By Kokil Sharma
Preface:
In Hindu mythology, the great war of Mahabharat holds immense importance. The epic is famous for numerous events, but among them, the one that changed everything was Queen Draupadi's “Cheer Haran” (disrobing).
It was not just a dark day for women, but for men too. It marked the day when all dharma (righteousness) and respect were lost.
But what if history could be changed? What if something other than the “Cheer Haran” had happened?
---
The Game Hall
Darkness surrounded Draupadi completely, her body trembling with every emotion she could feel. The five faces she knew so well hung their heads before her. She looked at every face in the sabha; not a single maharathi was there to save her honor, not a single soul to protect her virtue. Her body quivered with rage.
Krishna saved her, but her soul would be scarred forever. Just as she was about to give up on everything and everyone, a booming voice shook the game hall.
“Dushasan!”
The hall trembled with the feminine voice, and every eye snapped toward the intruder in confusion. She entered the game hall like a goddess, her long open hair hissing like black snakes ready to strike. Her nostrils flared like an enraged bull, and her eyes, red with fury, bore into the culprit with a murderous gaze.
She stood like Goddess Durga, poised to destroy every evil in her path.
The long, sharp weapon clenched in her hand pointed directly at the offending man before her.
“Leave her saree right now!”
Her thunderous voice echoed through the hall like a lightning bolt striking the earth. Her clenched teeth seemed powerful enough to even make the sun change its direction.
Sometimes, the evil within a man blinds him to his own destruction, and that was Duryodhana’s mistake. The blood running in his veins was no longer red; it had turned black, making him oblivious to the fact that he was inviting his own doom.
“Dushaala, how dare you come inside the game hall?” Duryodhana shouted, furious at the interruption.
Dushaala’s rage-filled eyes snapped to her eldest brother. “I could ask you the same, Duryodhana. If this is no place for women, how was Draupadi mercilessly dragged in here?”
“Dushaalaaaa!” Dushashan screamed at her. “How dare you call your brother by his name, and how dare you stand here in the sabha with a sword in your hand!”
Dushaala’s penetrating gaze locked onto Dushasan, her breath growing heavier with each word he hurled at her.
“I forgot every notion of honor the moment Draupadi was dragged in here by her hair. I forgot that you were my elder brother the moment your hand touched her clothes. And I forgot all respect when I heard what the elders had to say to a helpless woman brought into a court of strangers—right in front of the king of Hastinapur, who couldn’t utter a word to protect her honor.”
“If you weren’t my sister, I would kill you right here! Leave this court before I do something you will regret.” Duryodhana warned.
She clenched her jaw. “You’ve already done something I will never forget for the rest of my life.”
Duryodhana glared at her with venom in his eyes. “Throw her out of the room before I do it myself.” he ordered the guards standing behind her.
She whirled around, pointing her sword at everyone. “If anyone dares come near me, I won’t hesitate to cut the intruder in half!” she threatened.
The scene was surreal for everyone. Dushaala’s long hair looked like a lion’s mane. She held the sword gracefully, ready to strike down anything in her path. She was like a goddess of war and everyone who was looking at her was lured by her power.
“The moment a woman’s honour was put in stake I lost my respect for every man sitting here. So, unless you want to get cut in pieces you stop me.” her warning was directed to all the guards standing near her.
They all looked at Duryodhana for his order and the man in question nodded in anger, 4 guards slowly approached her with sword in their hand, Dushaala backed a little and circled in her position to look at every guard and then in a blink her sword slashed in the air and attacked the guard in her right, at the same time her left leg kicked the the guard in her left, her movements were so clean and precise that anyone watching her fight were in awe of her fighting skill.
At the very minute, everyone knew who was going to win.
The slamming of 4 swords echoed in the court filled by the dropping of four bodies in the floor.
Duryodhana’s anger turned into horror at the sight of his sister disobeying the honour of the court with her presence.
But Dushaala was not done there; she strode past her brother and walked in the centre where Draupadi was standing.
"Unhand her saree Dushashan.” She ordered her sword above his hand.
“A prince without a hand will just be a cripple for the kingdom.” Her angry eyes and venom spitting tongue made him hesitate for a moment but his pride made him hold Draupadi's clothes tighter.
“Your antics don't threaten me, Dushalla. We will handle you after I am done with this slave.” He pointed at Draupadi.
She didn’t back down “I am not like others I won’t hesitate to snap your or Duryodhana's neck, I am not the coward who will sit in silence bound by the chains of pledge, I will not sit here ashamed to lift my head up, I will not sit in silence when a woman’s honour is tarnished in front of the whole court.”
