Kalidasa’s Nayikas

To enter the mind of Kalidasa is to enter a world of colour and music, a world of beauty, of regal spaces and mythic narratives, of sensuous nayikas and sonorous sounds, of evocative words and ornamented phrases, of unhurried elegance and silken shringara, of serene hermitages and opulent havelis, of changing seasons with their unique flora and fauna, of pathways in the sky that look down upon the earth in their journey, and above all of the beauty of human emotions; in short it is a world of hallowed human grace, of emotional fulfilment and unsurpassed elegance of its habitat. Leading us to that rich, intimate and beautiful mind of Kalidasa are the nayikas of his plays and poems. To follow in their footsteps is to be coloured by the many hues of shringara, to be touched by the many textures of royal and political intrigue and above be enriched by a world of human longing and desire. Harsha V. Dehejia leads a team of scholars who explore the many-faceted nayikas of Kalidasa and takes us into the hushed ambience of the havelis, palaces and ashrams of ancient India. Bringing these nayikas alive with paintings is the renowned miniaturist Vijay Sharma. The book sparkles with literary grace and painterly elegance and is a welcome addition to the world of Kalidasa.