| Sudeshna | |
|---|---|
 Sudeshna (right) orders Sairandhri to carry wine into Kichaka's room | |
| Information | |
| Family | Malavi ( Mother ), Kekaya ( Father ), Kichaka and 105 Upakichakas ( Younger Brothers ) |
| Spouse | Virata |
| Children | Uttara, Uttarā, Shankha |
In the Hindu epic Mahabharata , Sudeshna was the wife of King Virata, at whose court the Pandavas spent a year in concealment during their exile. She was the mother of Uttar, Uttara and Shankha.
Sudeshna was the daughter of Queen Malavi and a lord of the Kekayas.
During the Pandavas' 13th year of exile, Sudeshna unknowingly plays host to the Pandavas and Draupadi. Draupadi poses as her maid, Sairandhri. Sudeshna is looking out her room window one day and sees Draupadi wandering in the market. Stunned at her beauty, Sudeshna inquires about her afterwards. Draupadi poses as Sairandhri, saying that she is a former lady-in-waiting from Indraprastha, now without a job after the Pandavas had lost their kingdom. Suspicious of her story, since Sairandhri looks and carries herself like royalty, Sudeshna chastises herself for being so paranoid and hires Sairandhri. Sairandhri proves to be a loyal and efficient handmaiden. [1]
Kichaka notices Sairandhri and is overcome by her beauty and inquires Sudeshna about her. Sudeshna conveys Kichaka's interest in Sairandhri. Sairandhri rebukes Kichaka, telling her that she is already married to a Gandarva who would kill any man who touched her. Unable to deny her older brother, and wary of the king's warnings to not displease their city's top commander-in-chief, Sudeshna introduces Kichaka to Sairandhri. She does this by asking Sairandhri to fetch wine from Kichaka's house; she refuses to heed Sairandhri's warnings yet again. The moment Sairandhri arrives, Kichaka tries to molest her. Sairandhri looks to Sudeshna for aid, but the queen is silent. [2]
Later, when Kichaka dies under mysterious circumstances (actually killed by Bhima), Sudeshna becomes terrified and begs Sairandhri for forgiveness. Having seen her words come true, Sudeshna recognizes that Sairandhri is no ordinary woman. Believing that Sairandhri's words will become truthful, Sudeshna counsels her husband against punishing Sairandhri for Kichaka's death. [3]
When the Susarma and the Trigartas attack Matsya, Sudeshna sees her husband and the army off. Later, when the Kauravas attack from the other direction, she attempts to organize the city defences only to find that few soldiers have remained. Her young son, Uttar, brags that he will single-handedly defeat the Kauravas, and gets ready to ride out. Knowing her son will be killed, Sudeshna tries to talk him down. Sairandhri chimes in that Uttar should take Brihannala (actually Arjuna in disguise) as his charioteer, saying that if Uttar did so, no harm would come to him. Uttar attempts to decline, not wanting to have his chariot in the hands of a woman. However, Sudeshna overrules him saying that if Sairandhri said it, it must be true. Thus, when Uttar faces the Kauravas, it is Arjuna who actually defeats all of them and prevents Uttar from dying and Matsya from falling. [4] [5]
After the skirmish, the Pandavas reveal themselves. Sudeshna is horrified that Draupadi endured such treatment under her roof. However, Draupadi and the Pandavas quickly forgive them, thanking the royal pair for giving them shelter. Uttara is married to Arjuna's son, Abhimanyu. Virat immediately pledges to support the Pandavas' cause to regain their kingdom, and his army as well as Sudeshna's children fight with the Pandavas in the Kurukshetra war.
On the first day, Sudeshna suffers the loss of two of her sons killed. By the war's end, her husband, her children, and the entire Matsya army are wiped out in a Pandava victory. However, her grandson, Parikshit, becomes the new heir of a reunified Hastinapur. Sudeshna is present for Parikshit's birth. She is one of the ones who implore Krishna to work his magic and save her grandson (as he was stillborn). [6]
Arjuna, also known as Partha and Dhananjaya, is the central protagonist of the Hindu epic Mahabharata. In the epic, he is the third among five Pandava brothers, from the lineage of the Kuru. In the Mahabharata War, Arjuna was a key warrior from the Pandava side and killed many warriors including his own elder brother Karna unknowingly and his grandfather Bhishma. Before the beginning of the war, his mentor, Krishna, gave him the supreme knowledge of Bhagavad Gita to overcome his moral dilemmas.
Draupadi, also referred to as Krishnaa, Panchali, and Yagyaseni is the main female protagonist of the Hindu epic Mahabharata, and the common consort of the five Pandava brothers—Yudhishthira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula, and Sahadeva. She is noted for her beauty, courage, and polyandrous marriage.
Duryodhana also known as Suyodhana, is the primary antagonist in the Hindu epic Mahabharata. He was the eldest of the Kauravas, the hundred sons of the blind king Dhritarashtra and his queen Gandhari.
Abhimanyu is a warrior from the ancient Hindu epic Mahabharata. He was the son of Arjuna, the third of the Pandavas and the hero of the epic, and Subhadra, the younger sister of the revered Hindu deity Krishna. Abhimanyu is portrayed as a young, strong and talented warrior. He was also one of the few individuals, along with his father, who knew the technique to enter Chakravyuha, a powerful military formation.
In the Hindu epic Mahabharata, King Shalya was the brother of Madri, and the ruler of the Madra kingdom. Skilled with the mace and a formidable warrior, he was tricked by Duryodhana to fight the war on the side of the Kauravas. He was encouraged to serve as the charioteer of Karna by Yudhisthira to dissuade the former from combat. Shalya was an incredibly calm and deliberate fighter, his level-headedness and prowess in warfare making him a great warrior in spite of his slight build.