“Is it virtue when a powerless woman was dragged in front of all the people, where is your duty maharathi Bhishma when a woman’s integrity is being threatened by none other than your own grandson, where is your responsibility oh great Pandavas when your wife’s honour is getting soiled.” She looked at the Pandavas' hanging faces.
“Stop your berating Dushaala and get out of this court at this moment.”Duryodhana admonished.
She whorled and looked at him in defeat “You will never change, you will burn in the fire of revenge but I won’t let you touch the integrity of a woman on my watch. Either you do a duel with me or Dushasan you rip off my clothes too.”
Her statement earned a shout from Dhritarashtra.
“Noooo.”He shouted getting up from his throne.
She mocked and laughed at his appose “Why king of Hastinapur when it came to your daughter's honour you were ready to oppose your son's fun but when it came to your daughter in law you were sitting tongue tied.”
Each word she spoke was hitting like a poisonous arrow to each member of the court. She didn’t need to be a great warrior to defeat the maharathis,her sharp words were enough.
Her angry demeanor crumbled when she looked at Draupadi's state.
“Bhabhi.” she whispered.
“Let's get you out of here.” putting a comforting arm around she directed her outside the game room.
“If anyone dares to come after us it will not be good for them.”
They were about to reach the door when Draupadi stopped her “I have to go back.”she whispered.
Dushaala Looked at her face in confusion.
“I have to go back. I can't leave my husband like that, they might have forgotten their duty but I can’t as a wife it's my duty to be with them in times of sadness and plight.”
“But…”
“She is right, Dushalla.” Gandhari’s voice made them look at her.
The queen of Hastinapur stood before them. Her form looked tired but like a true queen she stood tall.
“Beta draupadi.” her commanding and elegant demeanor crumbled when her shaking hand touched Draupadi's face.
“Draupadi, I can’t even apologize for what has happened.”Her voice wavered and tears of hurt fell out of her eyes.
They were bound by her pledge but her eyes can still see the pain of Draupadi. She was wretched when she heard the news, her heart was crying for her daughter in law's soiled integrity.
“I have to go back,Dushala.” Draupadi uttered in between her tears.
“I won’t stop you but I won’t leave your side too.” Her determination was a warm home in the middle of storm for Draupadi, She was the wife of 5 warriors and yet this woman in front of her became the biggest warrior she ever saw in her life.
She nodded at her words,wiping her tears she marched like the queen she was towards the hell from where her honour was damaged.
Looking at the three women marching back, the court fell in silence once more, they strode in the centre like three goddesses marching in their magnificent form.
“I Panchali daughter of king Panchal wife of Pandavas stand before you king Dhritrashtraa pleading for justice. Is the king of great Hastinapur capable of giving me justice?” she demanded.
Before Dhritrashtra could say anything, Gandhari's voice echoed in the room.
“I Gandhari daughter of gandhar Naresh wife of king Dhritarashtra demands justice from the king of Hastinapur. My daughter in law was dragged into the room full of men by prince Dushasan on the order of your successor prince Duryodhana while all the courtiers sat in silence. I want to ask, is this part of your rule? Is this what’s going to happen when your son will become the ruler, are all women in threat when your successor will rule Hastinapur?” she shouted at the end.
Drithsrashtra lips wobbled for any words “Gandhari what are you saying?” he managed to ask.
“Duryodhana is your son too.”
“I don’t know any Duryodhana king of Hastinapur, the Duryodhana I called my son was the one who knew to respect women.”
There was anger and disgust in Duryodhana and Dushaans’s face but there were few whose face was beaming with pride at Gandhari and Draupadi's word, among them was maharathi Bhishma who was looking at the three warriors in front of him with pride and wonder.
—-------------------------------------------------
Draupadi’s determination won Pandavas their Indraprastha back; Dushalla's intervention won Draupadi’s honour and showed the inferiority of men.
It showed, It was not the failure of Duryodhana it was the failure of all men who sat there in silence; it was the failure of manhood.
Mahabharat the great battle of Bharat was fought not because of a woman but because of the arrogance of a man who refused to back down because of his pride, who refused to give the rightful piece of land to his brothers, it happened because of the man who refused to accept the evil in his son, who was not blinded by his ability to see but because of his inability to believe who the truthful owner of throne was, it happened because of a pledge which destroyed the kingdom for which the pledge was taken, it happened because the system refuse to accept women as an equal, it happened because sometimes revenge becomes ultimate truth for some and it will happen in future if the present will not learn from past because if past would have somehow able to learn from present it would have understand the role of women’s integrity and importance. It would have understood the power of women.
—-----------------------------------------------------------------
By Kokil Sharma
Comments