Siege of Mithila

The essential story of the Ramayana could have been completed in one short novel like many others have done, but the author has taken a more difficult route - researched the stories and substories (there are so many of them and so many different versions of each) within the Ramayana and presented them coherently in his own inimitable fashion, making it a fun unputdownable read. For people like myself, an indian who is more comfortable reading English, I'm very thankful to Mr Banker for having made this effort. Among the highlights of the current book - Intrigue and attempted assasination of King Dasharatha in the palace. - Queen Sumitra does some sleuthing. - The massive Asura army advancing swiftly to destroy the arya nations and the desparate race to stop the hordes. - Sage Gautama's wife Ahilya is rescued from her curse. - Sita makes her entry and does she shatter some of my perception about her. - Jay makes an entry (with hints that more will be revealed in the future books about how Ravana came to be) - initial indications of rama's future alliance with the rksa's(bears) - and the Bramhastra is revealed and used for the first time, and we understand there is a huge cost to using the weapon.

The Ramaayana of Valmiki is considered the Adikavya or the first poem. Poetry stems from swirling emotions and in that, the Ramayaana is a tale of courage, endurance, righteousness and most of all love... this is beautifully portrayed in Ashok's books especially the Siege of Mithila. Having set the stage to unfurl the tapestry that is Ramaayana in his first book, the Prince of Ayodhya, Ashok unremittingly follows the pace of the first book to give us fantastic account post the Bayank-vana episodes. Usually in most versions of the epic, this is a much slower paced part which clearly does not let the audience appreciate the workings of fate - but the narrative outdoes the previous book in weaving a compelling tale. The book also introduces the other most important protagonist of this epic - Seetha. Readers will be surprised and charmed by the Seetha of this book, admiring her and falling in love... just as Rama does. More than anything else, the core of this book is about love, pure and blissful, untouched by anything at all... We not only see the union of Rama and Seetha, the lovers - united to become one, but also the two minds who achieve a higher union. Surprising, delectable and unpredictable - this series is a shockingly good read and gives you the essence of the eternal epic and transports you to another realm. When I first read this book a couple of years ago, it was excruciating to have to wait for the next one of the series to come along - however, with 5 of 6 books available - it will be an uninterrupted read for new readers.

The Ramayana literally translated means "The Journey of Rama", with respect to AKB's Ramayana, it's a journey that we the readers too get to experience in all its epic glory. For me the the spiritual connection of this tale is undeniable. However, the story of spirituality is so skillfully interwoven within the fantasy and adventure elements of the story that the connection can at times seem but an afterthought. If you're not looking for a spiritual connection, then it won't matter to you. If you're looking for a good read, look no further. With Siege of Mithila Ashok K Banker succeeds in expanding on his rich tapestry of adventure and continues to delight with his unique re-telling. One of the most refreshing factors being the depiction of Sita as a true warrior princess. As with Prince of Ayodhya, the politics and subterfuge within the invincible walls of Ayodhya continue to fascinate, only now we are so positively familiar with the characters concerned that we cannot help but experience the range of emotions that they are faced with. None more so than that of our protagonist Rama's. Herein lies banker's expertise. It's fair to say that given the flawless traits of Rama's character it is all but too easy to simply dismiss him in terms of having "less reader appeal" for being too perfect (after all even Superman has his Kryptonite right?).... well,this is where we see Banker at his finest; he succeeds in drawing us in by giving us an insight to the development of Rama's uncompromising code to DHARMA. Rama is the ultimate soldier of Dharma which proves to be not only his greatest attribute but also his 'Achilles' Heel'. During the course of the story (even moreso in the books that follow) Rama's strict adherence to DHARMA comes at great personal cost to him and his loved ones ..... or does it? The only way to find out is by reading on. Herein lies the author's expertise in taking age old popular stereo-type & turning it on its head whilst staying true to the essence of his source material. In doing so he has made his Ramayana the definitive version for me........ or to put it another way "The best just got better"!

Seige Of Mithila is the second book in Ashok Banker's Ramayana Series. Many worthy points about the book have already been made by other reviewers, and I would not want to reiterate them. However, I would like to add a few bits-and-pieces that I found absolutely fascinating about this book, and the entire series in general: While Ashok surely deserves praise for the strength of his main characters, it is the "side actors" like Bejoo and Bheriya (of the Vajra kshatriya clan) which are absolutely original in their approach and development. Ashok's books provide us with more than just entertainment or advice -- they also serve as a portal to "peep into" the complex socio-historical relationships without the heavy baggage of philosophy and verbose meandering. The side-actors carry out this responsibility quite ably. Their stories weave through the main storyline, though never allowing the reader to lose his focus. Ultimately, all characters, all perspectives, all events led to Rama, and Rama alone. Ashok's Ramayana is quite unique in its development -- turning a well established tale on its tail, and yet engage the reader on every page, at every turn -- is no mean task. The depth and scope of his imagination can barely be perceived in the first two books of the series (for that matter, even after reading all the books, the reader would definitely hunger for more :) ). Hugely recommended. Mr Banker, you score again !!!

So let me try to write the part 2 of my "review" for the retelling of the Ramayana for 21st century. I said that this is a tour de force in the part 1 of my review for PRINCE OF AYODHYA. It is because Mr Banker succeeds to modernize the ancient story for those of us living in this most challenging time of the history of human beings, without losing the very true core, the essential spirit of the original story. The Ramayana has been retold again and again by numerous people for their contemporary audiences. Some of the retellings are remarkable enough to be admired and cherished as classics, such as those by Valmiki or Kamban. And this one retold by Mr Banker would be going to become one of those classics. One of the reasons is that he has opened up the story for far wider people by writing it in English, the de fact linga franca of our time. Another reason, and I suppose this is far more important, is that he has modernised certain key aspects of the story. One of the good exaples of this modernisations is the chapters in POA where Rama, our hero gets angry and challenges his mother for her reconciliation with his father who had neglected his mother for so long. Here Rama grows up from a simple youth to a real person with flesh and blood. In this tense scene, you may hear a far resonance of the relationship between Paul Atreides and his mother in the first book of DUNE (Frank Herbert took advantages of the fundamental "frameworks" of a good story there, and the Ramayana is a great source of those "frameworks"). As you may know Rama is a reincarnation of Vishnu, one of the Trimurti, a supreme god. Though he doesn't know it until the last moment of his life on earth, he cannot but help but acting rightly. So he can be a superficial goody-goody character in a modern retelling by a less skillful hand. With going through that challenge, Rama changes into a character with whom we can truly relate to, someone we can sincerely love and respect. Here in this second part, another important character appears: Sita, our heroin, and Rama's companion. The relationship of Sita and Rama is another and very much important example of the modernisations; they love and respect each other not as a man and a woman, but as an equaly independent person. Oh, they love each other as passionately as no one could do. They respect and admire each other so deeply that no one could fathom the bottom. But the physical aspects are far less important for them. First and foremost they love each other for his/her essence as a human being, not as an animal controlled by libido. I don't know enough to say confidently, but my instict tells me this notion, the love between two equal persons has been there in the epic from the very start. We may not find it in Valmiki's nor Kamban's, but I think both of them would grin and give the thumbs up if they should read these passages by Mr Banker. Well, I'm sure they would approve this retelling as a whole and recommend