Rudhramadevi Page #7

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"Maiden like a swing beckoning

Unbidden, pulse quickening"

"A joy forever

in the ladies chamber"

"A peacock dancing gracefully

in a jungle joyously"

"Like a parasol of silver"

"From the cloud's veiled cover"

"The moon shines bright as ever"

"Like the breeze walks with the river"

"In the drizzle of dewy powder"

"At leisure

we will saunter"

"Crossing armies and boundaries

without any adversaries"

"Gently blows the cool breeze"

"Lightning riding the blue skies

ruling breadth and lengthwise"

"What is the defending armor

for a girl's dream to flower?"

"In this heart and mind swing

a zillion swings breathtaking"

"When day and night

dance in delight"

"In the zenana, a statue captivating"

"A peacock dancing

in a mood tempting"

(Holy chant)

We don't want

a lady to be our ruler

Very well said indeed

For a woman to be seated...

...this is only the right place

Hey Ambadeva!

How dare you humiliate my own

daughter in front of my eyes?

I will-

Why trouble yourself, my king?

One command from you

I will chop his head

and bring it to your feet

Prasad Aditya

Cut our heads too along

with Ambadeva's head then!

It's better to die than

be ruled by a woman

Because a woman didn't know

the place she should be in...

...don't we know how many

wars were initiated?

Like the war between

Lord Rama and Ravana...

...and the Kurukshetra war

...who was the reason?

A female, right?

Have we not seen kingdoms

fall because of women?

This land must not face

such a predicament again

We oppose

We don't want a woman in power!

We don't want

We object stron-

People of our Kakatiya kingdom

Stay calm

Silence!

Without the strength of

His consort Shakti...

...fearing He would

lose His mighty power

...even Lord Shiva shared

half His body to Goddess Shakti

To a woman who is considered

one half of Lord Shiva...

...what is wrong in

giving our throne?

Why?

In what way is

a woman inferior?

Not Sita, but Ravana was

the cause for the war against Lanka

It was the Kauravas and not Draupadi

who initiated the Kurukshetra war

Every man who disrespects a woman

Whoever he may be...

...he digs his own grave

to destruction!

Don't seal our lips with

anecdotes from the past

Even if we brush

old stories aside...

...can history be changed, Uppalasoma?

Have you forgotten Satakarni

of the Satavahana dynasty...

...who prefixed his mother's name

Gautami and stabilized his rule?

Why?

Even after looking at

Rudramadevi's golden rule...

...don't you have faith?

She abolished taxes

With foresight she built

lakes for agriculture

She distributed agricultural

amenities to one and all

She built maternity hospitals

specially for women

All creature comforts

Prosperity and peace in plenty

She ensured you had

access to all of this

This is tomorrow's history

Chronicles for the future

Like Vikramarka period

And Shalivahana era

People will acclaim and pay tribute

to Rudramadevi's reign!

Hari Hara Deva, Murari Deva

and Ambudeva

After 1000 years if history records

your name and mine in its annals...

...remember the sole credit

goes only to this lady

My dear subjects

We are striving to start

a new chapter in History

Until yesterday...

...you cheered for

prince Rudradeva

Why?

For what?

Today why are you

opposing Rudramadevi?

Only because she is a girl

As soon as they knew

a woman is ruling our land...

...they robbed our houses

and set our fields ablaze

We women are scared

to even step out

Religious shelters are being

targeted all over the kingdom

Many religious leaders

are being killed

Of course

(multiple voices in assent)

It is the conspiracy of a few minds

If that is so, why didn't it happen

when Rudradeva was our prince?

Because men symbolize fear

And women are inferior

For 25 years you hid the truth

because of this same fear?

Despite our unstinted support

to your reign all these years...

...we have lost faith

in the Kakatiya rule

We will ourselves rule over

our territories independently

Our Kamba land is

independent from today

Muriki land will not pay taxes

to Kakatiya kingdom from now on

Our Baga land is

also independent

If we cheer a woman ruler...

...what happens to the prestige

of our Renadu region?

Let us split!

Let us split!

(multiple voices in dissent)

Beloved subjects of my kingdom

Feudatory chiefs

I did not come to the throne

as Rudradeva to rule our kingdom

I shouldered this responsibility

for the welfare of the people

'You took a bold decision

for the welfare of our kingdom'

'I shall remain as Rudradeva

till that goal is fulfilled'

You are overlooking

my reforms as Rudradeva

You are merely looking at

my female form of Rudramadevi

Will not a woman who

transforms her house...

...be able to reform her kingdom?

I will not ask you

such a question

I leave it to each one of you to decide

If me being a woman is

the root cause of your problem

If it will give you immense

happiness if I cease to exist...

...I do not want this throne

If you think being Rudradeva

all these years was a crime...

...I will accept whatever

punishment you mete out to me

Let the elders introspect

and announce their decision

Whatever scriptures

we look into carefully...

...befitting punishment for

Rudramadevi's crime

...is death sentence

However because she is a lady...

...we make an exception and

exile her from the kingdom

She should renounce

any link to royalty

And live as a commoner

She must never use any weapons

The punishment should be

brought into effect immediately

25 years ago, the danger we feared

forced us to take this bold decision

That danger has now boomeranged

as an earthquake, Your Royal Majesty

A mere female?

Has a girl been the one

subjugating us all these years?

This Kakatiya secret that has

been revealed to the world...

...am I aware of it only now?

Did Madanika sacrifice her life for us?

Is this how skilled

you are in spying?

Offering of blood for

the mighty sword is done

This war against

the Kakatiya kingdom...

...should make the Kurukshetra war

pale into insignificance

It should exceed the piles of dead bodies

from Ashoka's Kalinga war

My dear brave warriors!

Beat our war drums

Everyone's mother

is Goddess Ellaiamma

This brave Goddess

Poor soul!

She sacrificed her head

to her own son Parasurama

You are the same

You have forsaken everything

for the welfare of your people

Queen of Orugallu

You've now laid your head

on the lap of this Goddess

Scars are a natural

consequence of war

These wounds are not

from your enemies

But from your own kith and kin

Come, let's go to

Nidavartyapuram

I'll place a throne in my heart

and make you my queen

If that's what

my father had wanted...

...he would have

raised me as a girl

My parents brought me up this way

for the welfare of my people

I need to fulfill

my father's desire

The lives of my people

should blossom anew

Even if the enemies cross swords

you want to shower flowers on them?

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