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Parva (novel)
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Wikipedia article
'Parva' (, 'Epoch') is a novel written by S. L. Bhyrappa in the Kannada language. It is a retelling of the Sanskrit epic Mahabharata, narrated through the personal reflections of the principal characters. The novel is widely acclaimed as a modern classic.'Bhitti,' 'Sahitya Bhandara,' Bangalore 'Parva' is among Bhyrappa's most widely debated and popular works and is considered by many to be his greatest.
Background
Bhyrappa recounts the writing of the novel in an essay, 'Parva Baredaddu', in his book ('Nneka Barayuttena').Essay titled, 'Parva Baredaddu' ('How I wrote Parva') 'Naaneke Bareyuttene,' 'Sahitya Bhandara,' Bangalore It was a friend, Dr. A Narayanappa, who urged the author to write his conception of the 'Mahabharata' as a novel. Bhyrappa decided to write 'Parva' during a tour in the Garhwal region in the Himalayas. He stayed at a village where polyandry was practiced. Further research revealed that the practice had persisted in the region since the time of Draupadi. Bhyrappa recounts how this experience led him to visit several places in North India mentioned in the 'Mahabharata.'
Bhyrappa subsequently moved to a new job in Mysore. In 'Parva Baredaddu,' he narrates how the novel "stayed in his mind," and "forced" him to apply for unpaid vacation from work to begin research. His research covered multiple perspectives including the historicity of the 'Mahabharata', geography of India, anthropological aspects of the time, techniques of warfare, and philosophical concepts. Bhyrappa visited most of the places listed in the epic over a period of more than a year. He visited the Yadava capital Dwaraka (now believed to be submerged'The Lost City of Dvaraka,' S.R. Rao, Aditya Prakashan, India, 1999, ), Lothal, Rajasthan, Rajagriha, Kurukshetra, Old Delhi, and parts of the Panchala territory.
Translations
'Parva' has been translated into seven Indian Languages and three foreign languages. The Indian translations are (Bengali), (Hindi), (Malayalam), (Marathi), (Tamil), (Telugu), and (Sanskrit). The Tamil translation of Pavannan and the Telugu translation of Gangisetty Lakshminarayana won the Sahitya Akademi's translation award in 2004.
Among foreign languages, the first translation appeared in English under the title 'Parva: A Tale of War, Peace, Love, Death, God and Man'. It was the work of K. Raghavendra Rao. The Russian translation by Abhai Maurya and Sonu Saini appeared in 2020. It was titled ''. The Chinese translation () appeared in the same year as the Russian one. 'Parva' was translated into Mandarin Chinese by a team of B. R. Deepak and Xu Ke.
Storyline
The novel narrates the story of 'Mahabharata' mostly using monologue as a literary technique. Several principal characters found in the original 'Mahabharata' reminisce almost their entire lives. Both the setting and the context for the reminiscence is the onset of the 'Kurukshetra War'.
The novel begins with a conversation in the court of Madra desha. It was the time when the preparations of war had just begun. The episode is followed by reminiscences of Kunti, Draupadi, Bheema and Arjuna. The next part of novel discusses the war from a rational view. The novel seeks to reconstruct the disintegration of a vast community involving the Kauravas and Pandavas.Various authors, Sahitya Akademi (1987), p430
Awards
'Parva' has won the Deraje award.'Bhyrappa to receive Deraje Award', http://www.hindu.com/2007/02/10/stories/2007021002030200.htm, 'The Hindu'
Notes
References
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* [http://slbhyrappa.com/ Santeshivara Lingannaiah Bhyrappa (Official Website)]
Category:1979 novels
Category:Kannada novels
Category:1979 Indian novels
Category:Novels based on the Mahabharata
Category:Novels by S. L. Bhyrappa
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