SITA: NOW YOU KNOW ME: A Novel

by Sini Panicker

As she contemplates hymns and the very meaning of life, we see a woman evolved far beyond her time, a woman who speaks to us today, out of the narrative of one of the oldest epics. Set in the Vedic times of ancient India, Sita narrates the story of her turbulent life intimately, detailing her deepest despairs, grief and horrors, and her profound love for Ram. This is a spirited and enduring Sita calmly recollecting her transformation at various stages of her life, from an abandoned infant to a cherished princess, a delightful bride to a dissolute hermit in exile, a captive of an enemy to a queen, and culminating as a poor, homeless mother of twin boys in an ashram. Ancient India’s geographical, social, intellectual and cultural portraits accompany Sita gracefully, throughout her journey.

344 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 10, 2021

Reviews

[Ruchi Patel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a huge fan of mythology. And when I saw the title I couldn’t resist picking it up because the tagline of the book is “Now you know me” that immediately clicks that it’s the Ramayana by the point if view of Sita. There is no point of discussing story of Ramayana or blurb of this book. So I will mention only striking features or different points why should you pick it up. As I said, the book is from Sita’s point of view. I liked that the most as Sita is described as human rather than God. Or humanly feelings or point of view have been presented. Like I used to read Ramayan and always Sita have been portrayed as God but at that time I used to wonder that as a human, what will I feel if I am at her place. Or Shree Ram is God but today will it be possible for me or any human to do sacrifices and be compatible to him. All those my questions have been answered in this book. Reading this, we can feel emotions and dilemma Sita felt. This book is more close to reality than fiction. I liked the language and vocabulary used by the author. The narration style of the author is captivating. Overall I enjoyed reading it. Strongly recommended from my side.

[Wanderingg__soul · Rating 3 out of 5]

"I was being banished,
away from my Ram.
Away from Ayodhya.
Away from his precious court
and his people.
I had been ordered by the King
not to return. Ever."

--Sita, Now You Know Me by Sini Panicker
.
.
I have read quite a few retellings of Ramayana by now to understand different perspectives. This is my second book from the perspective of Sita, before this i've read 'Sitayana', and before you guys ask, no I havent read The Forest of Enchantments yet.

This book narrated Sita's life from an orphan being found by King Janaka to her death in Ayodhya. This book tries to portray all the characters of Ramayana as humans. This does help us understand what they went through at different phases in their life.

Sita's emotions and her transition in various roles of her life are described very well. I liked the way the author has humanised all aspects of Sita's life from being an orphan, her period in exile to her death. There is nothing supernatural. I know that Sita is mostly known for her love for Ram and how she endured lifebof a hermit for so many years for him.

When this book described about her childhood and youth and how independent she was, how she was trained to be the next ruler of Mithila, I had so many complains about her later life choices. If she was just a human, why did she not choose to stayback in Ayodhya when Ram was exiled like Urmila chose to? Why did she never visit her parents alone, why she was so much dependent on Ram? When she was exiled again during her pregnancy, her father insisted that she come with him to Mithila, why did she not go and give her boys a good life and training to be kings.

As i said, Sita was a brave and strong woman and if she was only human she let life be defined by her love for her husband who in returned loved her a lot but never made her his priority.

A book that made me think a lot and evaluate another aspect of Ramayana.

[Abhilash Ruhela · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a big fan of our ancient history- you talk of Ramayan or Mahabharat, I just love reading about them as many times as possible. I just can’t get bored of them at all. And if I have to choose from both of them, I always prefer Ramayan because of my devotion towards Lord Ram. I just can’t get enough of his tales and righteousness. Most books that I have read till now have always concentrated on Shri Ram except one written by Amish which was based on life of Sita Mata – which is the 2nd book in his The Ram Chandra series. But because that story was more of a fiction than reality, I didn’t enjoy it a bit but the book I just completed reading has made me so close to the character of Sita Mata that every time I’ll hear her name, I am going to feel pain as I do when I hear the name of Ram who had to go through so much in their life.

“Sita: Now you know me” written by the debutante authoress, Sini Panicker, in around 334 pages is published by Rupa publications. The approach of Sini has been evident right from the 1st chapter that the book is solely going to be about Sita from Ramayan and no one else. I must applaud author the way she has been able to keep the focus on her character in spite of having Ram so closely associated with her. I always feel that you can’t write any book on Ramayan without basing it equally on both the characters but the way Panicker has managed the same is commendable.

