The first reaction as I saw this book in Odyssey store was to get hold of it immediately- the book cover & the title tempted me a lot and as I browsed through ,I realised it was part of the Trilogy Series and the book no 2- The Secret of the Nagas was also out on stores while the last edition of the Shiva Trilogy- The Oath of Vayuputra is slated for release later this year or probably the early next year. My initial sense of wanting to possess the book is entirely justified as the saga of the Meluhans interspersed with the journey of a common man Shiva & his transformation to becoming Neelkanth is very interesting to say the least. The story is set around 1900 BC & the citizens of the period called their land Meluha. The city & its inhabitants run their empire on the principles of Lord Ram.The inhabitants of this city are immortals because they partake somras the magical drink that promises a long life. These suryavanshis pride in the fact that they are ruled justly and everybody in the kingdom regardless of caste & creed has an access to the magic potion. While they seemingly have a peaceful life the city is plagued by terrorist attacks from the land of chandravanshis their arch rivals and people whom they believe as evil. There is an ancient legend that people staunchly belive- a man will rise & come to their land; he will have a blue throat and he will be their saviour- a man who will help them in destroying evil.
The premise of a man like shiva existing and his journey in to becomeing the ultimate destroyer of evil mix myths & fiction convincingly. And in the process what results is a very lovely story & a few stunning relevations. The concept of what is good & what is evil is beautifully explained. How being different is not bad and if any person who does not conform to your beliefs cannot be branded evil are a few highlights. There are vikramas in the city of Meluha. These people are rendered untouchables because they are believed to be carriers of bad fate. Though they have access to certain basic rights & a way of living, they are denied the dignity & humanity of life as they are thought to suffer in this life because of their past sins. The story very cleverly weaves a plot to bring the plight of vikramas to justice & in the process give them the love n appreciation that they have been missing.What I also loved about the book was the nuanced & practical intrepretations of many issues. I also loved the Har Har Mahadev explanation- There is God in everybody. A man becomes great by his actions as the premise underlying the story is welcome.
The review of the book without talking about the author Amish Tripathi is incomplete - I was completely blown away by the thought process behind the writing; such layered thinking in a very different genre has my hats off. I am already neck- deep in to my second book & its review will be out shortly. But be sure to be part of this mega adventure and experience the varying emotions the book promises !
The premise of a man like shiva existing and his journey in to becomeing the ultimate destroyer of evil mix myths & fiction convincingly. And in the process what results is a very lovely story & a few stunning relevations. The concept of what is good & what is evil is beautifully explained. How being different is not bad and if any person who does not conform to your beliefs cannot be branded evil are a few highlights. There are vikramas in the city of Meluha. These people are rendered untouchables because they are believed to be carriers of bad fate. Though they have access to certain basic rights & a way of living, they are denied the dignity & humanity of life as they are thought to suffer in this life because of their past sins. The story very cleverly weaves a plot to bring the plight of vikramas to justice & in the process give them the love n appreciation that they have been missing.What I also loved about the book was the nuanced & practical intrepretations of many issues. I also loved the Har Har Mahadev explanation- There is God in everybody. A man becomes great by his actions as the premise underlying the story is welcome.
The review of the book without talking about the author Amish Tripathi is incomplete - I was completely blown away by the thought process behind the writing; such layered thinking in a very different genre has my hats off. I am already neck- deep in to my second book & its review will be out shortly. But be sure to be part of this mega adventure and experience the varying emotions the book promises !
Hi Rituraj,
ReplyDeleteGreetings. It will be a pleasure to review your book. I have sent a mail to you . Looking forward to your response.