- WHY THIS BOOK ?
When I first started reading books, I didn’t know what to choose. So, I began writing down the recommendations people gave me. One of those was The Palace of Illusions by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni . I thought, why not start with this?
When I read it, I realized that it’s a historical and mythological fiction told from Draupadi’s point of view. It chronicles Princess Panchaali's fierce birth and her courageous life as a woman with five husbands (The Pandavs).Chitra Banerjee tries to show everything through Draupadi’s lens so readers can see her side of the story. Here she is portrayed as an ordinary woman facing extraordinary challenges. This encourages you to think about your own choices.
I enjoy reading historical and mythological fiction, so I kind of like this book. There were parts I loved, and some things I couldn’t ignore or justify, even if I tried. After a while, some elements felt a bit over the top and disconnected from what seemed true.
As a literature student, I understand that the point of historical or mythological fiction is to blend fact with imagination—to show history or events in a fictional way. Chitra Banerjee did this, and she mentions that this was her early work, so you might notice a few flaws here and there.
This is just my personal opinion about the book.
I think even those who haven’t read much should give it a try at least once. It has some really good parts and a few things I didn’t love, perhaps my expectations were different.
✷ Let's quickly see the good and not so good parts of this book :
- THE PROS :
First, let’s talk about the pros, starting with Krishna’s character. I loved how Chitra Banerjee wrote Krishna—his dialogues and presence are so heartfelt that you can imagine him around you whenever he appears in the book. His conversations with Draupadi are strong, emotional and so enchanting. Their connection felt so real that it really touched me emotionally and I felt this was exactly what I needed to hear,even without realizing it.
The second thing I liked was the dialogue in general—some hit hard and linger in your mind. One of his lines got me:
“I am your friend. I will always protect you. But remember, I will also test you.”It shows that Krishna is not only a comforting presence, but also a guardian angel to you , when the path is difficult and you have nowhere to go .
Since the book is written from a feminist perspective, Draupadi is portrayed as an ordinary woman facing extraordinary challenges, which makes you think about what you would feel in her situation. If you read it, try to put yourself in Draupadi’s place at least once. * Chitra Banerjee has written the dialogues very efficiently.
The third thing I loved is the cover—it's truly unique and perfectly matches the vibe of "illusion" in the title A Palace of Illusions.
The fourth point I loved is the title of this book, "The Palace of Illusions." It's a profound truth that this world is an illusion, a realm of Maya.
The title fits the book well, both literally and metaphorically. In the book, the "Palace of Illusions" refers to the Pandavas' Mayanagri(Indraprastha). But I felt that it also expresses the idea that our entire world is an illusion. I could connect this title of the book to the world of illusion; this is really the palace of illusion where we are living. As Krishna himself quoted:
“Everything you see is an illusion. The only reality is the one you carry inside you.”
These four aspects stood out the most to me as well as some of the early and final chapters really shook me emotionally and left a significant impact on me. I truly enjoyed the conversations between Draupadi and Dhrishtdhyumna (her brother) or Dhri (as he's called in the book).
- THE CONS :
Now, about the things I didn’t like. There are a couple of major issues I couldn’t ignore. Not every character resonated as strongly with me, particularly when it came to Kunti and Karna.
If I start with Karna, he was one of the greatest warriors in the Mahabharata no doubt on that, but he was still on the wrong side. I felt that Chitra Banerjee tried too hard to justify him. I don’t believe there was genuine love or romantic tension between Draupadi and Karna as depicted in the book.
At most, Draupadi might have felt guilty for insulting him at the swayamvar. However, after everything that happened, it didn’t make sense to show her developing romantic feelings for him. People say Karna had all the qualities of the five Pandavas combined, but Krishna didn’t side with him because he was on the wrong side.
I can accept that Draupadi had to live with five husbands and suffered humiliation, but I found the portrayal of her feelings toward Karna to be forced and somewhat unrealistic.
The second weak point is Kunti’s character. She’s portrayed like typical melodramatic heroine and not as she actually was (i just felt that*) . I believe,in reality, she was incredibly strong, moral, and resilient. She raised the Pandavas well, and I don’t think she ever harboured the kind of thoughts or attitude toward Draupadi that this book suggests (the brinjal episode* got me laughing). The same goes for how Draupadi is shown to feel about Kunti,it just didn’t feel true to me.
Besides these issues,at times Draupadi felt a bit impulsive and annoying to me , (though her determination,honesty and rawness kept me hooked ).
- THE CONCLUSION :
Overall, I’d say you should read this book at least once. It’s not bad, but it’s not perfect either.There’s room for improvement, and that’s okay
These are just my thoughts. Someone else might love this book more or less than I did. I’d still recommend reading it once.
To me, this line from Draupadi’s voice captures the point of the whole book:
"In the end, the only thing that mattered was that I had lived."
If you’ve read The Palace of Illusions, I’d like to know what you think. Did you see the characters in the same way, or do you have a different perspective?
P.S:)) Apart from this particular work if you enjoy Chitra Banerjee, you should also try The Forest of Enchantments which tells Sita’s story and which I liked even more, or The Last Queen, another one of her best works. If you’d like me to review either of those, please leave a comment and let me know!
I enjoy discussing books and would appreciate your recommendations, suggestions, and comments. If you liked this review, please share it and continue reading. I've tried to keep it simple.
BESIDES, I'm always up for a discussion!
P.S(2)... IF YOU LIKED IT, DO CHECK OUT MY OTHER BLOGS AS WELL AND PLEASE GIVE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THEM .
Till then, keep reading...
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