The writing style of Sini is very simple and straightforward. In spite of having good command on the language, the way she manages to keep her sentences and philosophies easy to understand throughout the book is appreciable. Anyone who is a starter will also find going through this book and story easy and smooth. It is very necessary to write about the tales of Ramayan and Mahabharat in easy language as our current generation is less aware about our culture and they should feel motivated to pick up such books. Author’s intention is very clear about the same.

I would also like to mention another good quality about Sini- her research. Yes! The way she has written the whole story from Sita’s perspective, it needs a lot of information because most of the books talk mostly about Ayodhya and Ram. Hence, what was Sita going through in her childhood and what she must have felt with so much happening in their life is very hard to know through the available texts. Also, author has not based the whole story only on one version of Ramayan but multiple of them. You will disagree with her on many events that this is wrongly told but it is because we are familiar with only one or two Ramayan versions. Hence, it might seem wrong at places but it opens our perspective on other ways for telling of Ramayan too.

The book might sound stretchy with its 334 pages but let me tell you, author has been very specific about what she wants to tell. She has not wasted any of our time in useless descriptions or unwanted specifications. We are just taken as deep as possible into her mind and heart which makes us become one with Sita. We are told about how strong she used to be in her childhood that her father had decided to make her the ruler of Mithila but as soon as her marriage got in between, the way her life transformed where she had to make unlimited number of compromises which kept on messing up with her dreams, ambitions and will.

Later, in the book, we get to know about her sufferings during the exile with Ram and Lakshman and later, alone at the Valmiki’s ashram pregnant with her twins. I will not lie but I must have cried 100 of times while reading this book; and I have never cried so much while reading any book ever. The way Sita carries herself in Ravan’s abduction is something very painful to read but you get to understand the strength she had within her to fight against such a powerful and ferocious king like Ravan. Another mention I would like to mention about how author has been able to make us understand about other characters also in limited words that we don’t find them a complete stranger but understand their back stories too.

There are many events where Sita’s small and big sacrifices are discussed which makes us understand how she has been treated as a shadow whenever Ramayan comes into the picture. The book becomes more powerful in its last 2/3rd part where the story starts coming to the closure. After completing the book and revisiting everything I went through in the book while writing summary in my journal, I just couldn’t comprehend how could author cover it in less than 350 pages as this seems to be the stuff of 3-4 books together. Overall, this is a very nice read and one needs to have a strong heart and mind to read it as it becomes extremely painful and depressing at times – because such has been life of Sita Mata.

Now, talking about the drawbacks, I must say that my review is surely biased because of my love for Ramayan and Siya Ram but there are surely some issues with the author’s version of Ramayan. Firstly, I feel that author has become very critical of Ram. Anyone who would be reading Ramayan for the 1st time through this book will find Ram to be bigger villain than Ravan, unfortunately. Secondly, I must say that few events of Ramayan are completely twisted in order to make Sita’s life look more miserable than it actually was. Author has purposely picked up the specific tales from several versions wherever Sita’s plight is immense. I believe there should have been some balance.

Thirdly, whenever we read about ancient history or such strong and legendary characters, we expect philosophy in between. This book tries at some places but majorly, there are no philosophical approach at all. You wouldn’t get many quotes to keep with yourself as learnings from this book. Lastly, I believe that book focuses too much on Sita only. I just wanted to read about other characters as much as I wanted to read about Sita. Again, a balance is needed even if the subject of your book is based on one character. Though I would appreciate the way Sita’s beautiful relation with her father, Lakshman, Hanuman, Lopamudra, Urmi and other characters are portrayed.

Overall, this is one of the books I’ll always remember and recommend. Reading this has been an emotional journey for me. It has definitely become memorable. Kudos to Sini Panicker for writing it so beautifully. I give this book 4.5 stars out of 5.

Thanks.

WRITING BUDDHA

[Mugdha Mahajan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book that gives a new perspective to Ramayana through Sita Mata’s eyes! She shares her side of the story which was filled with grief and despair!
From being separated from her sisters to being separated from the love of her life! And then meeting Raama just to get separated again! This is a spirited and enduring Sita calmly Recollecting her transformation at various stages of her life.
✨
I being a sucker for mythology, this book really didn’t fit well with me! From what I’ve read about Sita, this book didn’t do justice to her strong and fierce character. Though there were parts which I loved but overall I felt incomplete at times!
The narration is monotonous but the language is easy and understandable!
Recommended for those who aren’t really a dedicated mythology lover!

[Vidhu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sita: Now You Know Me(SNYKM), the debut novel of Sini Panicker, revisits the epic, Ramayana. As the name implies, the central character of the novel is Sita. The well laid out narration takes the readers on a journey through the life of Sita, who turns into a mellowed and matured woman from an innocent seventeen years old girl.

