One of the world's greatest epics retold by a master storyteller-now in a beautifully illustrated new translation.
Prince Ram, son of Dasharath, is loved and revered by everyone in the kingdom of Ayodhya. But Queen Kaikeyi's greed and ambition cause him to be exiled for fourteen years. Along with his wife Sita and brother Lakshman, he leaves the kingdom for dense forests full of rakshasas. Soon Raavan, the terrifying king of Lanka, finds his way to them and abducts Sita. How does Ram, the bravest warrior of all, cross hills and rivers and the sea to rescue Sita and bring her back home?
Upendrakishore Ray Chowdhury's delightful retelling of the Ramayana has enthralled Bengali and other readers for over a century. With this vivid translation, a new generation of girls and boys can travel into an ancient world of princes and rakshasas, vanaras and ogres, epic battles and flying chariots, honour and bravery, loyalty and friendship.
About the Author
Upendrakishore Ray Chowdhury (1863-1915) was a prolific children's writer from Bengal. His works Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne, Tuntunir Boi, Chheleder Ramayan, Chheleder Mahabharat and more, are all classics of Bengali children's literature. He edited and published the children's magazine Sandesh, for which he wrote and illustrated stories, poems and essays. He was also a pioneering printer, musician, entrepreneur and painter. His son, Sukumar Ray, was an equally celebrated writer, as was his grandson Satyajit Ray, the film-maker.
Tilottama Shome (Translator) is an architect by training and wanderer by profession. Her early childhood days were spent in Calcutta when most of her time went in reading children's fiction, both in Bengali and English. Nowadays, she lives in Delhi with her family. Her two daughters are fed a regular diet of books, and she tells them bedtime stories that are mostly verging on the ridiculous.
Priyankar Gupta (Illustrator) is a pre-visualizer and a creative consultant in the field of media, advertising and broadcast design. He has worked with various publishing companies across the globe as an Illustrator for children's book and books for young adults. He has been a mentor in various design schools across the country teaching various forms of visual narratives.
