Ramayana Stories in Modern South India: An Anthology

285 Pages·2008·1.39 MB·English

by  Paula Richman

Asia • Literature • Religion
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Fresh perspectives on the classic Indian epic Richman Ramayana
“[D]emonstrates that the Ramayana is a living, evolving tradition with continuing impact on StoRieS
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Indian literature, culture, politics, and religion. . . . an extremely important contribution to
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scholarship.” —Kathleen Erndl, Florida State University m in
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“[C]learly organized around provocative themes that are not the usual focus of Ramayana
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studies, illuminating not only the ‘text’ of the Ramayana, but aspects of South Indian history A modeRn
and culture as well.” —Elaine Craddock, Southwestern University n
A South
While some religious texts remain static over time, the Ramayana epic has been retold in
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a variety of ways over the centuries and across South Asia. Some of the narrative’s most t india
probing and innovative retellings have appeared in print in the last one hundred years o
in the region of South India. This collection brings together, for the first time, modern R
retellings translated from the four major South Indian languages (Tamil, Kannada, Telugu, i
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and Malayalam) and from genres as diverse as drama, short stories, poetry, and folksong. S
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The selections focus on characters generally seen as stigmatized or marginalized, and on i
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themes largely overlooked in previous scholarship. Editor Paula Richman demonstrates An Anthology

that twentieth-century authors have used retellings of the Ramayana to question caste and m
gender inequality in provocative ways. This engaging anthology includes translations of 20 o
primary texts along with interpretive essays that provide background and frameworks for
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understanding the stories. Most of the translations are published here for the first time, and
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many were commissioned for this volume. R
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PAUlA RIChMAn is William h. Danforth Professor of South Asian Religions at Oberlin
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College. She is editor of Many Ramayanas: The Diversity of a Narrative Tradition in South o
Asia and Questioning Ramayanas, a South Asian Tradition.
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Cover illustration: “Yogini” (after 16th-century Deccani painting) from the photo-performance project “native h
Women of South India: Manners and Customs,” by Pushpamala n and Clare Arni. Bangalore 2000–2004. Type C

print on metallic paper. Paper size: 20×24 inches. Edition of 20. Courtesy of Bose Pacia Gallery, n.Y., and artists. i
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INDIANA i
A
University Press
Bloomington & Indianapolis
Compiled and Edited by
http://iupress.indiana.edu
Paula Richman
INDIANA
1-800-842-6796
Ramayana Stories in Modern South India
Many know the story. Few know its meaning.
Tamil folk narrative

COMPILED AN D EDI TED BY
PAU LA R ICHMAN
Ramayana Stories in
Modern South India
An Anthology
INDIANA UNIVERSITY PRESS
Bloomington and Indianapolis
This book is a publication of
Indiana University Press
601 North Morton Street
Bloomington, IN 47404-3797 USA
http://iupress.indiana.edu
Telephone orders 800-842-6796
Fax orders 812-855-7931
Orders by e -m ail [email protected]
© 2008 by Indiana University Press
All rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission
in writing from the publisher. The Association of American University Presses’ Resolution on Permissions
constitutes the only exception to this prohibition.
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for
Information S ciences—P ermanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI Z39.48-1984.
Manufactured in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data
Ramayana stories in modern South India : an anthology / compiled and edited by Paula Richman.
p. cm.
Includes translations from Tamil, Kannada, Telugu, and Malayalam.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-253-34988-0 (cloth : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-0-253-21953-4 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Dravidian
literature—20th century— Translations into English. 2. Valmiki— Translations into English. 3. Valmiki—
Adaptations. I. Richman, Paula.
PL4608.55.E5 2008
894.8′08—dc22
2007026594
1 2 3 4 5 13 12 11 10 09 08
In memory of Nathan Richman

Contents
Preface: Compiling a Ramayana Anthology xiii
Acknowledgments xvii
Note on Transliteration, Translation, and Pronunciation xxi
Introduction: Whose Ramayana Is It? 1
Foundations
Plot Line for Reference 2
Classifying Ramayanas 8
Modern Retellings in the South
Modern Tellings as a Category 12
South India as a Ramayana Region 13
Shared Features
Caste, Gender, and Hierarchy 19
Modes of Expression and Literary Genres 23
Transformations
Three Nodes of Narrative Diversity 26
Why Ramkatha? 29
part 1. sita in context
Introduction 37
1. Asking Sita: The Questions Return
by Vijaya Dabbe, Kannada 43
Translated by Shashi Deshpande and Pratibha Nandakumar
2. Sartorial Dilemmas: Letters from Lady Sita
by Kumudini, Tamil 45
Translated by Paula Richman
3. A Mother- in- Law’s Support: Sita Locked Out
Women’s folksong, Telugu 50
Translated by Velcheru Narayana Rao
4. Sita’s Powers: Do You Accept My Truth, My Lord?
Women’s folksong, Kannada 55
Translated by Leela Prasad
5. Talking Back: Sita Enters the Fire
by Gudipati Venkata Chalam, Telugu 58
Translated by Sailaza Easwari Pal