn't stopped him at the swayamvar...' and so on and so forth. So much so, that after a point I momentarily forgot that this was an already written epic, and kept waiting for some hindi-movie type union sequence between the two!!

I do not know whether Ved Vyasa's Mahabharata talks about any kind of desire between Draupadi and Karna, and even if it does, its probably limited to the swayamvar event and does not become a life long obsession.

Even with all her longing for Arjuna's love, in the end, when she is dead, Paanchali dreams of entering heaven holding Karna's hand and not Arjuna's. This portion was too filmy for me to digest.

4. Tu Tu Main Main - Paanchali's interaction with her mother-in-law Kunti has been portrayed in the book like a typical saas-bahu relationship, and somehow it just comes across as highly pedestrian. I don't believe that ladies like Draupadi & Kunti, who have enough strife in their lives, would actually make it worse by doing one-upmanship with each other in their everyday life. When Kunti visits the Palace of Illusions, Paanchali feels that it is established that she is the mistress of her home and not her mother-in-law. In turn, Kunti also behaves like the proper 70s movie mother-in-law, sans the 'kulta, karamjali' type dialogues.

What I did like about the book was the depiction of the relationship between Krishna & Krishnaa (Draupadi). Their friendship, Krishna's continuous effort to educate Paanchali on the higher purpose of life and Draupadi's realization that of all the people she knew Krishna was the one who truly loved her were well etched. The ending where Krishna is seen to be with Draupadi in the snow filled mountain - tries to give a spiritual touch- but probably should have stuck to the spirituality only in relation to Krishna and not to the floating heavenly characters.

Overall, I felt that Draupadi through the narration, was portrayed as a very uni-dimensional character. The need to show a multi-layered complex heroine was obvious, however in the effort what came out was a self-important woman, who was obsessed with 4-5 key things in life - vengeance, Karna, Krishna's divinity, her mother-in-law's power over her husbands, her Palace of Illusions - may or may not be in that order.

On a lighter note, as I read the book I kept on hearing Naseeruddin Shah's dialogue "Aisi sati ki jai ho" in my head from Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron. I'm sure everyone remembers the disastrous cheer-haran scene in the hilarious movie. Here are some funny dialogues from the scene and also a clip:

1. Shaant, gadadhari Bheem, Shaant

2. Dharamraj, iski jubaan kheench loon ke? (Bheem to Yudi in relation to Dushasan)

3. Draupadi tere akele ki nahi hai. Hum sab shareholder hain.

4. Nahi, Draupadi jaisi Sati nari ko dekhkar maine cheer haran ka idea drop kar diya hai. Jai ho, aisi Sati nari ki jai ho.

5.Nalayak, adharmi, durachari, vamachari, bhrasthachari, bol sorry! Apne sasur ko nahi pehchante? Main hoon Draupadi ka baap, Dhrupad.

6. Yes sab kya ho raha hai? (Dhrithrashtra, aka The Blind King)

Of Parlors and Paranoia!

I recently added my experience at Studio Profile, T Nagar on Chennai Burrp! Am posting it here on my blog for easy reference.

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I went to Studio Profile T. Nagar on a Sunday for a pedicure. As they had opened recently, the parlor was fairly empty. There was no waiting time and I was led into an exclusive room which had two of those fancy pedicure chairs. The pedicure was done by a young lady who took care to switch on the massage option in the chair etc. before starting. The chair experience was really nice -- not something I expected in a parlor in Chennai which is not Page 3 or Oryza. But the chair did stop the massaging after a certain duration -- but I think we can live with that. The pedicure itself was also unhurried and relaxing.

So impressed was I by this cushy experience, that I decided to get myself a haircut also while I was there. I don't recall who the hair stylist was but I expected him to give me some consultation. However, he told me (much like my mom) about how not to get a haircut done and was not very excited. He was nice enough and it was refreshing to have a stylist give an honest opinion.

So, I went ahead and got just a trim done. As soon as the trim was over, the power went off (as is the norm in Chennai) and they informed me that they would not be able to blow dry my hair. I asked them if they did not have a generator and was informed that they did but it did not power the dryers. Do you know what the generator was for? For the bright lights and loud techno music!! I even went ahead and asked them that having a setup in this city, they should have amenities to provide for appliance backup... but of course, I realize that the stylists hardly have a say in all that! This is for the management to consider and rectify.

