Week 5 Story: Promila and Indrajit
It was a bright day in Lanka when Indrajit and his wife, Promila, received the devastating news about Indrajit’s brother, Birbahoo. Indrajit fell to the ground with sorrow mourning Birbahoo, who had been killed earlier by Lakshmana and Rama in battle. Using little time to grieve, Indrajit swore to avenge his brother by killing Rama and Lakshmana and starts preparing himself for the fight. He was reluctant to leave his beautiful wife, but ensured Promila he will be back that evening.
Promila had heard the stories of the mighty Rama and feared for Indrajit’s life. Promila decided to roam her beloved garden to calm her nerves, but this only made her thoughts worse. As she anxiously paced around her garden, she noticed something was different. This beautiful garden that once brought her serenity and joy felt so lackluster now. She realized being without Indrajit made her feel incomplete and empty. She couldn’t stand a day without him; how would she continue if he didn’t return home?
When Indrajit didn’t return that night, Promila ran out of patience and took matters into her own hands. She tells her faithful maidens that she will be joining her husband in the Capital and begins putting on her armor. Promila knew getting passed Rama’s army might not be easy, but she was prepared to fight if she needed to. She couldn’t bear the thought of being apart from Indrajit any longer. She past Rama’s army with no trouble and is finally reunited with Indrajit. Promila was greeted by the open arms of her admiring husband and immediately her world became brighter again. Just being in his presence made her fearless about the future. Indrajit was thankful he had such a brave and devoted wife and she inspired him to be victorious in his fight.
The next day, Indrajit went to the altar to pray and ask the gods for blessings before his battle. While Indrajit was in the altar, Lakshmana was let in by Indrajit’s deceiving uncle, Bibhisan. Lakshmana was too cowardly to fight Indrajit while he had his weapons because he knew he would lose. Indrajit, having no way to defend himself, is killed. As Indrajit died from his unfair battle with Lakshmana aided by the betrayal of his own family, he could only think of his broken promise of returning to his beloved wife.
Promila was devastated when she heard about Indrajit’s death. The empty and dull world she experienced the day before surrounded her. She had no desire to remain on earth without her husband. Without any hesitation, Promila said good-bye to all her loved her ones and joined Indrajit in the altar where she decided to take her own life to be reunited with Indrajit.
Promila going to join Indrajit (Source)
This story was very interesting to read because it puts Rama and Lakshmana in the role of the antagonist. Usually, in stories like this where the protagonist is portrayed as heroic, powerful, and righteous I like to play devil's advocate and wonder if the hero is really all that good. I am glad someone actually wrote about it! One thing that was unclear to me was why Indrajit's uncle betrayed him? He was inserted kind of abruptly and I think a small introduction and building up to his betrayal would have enhanced the story. I would also like to suggest more proofreading next time as there is at least one instance where you missed a word. For example, at the beginning of the story you say "...received the devastating about Indrajit's brother..." and I think you meant to say "received the devastating news". Also, you used the wrong "past/ passed" to mean getting past something. It should say "She knew getting past Rama's army..."
ReplyDeleteYou make the love between Indrajit and Promila seem sweet and dramatic at the same time. I've never read the original story, but this one made me what to check it out. While reading the Ramayana, I also thought that sometimes the heroes of the story were kinda rude/cowardly. I think that you make the reader sympathize with the villains, which is always interesting. I agree with proofreading to make the story more clear to the reader! You missed a couple of things, but the errors distract a bit from the story.
ReplyDeleteClara,
ReplyDeleteI love how engaging this love story was. Indrajit and Promila seem to have such a special connection based on the way you wrote it. Especially since Promila was willing to risk her life in order to be with Indrajit. It was very sad how Indrajit died because of unfair circumstances but overall I like how they ended up together and it had major Romeo and Juliet vibes.