BOOK REVIEW: MANDU: THE ROMANCE OF ROOPMATI AND BAZ BAHADUR
Author: Malathi Ramachandran
Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance
Number Of Pages: 260
North of the Narmada river, stands an abandoned
fortress on the Malwa plateau in present day Madhya Pradesh, known as Mandu. A
place popular for its rich history especially for the famous battle between the
last Sultan of the Malwa Sultanate, Baz Bahadur and the Mughal emperor, Akbar.
The story begins with
Baz Bahadur, Sultan of Malwa hearing Roopmati sing and falling in love with her
voice. He asks her to come to his palace and be his personal poet and singer.
Roopmati does not give in easily, she has some demands. Once those demands were
fulfilled, Roopmati went to Baz Bahadur's court and their romance begins. On
the other hand, Queen Hiba craves for her husband, Baz’s attention and envies
Roopmati, but is helpless. Her mother steps in to help her get rid of Roopmati
but sooner or later Hiba realises what and who she needs for her happiness and
her character development might come as a pleasant shock.
It was tough for Baz
and Roopmati to accept their love for each other and was made more difficult by
Jana Begum, Baz's mother-in-law who leaves no stone unturned to get Roopmati
out of his life. She contorts a plan which ends up with the Mughal emperor,
Akbar attacking Mandu, the capital of Malwa and defeating Baz Bahadur and thus
giving a tragic end to Baz and Roopmati's love story.
Set in the 16th
century, the author has described the music and the environment so well, that
anyone could get lost in it. Roopmati and Baz are characters of completely
different personalities. She is a strong, fierce character who does not bow
down to even the Sultan of Malwa. She knows what she wants, and stands by what
she believes in. Her character is the one to lookout for, whereas Baz is a
confident figure, carrying the weight of responsibilities being the eldest
child, declined the future he wanted to pursue in music. The only thing they
have in common is the love for music, and that is what ultimately unites them.
“Life is only as long as the wait for the beloved. When the beloved’s name on one’s breath ceases to evoke a response, the breath ceases too.”
The writing style of
the author is as smooth as silk, it guides the reader like a north star. The
poems in between are a bonus for classical music and poetry lovers. Although,
for the first 130 pages there is a single plot in the book which might be a
little monotonous for some readers but the writing style, story and the
splendid narration by the author transports
you to the book’s setting not letting you put the book down.
“Below the leafy canopy sat young woman, her face lifted towards the river. Her eyes were closed in ecstasy as she drew out the alaap, the opening notes, of Raga Megh Malhar. There was no drone of the tanpura to accompany her voice, but it was not necessary. The cadence, the pitch, the tempo were impeccable.”
In a
nutshell, the book traces the romance of Baz Bahadur and
Roopmati which is a
romance lost to memory and the author has made it come alive with her crisp
writing and flamboyant imagination. There is no other book which rejuvenates this
folklore. An enlightening read for those who have no knowledge about Mandu, and
an equally exhilarating read for classical music enthusiasts, women centric
story readers, historical fiction and romance genre bibliophiles.
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