The silly thing was the stylist offered for me to come back in two hours to get my hair blow dried!!! Really? In two hours, one would think that my hair would have dried by itself! Plus, one of the many reasons one goes for a haircut is to get a nice blow dried look at least on that day... not leave the salon with damp, limp hair!! I told the stylist that since I was not getting a proper cut, they need to at least get me a rebate and he dutifully got me the hair cut price for short hair instead of medium. Which, at Rs. 650, was expensive considering it was only a trim. I am going to stick with Toni & Guy for hair cuts from now on.

I hope the management reads this review and makes sure that clients have an uninterrupted experience, especially because power cuts are a part of our life and we need to have substitutes in place.

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I am not completely writing the place off, given how parched Chennai is for good parlors. That's one problem I have been facing for the last 3 years since I moved here. Places are just downright expensive, and they are not even fancy.

I mean, the really fancy ones like Oryza or Page 3 charge as much as 3K to 5K for a facial, not something I would want to shell out on a monthly basis. And with facials, I always have this nagging worry about whether they are even using products that are worth that much. I mean, come on, while you are relaxing on that table, how do you know what is being used? (Okay, please don't sue me here for defamation or anything. I am sure they are using good quality, renowned products -- this is just the paranoid me!)

And the not-so-fancy ones like Green Trends or Naturals are also expensive, compared to what I used to pay in Delhi and Mumbai. Oh how I miss Meghna in Green Park !!

When I moved to Mumbai, I used to be a VLCC regular because it was very nearby and I was okay with shelling out money for a branded parlor. Working in BKC/Kalina also gave me access to a super-efficient, super-reasonable parlor in Kalina which was actually meant for students. Eventually, though I also tried out Enrich -- which I found to be just right for me in terms of ambience, rates and efficiency.

The one place that I am really comfortable with in Chennai is Toni & Guy at EA Mall, Royapettah. I have been there only for hair cuts and I have always been satisfied. They are also fairly reasonable, given that they are an international chain and are located inside a mall. They have now also introduced a junior stylist rate for INR 550!

Now, with a window of only a year to spend in Chennai before moving back to Mumbai, maybe I ought to stop my hunt for the perfect parlor -- or may be such a thing as a perfect parlor does not exist!

Oh, how I miss Meghna @ Green Park, Delhi !

Bakefest! - The Beginning : Eggless Strawberry Muffins

Okay, I kept up my enthusiasm over the weekend. In fact, I left from work early on Friday to go shop for some baking tools. And because I think it would be helpful for others to know, I am compiling a list of items I bought along with the place and my comments.

Product	Place	Price	My Views
Paper muffin liners	Currimbhoys, Adyar	INR 170	For a pack of 100 standard sized liners
Pastry bags	Currimbhoys, Adyar	INR 180	For a pack of 100 medium sized bags
Measuring Cups & Spoons	Amma Naana	INR 75	For a set of 4 cups measuring -1, 1/2, 1/3 and 1/4. Spoons measuring 1 Tblsp, 1 Tsp, 1/2 Tsp, 1/4 Tsp
Silicon muffin molds	Big Bazaar	INR 115	For a set of 6 molds

I also bought a box of strawberries because my initial plan was to make strawberry bread. I changed it in the last minute to make these relatively healthy muffins.

Recipe

To make 17-18 standard size muffins, you will need:

• All purpose flour - 3 cups


• White granulated sugar - 3/4 cup


• Baking Powder - 1.5 tsp


• Baking Soda - 3/4 tsp


• Salt - 1/4 tsp


• Plain yogurt - 1.5 cups


• Flax seed powder - 1.5 Tbsp


• Warm water - 4.5 Tbsp


• Refined Oil - 1/3 cup


• Vanilla - 3/4 tsp


• Strawberries - 1.5 cups

What you need to do

• Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius


• Line the silicone muffin molds with paper liners


• Dissolve the flax seed in warm water and let it sit for 5 minutes. It will turn thick and gelatinous


• Cut the strawberries into small bite size pieces


• In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients


• Spoon 1 Tbsp of the dry mixture into the strawberries such that the flour coats the berries


• In a separate bowl, whisk the yogurt and add the flax seed water into it along with oil and vanilla


• Add the wet mixture into the dry mixture and mix with a wooden spoon/whisk such that everything combines together. The batter will be thick at this stage.


