Triyahani by Rupande Mehta explores a lesser-known aspect of Maharani Draupadi.
Could a woman married to the greatest warriors of all time just be an ordinary queen? Who was the real Draupadi?
The battle of Kurukshetra is over. The Pandavas reign peacefully over Hastinapur but all is not well with Draupadi. Leaving the palace, in search of answers, Draupadi meets Mahadev who brings to her the ultimate truth of her being.
Drawing deeply from Indian mythology across the yugas, Trihayani is a story of Draupadi, unlike anything you have heard before! With vivid descriptions and unprecedented portrayals of characters, Trihayani is a befitting end to the true protagonist of the epic Mahabharata: Maharani Draupadi.
Born in India, Rupande immigrated to the United States in 2002 for her Master’s. Currently, she is a professional working for a Fortune 500 company and an activist for causes related to violence against women, the environment, and social justice. In 2020, Rupande ran for state-level office receiving the most votes ever received by a Democrat for that seat. Trihayani is Rupande’s first novel. She lives in New Jersey with her husband and daughter.
On the eve of the release of her book, Readomania caught up with Rupande on the book, her writing, and more.
Readomania: Draupadi has been written about many times in popular literature. How does Trihayani stand out?
Rupande: Trihayani is a story unlike any other about the life of Draupadi. Most versions of Draupadi have portrayed her as a hapless woman, bent on revenge, vying for the blood of those who humiliated her. I believe there is so much more to her character and her story. She cannot be an ordinary woman whose only task was to berate her husbands for revenge. There was so much more to her, and I hope I have managed to convey the numerous layers of her personality through Trihayani.
Readomania: Why Draupadi? How can a modern woman relate to her?
Rupande: Any woman from any time can relate to Draupadi – that is the magnificence of this queen. She was used as a pawn for her father’s revenge, she was abused numerous times, lusted upon, assaulted, not taken seriously, all the elements that women since time immemorial have had to face. At the same time, she was also relentless and never gave up, she never once doubted herself, her faith was her bedrock, lessons that are relevant for women across the ages; especially as we work towards equality.
One other aspect that Draupadi brings to the forefront is intergenerational trauma; something so many of us – regardless of gender – are battling daily.
Readomania: Writing mythology is very tricky. There are popular versions of the myths and there are lesser-known versions. How did you choose what version to take forward?
Rupande: I took the version forward that my soul agreed with, a version that is kind, empathetic, and most importantly has perspective. In our current times, we have lost the ability to speak with each other, so we don’t understand each other’s point of view. As a result, we don’t know the reason behind someone’s actions. I wanted to bring that aspect to the surface.
Also, Trihayani is not about writing a story that everyone likes or a story that will please everyone. I wrote a story that most closely aligns with my beliefs, that pleased me, and introduces an alternative stream of thought.
Readomania: Mahabharat has been one of the most complex epics from India, a multi-layered narrative. What do you have to say about it?
Rupande: I agree. It is one of my favourite stories in the whole world precisely because of its complexity and numerous nuances within each character. Mahabharata has taught me something different each time I have read it.
Readomania: Which other characters from this epic interest you and why?
Rupande: My two favourite characters in the Mahabharata are Krishna and Krishnaa. Krishna was the greatest politician of all time and Krishnaa because of her faith, her beliefs, and her unwillingness to ever compromise for what she knew was right.
Readomania: How do readers, in the US, react to Indian epics?
Rupande: I’d reckon the same way as Indians do. Of course, background matters so those readers who know the characters in Indian epics can relate better with them compared to those who do not.
Readomania: Let us understand a bit about how you write. Do you have a specific way of writing books? What is your method in writing?
Rupande: I have no standard way of writing. I just write. Trihayani just flowed, as if something deep inside was waiting to burst out. I made very few edits and rarely, if ever went back to change anything. She was ready to come out and she knew exactly the route she needed to take. I was merely the person who wrote it all down.
Readomania: Are there any writing quirks that you follow?
Rupande: Ha, not really. I am a very boring writer. Give with a computer with MS Word and the internet and that is all I need.
Readomania: How long did you take to write this book? What challenges did you face while writing this book?
Rupande: Trihayani was written in less than 5 weeks. My biggest challenge when writing Trihayani was to find an alternative version that would make sense to me. A version that came from kindness and perspective and a version that could explain human behaviour to some degree. I believe we were put on this planet to do good, but over time have lost that and indulged in self-destructive actions. I wanted to go back to the original message, make sense of why some characters did what they did and their underlying motivations.
Readomania: How was your journey from ideation to the final book? Do you remember some moments that are special?
Rupande: It was a quick journey, but I had absolutely no idea where I was going with it. I only had a very brief outline of the story in my mind, but the details were very hazy and often wouldn’t come to me until I started to write. I kept telling my friends and my aunt who were reading along that I had no clue of what to do next and they kept saying, “Just keep going, it will come to you.” And they were so right. I remember waking up one Friday at 2 am and not being able to sleep, the story flashing in front of my eyes, the sentences forming faster than I could remember. Finally, at 5, I left the bed, made a big pot of coffee, and wrote nonstop until 3 pm on Saturday afternoon. I felt so much better afterward and slept like a baby that night.
Readomania: As we end this interview, tell us who are your favourite authors? What books did you grow up with?
Rupande: My grandfather was a mythology buff, and my grandmother passed on the love of writing to me. Trihayani is a labour of their love. Growing up, I loved Indian mythology – stories of gods and goddesses, Krishna, Mahabharata (of course) and Ramayana. I read and re-read them countless times. My grandmother also read the Bible to me at a very young age. As I grew older, I read a ton of suspense novels. Nancy Drew was my favourite, then Sidney Sheldon and Jeffrey Archer.
I still carry an abiding love of reading although nowadays I read a lot of non-fiction. Recently, I have been reading about Indigenous cultures, their spirituality, and their way of life. They know what we all need to know and it's time we return to it.
Readomania: Thank you Rupande, for this wonderful interview. We look forward to a lot more from your pen.
Rupande's book, Trihayani is now available across the world except India. The book is expected to release in India, in print, in the next month.
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