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leuvi's review
4.0
In 1954, a British author of Indian descent by the name of Aubrey Menen wrote a book, which at its core was an imaginative retelling of one of India's best know Mythological epics (along with Mahabharata) 'The Ramayana'. The book was appropriately titled 'Rama retold' (in some versions the titled has been changed to 'Ramayana as told by Aubrey Menen').
Now, if you are anyone like me who has spent his entire life living in India, I'd say it is impossible for you to not be aware of this tale. I am using a definitive word like "impossible" here because of two reasons, first being that, with the advent of television in majority of Indian households that roughly coincided with the liberalisation of Indian economy in 1991 led to, Doordarshan or DD National, India's state owned and only TV channel of the time, to broadcast shows based on the epics like 'The ramayana, 'Mahabharata' etc. Them becoming an instant hit overnight. I would not go into the political reasons behind this - even though there are many - I would, however like to talk about the political consequences culminating over the years due to this phenomenon and that brings me to my second point. 2014 saw the rise of fascism inspired right wing hindu party at helm of political food chain. One of the defining features of this ruling dispensation is the weaponisation of 'Rama', the protagonist of Valmiki's tale as a war cry against minorities across the country. 'Rama' has become such a polarising figure in today's time that it is impossible not be aware of him.
At a time like this, reading Menen's rendition of the tale is truly a breath of fresh air. The book trims down all the mystical Mumbo-jumbo and humanizes the characters to such a degree, - showing them with all the human vices, making each and every character so much more relatable - that 'Rama retold' became the first book to be banned in Independent India. But this begs the question, why was it banned in the first place and that too by a prime minister who is projected as an epitome of liberalism and tolerance ?
I think the answers to these questions lies the objectives menen wanted to achieve through this book. In a section just after the introduction, appropriately titled 'Indian Enlightenment' menen explains thet when this tale was originally written, there was a movement that was taking shape in India which was nothing short of an Indian enlightenment. And that the author of 'Ramayana' Valmiki was one of the first sceptics to challenge the orthodox brahamanical hegemony and that, it was due to this he was forced to live his adult life in exile and he died in poverty. Later, the Brahmins appropriated and distorted his work, giving birth to the tale of 'Rama' we today see on TV and is celebrated by the the Hindu Right wing. What Menen tries to do with this book is what, -according to Menen, Valmiki intended to do with the original Ramayana - that is to question the foundations of society and civilization itself and just like Valmiki - who was exiled for thinking differently from the dominant orthodoxy at the time - Menen also faced the same fate for more than half a century, his book still banned to this day.
The structure of the book is fairly simple. It has been divided into three sections, first section concerning itself with life in the Kingdom of Ayodhya before Rama's exile, the second section recounts Rama's exile and his meeting with Valmiki and the final section deals with the siege of Lanka and Rama's return, just like any other Ramayana, there is s catch however, menen in order to break away from the Brahmincal hegemony over the text omits parts glorifying tye Brahmins adding his own stories in the mix as well. The book is a satire on the society itself and most of its humour comes from ironies and contradictions in the stories.
In conclusion, 'Rama retold' urges us to be more sceptical and not to hold anything sacred to the point of becoming delusional and nonsensical, which I believe is the need of the hour in today's political climate, but most importantly this book asks us to laugh. With Valmiki saying, "There are three things which are real: God, human folly, and laughter. Since the fi rst two pass our comprehension, we must do what we can with the third."
Now, if you are anyone like me who has spent his entire life living in India, I'd say it is impossible for you to not be aware of this tale. I am using a definitive word like "impossible" here because of two reasons, first being that, with the advent of television in majority of Indian households that roughly coincided with the liberalisation of Indian economy in 1991 led to, Doordarshan or DD National, India's state owned and only TV channel of the time, to broadcast shows based on the epics like 'The ramayana, 'Mahabharata' etc. Them becoming an instant hit overnight. I would not go into the political reasons behind this - even though there are many - I would, however like to talk about the political consequences culminating over the years due to this phenomenon and that brings me to my second point. 2014 saw the rise of fascism inspired right wing hindu party at helm of political food chain. One of the defining features of this ruling dispensation is the weaponisation of 'Rama', the protagonist of Valmiki's tale as a war cry against minorities across the country. 'Rama' has become such a polarising figure in today's time that it is impossible not be aware of him.
At a time like this, reading Menen's rendition of the tale is truly a breath of fresh air. The book trims down all the mystical Mumbo-jumbo and humanizes the characters to such a degree, - showing them with all the human vices, making each and every character so much more relatable - that 'Rama retold' became the first book to be banned in Independent India. But this begs the question, why was it banned in the first place and that too by a prime minister who is projected as an epitome of liberalism and tolerance ?
I think the answers to these questions lies the objectives menen wanted to achieve through this book. In a section just after the introduction, appropriately titled 'Indian Enlightenment' menen explains thet when this tale was originally written, there was a movement that was taking shape in India which was nothing short of an Indian enlightenment. And that the author of 'Ramayana' Valmiki was one of the first sceptics to challenge the orthodox brahamanical hegemony and that, it was due to this he was forced to live his adult life in exile and he died in poverty. Later, the Brahmins appropriated and distorted his work, giving birth to the tale of 'Rama' we today see on TV and is celebrated by the the Hindu Right wing. What Menen tries to do with this book is what, -according to Menen, Valmiki intended to do with the original Ramayana - that is to question the foundations of society and civilization itself and just like Valmiki - who was exiled for thinking differently from the dominant orthodoxy at the time - Menen also faced the same fate for more than half a century, his book still banned to this day.
The structure of the book is fairly simple. It has been divided into three sections, first section concerning itself with life in the Kingdom of Ayodhya before Rama's exile, the second section recounts Rama's exile and his meeting with Valmiki and the final section deals with the siege of Lanka and Rama's return, just like any other Ramayana, there is s catch however, menen in order to break away from the Brahmincal hegemony over the text omits parts glorifying tye Brahmins adding his own stories in the mix as well. The book is a satire on the society itself and most of its humour comes from ironies and contradictions in the stories.
In conclusion, 'Rama retold' urges us to be more sceptical and not to hold anything sacred to the point of becoming delusional and nonsensical, which I believe is the need of the hour in today's political climate, but most importantly this book asks us to laugh. With Valmiki saying, "There are three things which are real: God, human folly, and laughter. Since the fi rst two pass our comprehension, we must do what we can with the third."
paladinrook's review
3.0
The Ramayana is one of the oldest novels ever written, and quite possibly the oldest love story. It is a great and engaging story even today, and I really enjoy it. However, I think that I would like to read a version that is closer to the original epic written by Valmiki. This was the only version I could find at my college library, but it has been changed a lot from the original. For instance, all the parts about the gods and goddesses are removed from the storyline, making is a fully human story. In the introduction, Menen explains that she is trying to bring the story back to what she believes that Valmiki originally wrote, because the story has been changed so much over time by the Brahmins of India, but I feel like her interpretation of the story is somewhat lacking. She also narrates within the story, and while her narrations are clever and poignant, I feel like they take away the reader's opportunity to interpret the story as they wish. To an extent they force the reader to accept Menen's views on Indian history and on this classic love story itself.
jacquelynjoan's review
4.0
I listened to audio on Libby and really loved the narrator's voice and accent.
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