a zine of love
Shakuntala
A zine adaptation of a famous Sanskrit literature.
Abhijnana Sakuntalum is a play written by Kalidasa, based on the story of Dushyanta and Shakuntala in Mahabharata. It was originally written in the language, Sanskrit. This play is a depiction of a tragic love story between Dushyanta, King of Hastinapur and Shakuntala, foster child of sage patriarch Kanva.
Mystery Baby
The actual parents of Shakuntala were Maharshi Vishwamitra and nymph Menka. They had the child before marriage; this was the reason that they couldn't keep her. So they left her in the forest near the hermitage of Sage Kanva. When Kanva saw the baby crying he brought her to his hermitage and fostered her. With the passage of time, Shakuntala turned into a beautiful woman.
Love Sick
Once, King Dushyanta was out hunting in the forest and while chasing a deer he came in close proximity to the hermitage of Sage Kanva. The members of the hermitage extended a warm welcome towards King Dushyanta. There, he happens to see Shakuntala and he falls in love with her.
The Promise
King Dushyanta proposed to Shakuntala and they agreed to get married. King Dushyanta happens to return to his kingdom, due to some sort of unrest but promised her that he will be back to take her with him and gave her one of his rings.
The Curse
One day, Shakuntala was quite engrossed in the thoughts of King Dushyanata and at that very moment, a Rishi named Durvasa arrived and gave a call but Shakuntala failed to notice his arrival. The lack of response enraged Rishi Durvasa and he showered curses on Shakuntala, one of which said- “ you shall be lost in his thoughts, though you goad his memory hard, he shall fail to remember you”.The curse made everyone scared, Shakuntala's friends requested his mercy. After this, Rishi Durvasa says, if the king sees any souvenir that he gave Shakuntala, he will remember everything.
Lost Love
Shakuntala did not receive any message from the King. After months of waiting, Sage Kanva arranged for the visit of Shakuntala to the royal court of Hastinapur. On her way she stops due to a lack of drinking water. Unfortunately, the ring slips out her finger into the river, and a fish swallows the ring. She reaches the royal court and shows the King his son and reminds him about their marriage, but the king fails to remember her due to Durvasa’s curse. She searched for the ring, but could not find it and returned back to the hermitage.
Remembrance
After a few days, an angler finds the ring in the stomach of the fish. He tried to sell the ring but was caught by the soldiers of Hastinapur. He was brought to the royal court and the ring was handed to the king.
Reunion
Upon seeing the ring he remembered everything and realized his mistake. He immediately rushed to the forest to meet Shakuntala. There, they reunited and he took her and her son back to Hastinapur with him. He then made Shakuntala the chief Queen and Bharata, son of the king, the crowned Prince and thus fulfilled the promise made by him.