Silappadhikaram

"Ilango Adigal's epic Silappadhikaram is one of the five major epics in Tamil language. An engrossing tale of love, sorrow and wrath, the epic has engaged readers immensely over the centuries. The narrative is spread over the three kingdoms of Chozha, Pandiya and Chera in the ancient land of the Tamils. The poem depicts a pluralist society that valued justice, and accountability of the king towards his subjects. Kannagi's questioning of an erring king and wrath at injustice raises her to the stature of a goddess at the end of the poem. The poem showcases the cultural, performative traditions of the period amongst the Hindu, Jaina, Buddhist and the indigenous tribal communities. This critical edition of Silappadhikaram provides an introduction to Sangam literature, a critical commentary on all the 30 Cantos of the poem along with an analysis of a selection of agam and puram songs. Essays by Vijaya Ramaswamy, M.S.S.Pandian, Nandini Nagaraj draw our attention to this epic's impact on cultural, political and performative domains in contemporary society. B. MANGALAM teaches English at Aryabhatta College, University of Delhi. She has worked on Caste and Gender intersectionality in Tamil Dalit fiction and theatre.She translates from Tamil and Hindi to English.She has edited Pride and Prejudice, Paradise Lost (Bk.IX), The Balcony, The Book of Vanci (Worldview Publications)."