25 tales of the genie

A talk session was held at the Oxford bookstore recently in the national capital on eternal and universal question and answers of the enduring classic ‘Vikram aur Vetal’– a compilation of classic tales by Sivadasa. 

Deepa Agarwal in conversation with Namita Gokhle talked over the moralistic stories which have always been a part of our childhood. Guest of honour Bibek Debroy unveiled a book on the same, titled ‘Listen O King’. Sivadasa is one of the most important works of Indian narrative fiction, passed down orally through the centuries and first recorded in medieval times.  ‘The Five-and-Twenty Tales of the Genie’ has at its center the half-mythical, heroic and sagacious emperor Vikramaditya, widely regarded as India’s greatest monarch. 

Begging a vetala-a genie who inhabits the body of a corpse-for help against a mighty necromancer, the emperor is told twenty-five tales, each of which culminates in a riddle. Only once he solves each riddle can he win the genie’s help in destroying his powerful enemy.

Namita Gokhale is the author of thirteen books, including fiction and non-fiction. Her debut novel ‘Paro: Dreams of Passion’, first published in 1984, was a satire on the elite of Bombay and Delhi. Gods Graves and Grandmother an ironic fable about street life in Delhi was adapted into a musical play.

Her books of non-fiction include Mountain Echoes which explores the Kumaoni way of life through the eyes of four highly talented and individualistic women and The Book of Shiva, an introduction to Shaivite philosophy and mythology. She had retold the Indian epic The Mahabharata, in an illustrated version for young and first time readers in The Puffin Mahabharata. 

Deepa Agarwal has written about fifty books for children ranging from mystery and adventure novels, ghost stories, stories of everyday life, picture books and biographies, retold folk tales and myths, and compiled textbooks. 

Both her short story collection ‘If the Earth Should Move…’ and her poetry collection ‘Do Not Weep Lonely Mirror’ have received critical acclaim.