Vetaal and Vikram: Riddles of the Undead by Gayathri Prabhu
A humorous version of one of India’s most well-known story cycles may be found in Vetaal and Vikram. The Kathasaritsagara, a work written in Sanskrit in the eleventh century, contains the story of King Vikram and the Vetaal. The Vetaal, who is neither alive nor dead, is a master storyteller, and Vikram is an attentive listener who is unable to remain mute or speak. They will be forced to navigate a maze of tales while together on a moonless night in a cemetery.
Richard Francis Burton, a renowned scholar and adventurer, translated eleven of the Vetaal’s tales into English in 1870 and adjusted them to suit his gothic audience’s tastes. A modern response, Vetaal and Vikram, incorporates Burton into its narrative framework.
Vetaal and Vikram: Riddles of the Undead by Gayathri Prabhu
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This fantastical and enjoyable retelling blurs the distinctions between speaker and listener, desire and obligation, and life and death.
The 19th-century Victorian adventurer Richard Burton and his wife, Isabel, are the central characters of Gayathri Prabhu’s novel, which incorporates these tales. Burton translated a few of these tales in the 1800s, but her attention is drawn to Isabel. You get to experience what it was like for Burton’s wife to travel with him to places like India, Brazil, Trieste, and portions of Africa while meeting historical figures.
You get a sense of the 19th century and the customs of the time when travelling, Isabel listening in on her own life or Burton’s adventures, and then there are the stories that come through. It looks like an intricate tapestry.
When it is telling the stories, the book is at its best. Many of them are simply love stories about individuals meeting their lovers, finding a happy ending, or overcoming various challenges in life. As a result, they have a very contemporary feel to them in many aspects. These individuals had to overcome a lot of obstacles. You can sense their steadfastness in doing whatever it takes to achieve their objectives.