• Add the strawberries and give it a final mix


• Using an ice cream scoop or a ladle, drop equal quantities of batter into each muffin mold


• Bake the muffins in the oven for 20 minutes at 180.

By the end of the 20 minutes, the muffin will have risen nicely and a toothpick inserted into the center of one will come out clean. Let the muffins cool before you dig in or alternately, I frosted them because I was taking them as dessert for a potluck dinner at my grandma's.

My Notes

1. This recipe is adapted from Stephanie Jowarski's Joy of Baking. I adapted her Blueberry muffins to suit the berries that I bought.


2. She uses eggs in her recipe but being a vegetarian, I substitute 1 egg with 1 Tbsp flax seed powder mixed in 3 Tbsp warm water


3. Cutting the strawberries small and coating them with the dry mixture ensures that they do not sink to the bottom of the batter


4. I used regular refined cooking oil and homemade yogurt/dahi


5. Do not over mix the batter - just enough so that everything is combined together


6. I frosted the muffins using Betty Crocker's Cupcake Frosting which is available in a can. I bought the butter cream flavor from Amma Naana on Chamiers Road. This can comes with 4 decorating tips to use. I have been using this till my Wilton set arrives from USA.


7. I am a novice at icing -- hence the uneven frosting design on the muffins


8. I did think that the muffins could have been a little bit more sweeter, not sure by how much though. Maybe the sugar could have been 1.25 cups instead of 3/4 cups.

So, go ahead and try it. Its not a very decadent dessert, more like something you could have for a mid-day snack. I thought it was pretty good, considering this was the first weekend of Bakefest! I am thinking that I should bake something once every fortnight, and so hopefully in the next 15 days all my ordered items from US will also arrive. More on that in the next post!

Till then, happy baking!

Baking Extravaganza!

Okay, so as much as the title of this post may seem as if I am a Baker-Extraordinaire, I am not. Quite the opposite..well maybe not so much.

Before I get into the crux of the matter, let me outline a side of my personality which pleases me and disappoints me at the same time. I am the kind of person who loves (and I mean LOVES) taking up new projects because I am bored by routine. Intrinsically though, I am a person of routine -- I need to take a shower as soon as I get up, I need to leave for work by 8:30, I need to follow the same bedtime rituals -- well, you get the drift.

But, on the other hand, I get bored if I eat the same dish two nights in a row or if I am just drifting along the river of life without an immediate, short-term goal in sight.

So.. that's why I take up things to do. Looking back, I took up the preparation for IIT and MBA in a similar fashion - because they gave me a target to look forward to in the near future. I took up the CFA course two years back for the same reason. However, I have to admit to myself that I don't get into my non-academic projects as seriously as I should. Take, for example, this blog. This would be my ... 4th attempt at serious blogging after leaving my young adult blog more than 3 years back. However, it just doesn't go anywhere. And that upsets me, because I want it to go somewhere. I want this space to become popular, interesting and give me something to look forward to. Ironically, I need to work on it for it to become any one or all of those things.

Cooking, I discovered 4 years back, was more my thing than I would have ever thought. Because, cooking requires skill, attention to detail, imagination and because cooking gives you tangible immediate results. As an extension, baking started interesting me sometime back. I have always been the baker in my family, and let me tell you, that doesn't say anything about me or my family. But it has always been the regular chocolate cake baking for an occasional birthday or anniversary. I have never really moved beyond that and even that has never been perfect.

Of late, once again, baking has started to capture my mind space. I have been reading a lot of the internet sites, watching a lot of baking videos. And it struck me yesterday that THIS could be my new project -- Baking. Not just cakes, but muffins and breads and cupcakes etc. And decorating and frosting... :) I feel like Julie of Julie & Julia taking this up but that movie was really really enjoyable.

So, I am interested enough to write about it here. Now, what I need immediately is to get me some tools.. and I am planning to go after office today to scrounge for some bakeware and measuring cups and spoons. Hopefully, this weekend will see me doing some baking.

What is my short-term goal here ? I want to be one of those awesome moms who bake for their own kid's birthday party or for a picnic. About whom other kids and their moms talk about :) By the time R is ready to go to pre-school, I should be the new baker-on-the block!!