Novel            : The Fisher Queen’s Dynasty

Author         : Kavita Kané

Pages            :  325

Genre           : Indian mythological fiction

Publication : Westland, 2017

Blogpost by Dhanu

Content 4🌟/5
Cover design 4🌟/5

The stories of mythology always fascinate ever since my childhood. My childhood was rolled up with the fantasies of our Indian epics which seed the strong love and respect for ancient Indian traditions and its culture. The Mahabharata is one of two great Indian epics that I have always been fascinating about. I have grown with the stories which was narrated through the male narratives. 

Recently I happened to read the female narratives of the shadowed mythical women characters through the narrations of the female writers, which awestruck my mind. These creations rise the emotions as the same time it keep us thinking deep about each inculcated philosophy.

While reading the contemporary creations of Mythological fiction works, we can experiences the influences of contemporary thought process among  the ancient mythical characters. The another dimension of the story is expressed through the vivid view of a female character. The real highness of Satyavati comes out through this novel.

The novel frames the life of Satyavati who is born and brought by a Fisher community leader and create her own blood lineage in Kuru dynasty. The book is about Satyavati political knowledge and Bhishm’s swearing allegiance to her.

The novels sets in Hastinapur. The novel opens at Kurukshetra battlefield where it gradually moves towards the past with the narration of Bhishm.  The story of Satyavati and Bhishm moves parallel, then meet at same point when she marries his father, King Shantanu and ends with Satyavati’s death.

The novel has touched the glimpses of political tactics and the strategies that are staged to sustain the throne, bringing up a child not with love and affection, but as an heir to secure the throne. Each action has its own twists and turn as life and politics always have it’s.

The novel begins with ‘Prologue’, Bhishm, son of the Goddess Ganga, lay still on the bed of arrows and waiting for his death. But he wishes to live and undo his mistakes in his life. Bhishm is born as Devavrat to fulfil Ganga’s curse by Rishi Vashist. He got a boon from his father, King Shantanu that Bhishm can only die when he wishes to die. Because of sacrificing his life to his old father’s wish to marry a young girl, Satyavati, the protagonist of the story.

The guilt of his entire life piercing his soul than the arrows piercing his entire body. He destroyed the life of the other women in his life, for a woman, Satyavati. In short, the story is about the girl, Satyavati, whose deeds changed the destiny of the entire clan as well as her own life.

Each and every scene rose the hype with awaited political clinches. The style of writing is lucid and flowy with its easy go which liberally expresses the author’s indented ideas. The well penned writings become the jewel of Kané’s writing style.

The cover of the book has its magnificent look as the majestic Satyavati is portrayed. The richness of blue colour resembles the image of river with the same, Satyavati as Fisher Queen.

I highly recommend this novel to get the experience of highness of Satyavati as one-woman warrior of her life.

The need of the hour was not to mourn, but to manage with whatever means and measure.