There’s something I need to confess: I’ve only managed to read two books so far, and both of them have been authored by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni. The celebrated Indian author is known for writing several other award-winning novels like Mistress of Spice, Queen of Dreams, The Palace of Illusions, and One Amazing Thing, among others. When I first picked up The Forest of Enchantments, I didn’t expect much, as the plot of the Ramayana is familiar to most of us. However, this retelling of the Ramayana from Sita’s perspective is unlike anything you’ve read before—and I truly mean it!
Plot Overview
The plot of the book picks up from a normal day in Sita’s life. She is the beloved daughter of King Janak and Queen Sunaina. She is a considerate daughter, a curious learner, an able healer, a strong fighter, and most importantly, a kind human. However, her life takes a dramatic turn when she visits the Gauri Mandir one day. This is when she comes across Lord Ram for the first time, and what follows is one of the greatest epics in the world – however, told from the central female protagonist’s perspective this time.
The basic plot of the Ramayana is well-known: Ram and Sita get married, they are sent into a 14-year exile, Sita is kidnapped, and Ram rescues her from Ravana, the kidnapper. However, Divakaruni adds a touch of fictional retelling to transform the entire story into a saga that highlights Sita’s journey.
Why The Forest Of Enchantment Is The Best Retelling Of The Ramayana
A Feminist Take On The Ramayana
We know the Ramayana mostly through the perspective of Ram, its central male protagonist. We know the stories of the bravery of Ram and his brother, Lakshman and about the atrocities of the demon king Ravana. Their valor, decisions, and fates form the spine of the story as we know it. But Divakaruni flips the narrative, offering readers a poignant, feminist lens that places Sita and other women at the forefront.
She moves beyond the simplistic portrayal of Sita and other female characters, instead providing them with depth in the most authentic way possible. In this version, she is not only gentle, compassionate, caring, and dutiful, but also fierce, questioning, flawed, and deeply human. By doing so, Divakaruni reclaims Sita from the conventional image of an obedient, ideal woman and reintroduces her as a relatable, multi-faceted woman navigating love, sacrifice, betrayal, and strength. By humanizing the god-like Sita, Divakaruni makes her character and her motives more relatable.
Overlooked Female Characters Get To Tell Their Stories
One of the most commendable aspects of The Forest of Enchantments is how it gives voice to the overlooked female characters of the epic. Women like Kaikeyi, Sunaina, Ahilya, Mandodari, Urmila, and Shurpanakha have long been pushed to the background – they are either idealized beyond belief or villainized without nuance. But Divakaruni’s book gives them the voice to tell their stories.
Did you ever question yourself about why we know how Shurpanakha was mutilated for daring to express desire, but do not know what led to that moment? Did you ever ask yourself why Urmila’s sacrifice of staying back at Ayodhya is often glorified, but the emotional toll it took on her is often overlooked? The book answers all these questions by bringing these women to the forefront.
Divakaruni’s nuanced writing breathes empathy into these characters, presenting them as human as possible. Their choices aren’t painted as entirely wrong or right, but instead with great emotional nuance. These women are not showcased as the archetypes the world knows, but as women who have been shaped by their circumstances.
The Writing Is Lucid, Evocative, And Poetic
Divakaruni has a way with words that only a female author can have, and you’ll realize this once you read her work. The award-winning author knows how to make her prose almost poetic, as if you’re reading words floating in a calm sea of compassion. Her writing gets you straight to the point but is also descriptive enough to make you daydream and imagine the story unwinding in your mind.
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Be it the descriptions of their journey through the forests or their days in Ayodhya, Divakaruni’s writing makes you feel like you’re actually inside the Ramayana (or Sitayana in this context!). There is an almost lyrical quality to her writing that makes you want to keep turning pages without getting too overwhelmed. I have accepted the fact that she is a master at writing subtle, emotional moments between characters, for these are the moments scattered across the book that make it a humanized retelling of the utopian epic.
It Makes You Rethink The Ramayana
The Hindu epic has often been considered the ideal man’s handbook for being the best, idealistic version of yourself. However, the retelling by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni makes you question the age-old epic and the teachings you’ve grasped from it over the years.
Is duty more important than love? Is sacrifice always meant to be one-sided? And, is self-dignity more important or proving a point to the world? What is ‘ideal’ after all and what isn’t? Is everyone always completely right or completely wrong? The book presents readers with many questions and it is up to them to figure out their answers. The Forest of Enchantments offers a rare opportunity to question the gendered narratives of this epic and reconsider the lessons we grasp from it.
The Book Is A Celebration Of Self-Respect, Integrity, And Resilience
How far is too far? – This is the question that the book asks us towards the end when Ram asks Sita to go through a purity test to prove her chastity and innocence. Sita, who has loved and worshipped Ram, is initially shocked at such a request, but finally realizes that there is nothing more important than her dignity. The book, much like the original epic, shows Sita embracing her self-respect when she realizes that it is not more important than any love, loyalty, or tradition in this world. In that defining final moment, she chooses herself.
Sita chooses to walk away from a relationship she always cherished, not out of anger, but out of disappointment. Disappointed in the ways of the world where a woman must prove herself in order to win back someone’s love and trust. Even in heartbreak, she stands tall in her dignity. It is a moving tribute to the strength it takes to choose integrity over acceptance, and self-worth over compromise.
Summing Up
Just like the title, the novel is an enchanting take on the Ramayana – full of mysteries, interesting plot twists, lucid writing, and most importantly, a strong female character taking charge of it all. The book by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni is a poignant, evocative, and impactful work – one that will stay with me forever. It teaches me to stay strong in the face of adversity and choose my dignity over anything else in this world. Sita, in a million ways, inspires me, but most importantly, she teaches me to choose integrity and self-respect over compromise, heartbreak, and obligations to the world.