Shikhandi is a character in the Hindu epic Mahabharata. Born as the daughter of Drupada, the King of Panchala, Shikhandi becomes a biological male after agreeing to a sex exchange with a yaksha. He is the brother of Draupadi, the female protagonist of the epic, who is the common wife of the Pandavas.
Virata, was the king of the Matsya Kingdom, in whose court the Pandavas spent a year in concealment during their exile. Virata was married to Queen Sudeshna and was the father of Prince Uttara and Princess Uttarā, who married Abhimanyu, the son of Arjuna. Abhimanyu and Uttara's son Parikshit succeeded Yudhishthira on the throne of Hastinapura, after the war of Mahabharata. He is the titular character of the Virata Parva, the fourth book of the epic Mahabharata
Jayadratha is the king of the Sindhu kingdom featured in the Mahabharata. He was married to Dushala, the only sister of the hundred Kaurava brothers. The son of the king Vriddhakshatra, he is killed by Arjuna. He has a son named Suratha.
Uttarā is a princess in Hindu mythology. In the Mahabharata, she is described to be the daughter of Queen Sudeshna and King Virata, at whose court the Pandavas spent a year in concealment during their exile. She was the sister of Uttara and Shankha.
In the Hindu epic Mahabharata, Kichaka or Keechaka is the commander-in-chief of Matsya kingdom, the country ruled by King Virata. He was the younger brother of Sudeshna, the queen of Virata. Kichaka was a very powerful man and had immense strength. He saved Virata's kingdom many times from foes. He was killed by Bhima because he was harassing Draupadi and received a punishment.
Mahabharat is an Indian Hindi-language epic television series based on the ancient Sanskrit epic Mahabharata. The original airing consisted of a total of 94 episodes and were broadcast from 2 October 1988 to 24 June 1990 on Doordarshan. It was produced by B. R. Chopra and directed by his son, Ravi Chopra. The music was composed by Raj Kamal. The script was written by Pandit Narendra Sharma and the Hindi/Urdu poet Rahi Masoom Raza, based on the epic by Vyasa. Costumes for the series were provided by Maganlal Dresswala. The serial claims to have used the Critical Edition of Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute as its basic source with Vishnu Sitaram Sukthankar and Shripad Krishna Belwalkar as its primary editor.
Nartanasala is a 1963 Indian Telugu-language Hindu mythological film directed by Kamalakara Kameswara Rao and written by Samudrala Sr. It stars N. T. Rama Rao, Savitri, S. V. Ranga Rao, and Relangi while Mukkamala, Mikkilineni and Dandamudi Rajagopal play supporting roles among others. Susarla Dakshinamurthi composed the film's soundtrack and background score. M. A. Rahman and S. P. S. Veerappa served as the cinematographer and editor respectively. T. V. S. Sarma was the film's art director. The film was produced by actress C. Lakshmi Rajyam and her husband C. Sridhar Rao under the Rajyam Pictures banner.
Uttara, also rendered Uttara Kumara is a prince of the Matsya Kingdom featured in the Hindu epic Mahabharata. He is the eldest son of King Virata and his wife Sudeshna, at whose court the Pandavas spend their one year of anonymity during their exile. His sister Uttarā marries Abhimanyu, the son of Arjuna.
Virata Parva, also known as the “Book of Virata”, is the fourth of eighteen books of the Indian epic Mahabharata. Virata Parva traditionally has 4 parts and 72 chapters. The critical edition of Virata Parva has 4 parts and 67 chapters.
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In the Hindu epic Mahabharata, Vikarna was the third Kaurava, a son of Dhritarashtra and Gandhari, and a brother to the crown prince Duryodhana. Vikarna is also referred to as the third-most reputable of the Kauravas. Vikarna was the only Kaurava who opposed the humiliation of Draupadi, the wife of his cousins of the Pandavas after Yudhisthira lost her freedom in a game of dice to Duryodhana.
Mahabharat is a 2013 Indian historical epic television series based on the Hindu Sanskrit Epic Mahabharata. It aired from 16 September 2013 to 16 August 2014 on Star Plus. The series is available digitally on Disney+ Hotstar. Produced by Swastik Productions Pvt. Ltd, it starred Saurabh Raj Jain, Pooja Sharma, Shaheer Sheikh and Aham Sharma.
Srimad Virata Parvam is a 1979 Telugu-language Hindu mythological film, produced and directed by N. T. Rama Rao under his Ramakrishna Cine Studios banner. It stars N. T. Rama Rao, Vanisri, Nandamuri Balakrishna and music composed by Susarla Dakshina Murthy. The film is based on Virata Parva from epic Mahabharata in which NTR has performed 5 pivotal roles, after blockbuster success of Daana Veera Soora Karna (1977), in which he emoted 3 different roles. It is a color remake of the 1966 movie Nartanasala both starring N.T.Rama Rao as Arjuna.
Suryaputra Karn is an Indian historical epic television series, which premiered on 29 June 2015 on Sony Entertainment Television (India) and Sony Entertainment Television Asia. The show aired Monday through Friday nights at 8:30 PM. Produced by Siddharth Kumar Tewary of Swastik Pictures, the series covers the life journey of Karna in the Mahabharata. The show starred Gautam Rode, Vishesh Bansal and Basant Bhatt as the lead character at various stages of his life.
