Sita: Daughter of the Earth: A review

This is the second Ramayana-related graphic novel that I have read and it doesn't disappoint.
Saraswati Nagpal's story tells the tale of The Ramayana in Sita's perspective. I liked the perspective. The artwork by Manikandan is really good. And you can finish reading 92 pages in 10-15 minutes.
The story starts differently. It begins in King Janaka's court, where he and his wife pray for a child, are asked to pray to the Earth Goddess, who blesses them with a child. She grows up to be Sita, a girl who is beautiful, wise and strong, as she demonstrates when she moves Lord Shiva's bow. The rest of the story is pretty much where the Ramayana takes off after Lord Rama weds Sita. The search for Sita, however, is done like a back story that is narrated by Hanuman.
Nagpal has taken some liberties. In my grandmother's tale and the ACK that I read as a child, Rama banishes Sita after a citizen tells him that he overheard someone throw out his wife, stating that he wasn't like Rama, who took his wife back after living in the home of another. In Nagpal's version, Rama never says anything to Sita and Sita finds out herself and leaves Ayodhya.
Another thing that is different from the original story that I read is that Rama learns of Luv and Kush being his sons, only after they nearly defeat him in battle. Nagpal's story, which has probably been inspired by Tulsidas' Ramayana rather than Valmiki's tells how the boys go to Ayodhya and play music and reveal themselves to Rama, following which Sita comes and asks Mother Earth to take her back home.
Nagpal's narrative is really good. She brings Sita to life and the gentle touches like 'bhaiya', 'didi' and 'bhabhi' are added, which was not there in the original ACK.
For parents who want to introduce their kids to Indian mythology, I strongly recommend that they get this for their kid. You can buy it here.

A promising start

The Ramayana has always been a story of Good Vs Evil. Grandmothers love Rama and say that he is the epitome of goodness and it was only his dharma as a king that prompted him to banish Sita from Ayodhya.
Personally, I always liked the Mahabharata better. It always felt real. All the characters, including Krishna had shades of grey. It was and still is, in my opinion, the greatest story ever told.

Cover of Issue 1

However, one character that always remained a mystery in the Ramayana is Ravana. The Lord of Lanka was a brilliant man, a scholar, a great king, loved his wife (or wives) and family. Yet, we've all been raised with tales that Ravana was the epitome of evil because he kidnapped Sita and challenged Rama to a fight.
Funnily, Ravana is the only grey character in the Ramayana. Come to think of it, so were Sugreeva and Vali, but then this is more about Ravana, given that I've just finished reading Vijayendra Mohanty's 10-part series, Ravanayan.
I finished the first part yesterday and thought that it was really good. The artwork is superb, as is the narrative. I love the way it opens with Ratnakar (later to become Valmiki), meets Ravana for the first time. The characters look complex and I sincerely hope that Mohanty has the same consistency as the series progresses. For those who want to order their copy, you can buy it here.
Happy reading.

A general ramble

We sit.
It's lunchtime at work and all of us sit in our fixed spots.
There's a lot in our minds, but the silence is enough communication. Funnily, it's comfortable silence because we're all in the same frame of mind. The only consolation is the food that we've brought. There is homemade bread, rice, chappattis, different varieties of potatoes (currently, it's six), some meat and some dessert. We smile at each other and silently eat. In the middle, we complement what we have brought and insist on writing out a list of what food items to bring the following day. We discuss meals on Sunday and wish we were part of each other's house to sample out the Sunday spread for a day. While some of us are more generous with our invitation, others are very possessive about their food and say that sharing food will mean taking portions out of their labeled food. We then decide that we'll salivate over what was made on Sunday the following Monday.
We dream of vacations. Of tropical islands, of golden sand, of high mountains, of deep valleys, of the idea that there could be no cellular network. This makes us happy. None of us are in the mood to communicate right now, especially using mobile phones. We think that physical presence is more important. We don't even feel like logging into Facebook. We talk about Google+. I think its a waste of time having one more social networking site, given that it looks similar to Facebook. I suggest that we go to Hatebook instead. That would give us more people to add.
Work off late is not the best place to be. Sure the office is nice-looking, but we're fed up with the job profile. We feel disillusioned that what we came here for is not what we want to do in the long run. I don't see myself writing 400 character recipes for the rest of my life. You don't see yourself editing mobile content for the rest of your life. You don't see yourself writing health and fitness stories for the rest of your life. You don't see yourself listing out mobile phone prices. You're smart. And so are you. You got better offers and fucked off. That leaves us, wondering what to do next.
If only there was a vacation to look forward. Oh yeah, you and you are going on one. Grrr. While I know that you deserve it, I can't help but feel jealous.
If it's not your vacation we're discussing, it's a huge t-shirt that speaks of a Canadian city.
I'd rather speak about your vacation and feel depressed. At least none of you will have to wear that t-shirt.