Yuyutsu - Rise of the last Kaurava

by Aniket Sharma

  Warrior.

  Chakravyuh revolved around the first thirteen days of the war where Abhimanyu marked his presence. His emotions and his questions became the base of the story. But when Abhimanyu succumbed on the thirteenth day of the battle, the hunt of another character started. I needed some bal- anced protagonist who could lead the story unbiased. Not from the perspective of any of the sides fighting the battle. And this time I stumbled upon another name, Yuyutsu. He

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  was born as the hope of his father Dhritarashtra but never received equal treatment when other Kaurava brothers were born. When I read more about him, I found that he was the most misunderstood character; targeted for cheat- ing his blood, deceiving his parents and befriending his enemies. Ridiculed for the entire life by his bloodline, he found solace in the company of Pandavas.

  This book, Yuyutsu: Rise of the Last Kaurava, is an attempt, to glorify the hidden gems from the life story of one great warrior who never got his due respect. I have covered a few elements of Yuyutsu’s life which aren’t mentioned in the original Mahabharata. I tried to visualize the protagonist as a human with no extraordinary skills, and who strive to reach the zenith. This book, in its entirety, is dedicated to - wisdom, valour, strength, aspirations, and dreams of a man who rose from nothingness. Yuyutsu didn’t become the ruler of the throne, but the protector. Even the king agreed that he didn’t need the throne, but the throne needed him.

  The book couldn’t have been a reality without the con- tinuous support and efforts of my dear friend Suranjan Paul, who has lived the characters in the book with me. I express my gratitude for him for editing the book, word by word, phrase by phrase. There are many events where we struggled to get into an agreement but that is the beauty of constructing a story. I am also thankful to all those who have written and retold Mahabharata from varied per- spectives which always helped me in thinking beyond the

  root of characters. I also thank my publisher and my first- hand critic Ms Aruna Naidu for accepting this challenge of bringing hidden and lesser-known stories in the form of a book.

  Lastly, a big thanks to my wife Varuna, and my daughter

  Vaani for always being my strengths.

  Aniket S Sharma contact@aniketssharma.com