Today I put down this massive and magnificent art of eminence by Kalki Krishnamurthy. Its massive because it comes in 2000+ pages in 4 volumes. Each page is a sheer joy of witnessing the grandeur of Chozha kingdom.
Vallavarayan Vandiyatheevan walks in the lanes and palaces of Thanjavur, Kanchi, Kadamboor, Kodumbalur, Madurai, strolls in the forests of western and southern Karnataka underneath the Kaveri river, rows in the Indian ocean between Rameswaram and Ilankai, fight wars, truces, take part in secret conspiracies, scandalises affirmations from kings, corners death threats, with luck escapes from precarious people and situations, laments the loss of a friend, craves for Kundavai yet, survives the trust placed on him. - Is he the Hero? No.
Arulmozhivarman or Ponniyin Selvan is the hero. He is believed to be saved by mother Kaveri herself when he was placed in the river and thats how he gets the name Ponniyin Selva. He is in Ilankai(Srilanka) waging war and is only 19. He is the second son of the most handsome king of Chola dynasty - Sundara Chola. His siblings are Aditya Karikalan and Kunduvai. Kunduvai is a lady protagonist sharing much of the spot light along with Vandiyatheevan.
The plot is eventful with many twists but the storyline is predictable though there are great many people involved. All conspires to one war and that war has to be waged.
The summary of the plot and the family tree and whos who is well reported in the wikipedia.
I lived through the eyes of Vandiyatheevan all along with his vulnerabilities, love, sheepishness, shallowness, trickery, maturity and his hope for seeing good things. The books took me through those lanes and palaces that he walked by in a visual experience. I read the english version translated by Pavithra Srinivasan though I so much wanted to read the original script written in Tamil by Kalki (due to my illiteracy in Tamil).