It is quite apparent from the narration and design of the novel, that the author's aim was to bring out different shades of the personality of Sita which have been overlooked by the traditional text. The ubiquitous all-bearing Sita that we are familiar with is far from the Sita we see in SNYKM. The author has been successful in bringing out a stark contrast between the carefree fun loving daughter of Janaka, and the abandoned powerful wife of Rama in the characterization of Sita.

SNYKM is presented in two layers: the outer layer is the familiar story of Ramayana, and the inner layer digs deep down into Sita’s emotional and psychological self. The narration in the first person enabled the readers to closely follow the inner thoughts and commotions of Sita. Sita was shown as going through a whirlwind of emotions at several occasions. For example, “ I wanted to kill her, right then and there; all I needed was a bow and arrow”, were Sita’s thoughts about Kaikeyi when they had to face her to say goodbye before their exile. It came as a surprise to me that Sita had such thoughts and feelings; all this time I looked at Sita as a dutiful woman who did what was asked of her! SNYKM strikes at all the feminist notes in the characterization of Sita.

The injustice and unfairness faced by Sita has been rightfully presented in the novel. Readers could not help empathize with Sita. The author never attempted to put Sita on a pedestal. Sita reflects the everyday life of common women, which makes this novel appealing to its readers, especially women. Oftentimes, a reader like me would stop to imbibe that Sita’s thoughts and feelings were not different from what I have experienced in life!

In our society, the thoughts and emotions of a woman are not expressed well in general; neither in a novel nor in real life!. Until recently, expressing a woman’s feelings and emotions and discussing it in public was a taboo topic. Remarks such as “oh.. Isn't that what all women do generally?” Or “It is what women are supposed to do” are cliched every day phrases heard around us. Likewise, I realized with a shock that I had been taking Sita for granted all these years before reading SNYKM. I never had a second thought about the inner struggles and turmoils that went through her mind, when Sita decided to follow her husband in exile or when she was abandoned, until SNYK pointed them out to me.

Sita’s indignation while being abandoned is rightly justified in SNYKM that the readers would be thoroughly convinced of her reasons for being angry and bitter. Sita knew that there would be a court trial for her, if Ram had to accept her back. However, she did not receive a trial when he quietly and secretly banished her using Lakshman. Although Valmiki's ashram was only a chariot ride away from Ayodhya, Ram never attempted once in seventeen years to visit Sita or their children. Such simple things that have been overlooked or taken for granted in the reading of traditional Ramayana is brought to light in SNYKM. The pain, the injustice, unfairness Sita had to face are brought out very powerfully. .
It is no mistake to call SNYKM a feminist reading of Ramayana. Although, the novel leaves room to explore many more female characters such as Mandodari, Shoorpanaka, Lopamudra, Shruthi etc. in detail, there are glimpses of them as women of power and stature in the novel. A female character that really got my attention was Ram’s elder sister Shanta. She became nothing to her family or to her father, a very powerful king. A contrast is brought out between the upbringing of Sita and Shantha in SNYKM. It was interesting to read how Sita was trained to succeed her father in his old age, how she was taught horse riding and sword fighting , and even to rule a province. The irony is even though it was not intended, finally Sita was forced to become ‘just a woman’. The author has rightly said in the beginning of the novel “ But fairness evades human life like a master illusionist in the most singularly fragmented moments of one’s existence. Afterwards, a broken life is reflected back from the hundreds of shattered shards, in anguish that is so pure and holy, any judgment or chastisement will be just another ritual to sanctify it”.

[Maya Sathyanadhan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love that the genre of new novels based on "secondary" characters from classic novels (think Julia from 1984 or James from Huck Finn) is growing. I was excited to read Sita: Now You Know Me for this reason, though at the time I didn't realize that there are a couple of books already out about Sita's perspective from Ramayana.

Regardless I thought that this book was very well written and thoroughly enjoyable. I liked that the book doesn't assume that the reader knows all the characters from the mythology and explains their relationships to Sita and each other very well. For someone whose Hindu mythology is basic to intermediate, I didn't have to refresh my memory while reading. I sensed that a few Hindu concepts were implied though so someone who isn't familiar with Hinduism at all may have to look up some terms here and there but not so much that they're lost from reading this book. I also loved how the story's chronology was presented, it flowed very smoothly and there was no confusion in following what happened when over the course of 33 years.

As the characters reunited with each other after exile and towards the end, I felt that everything tied up together almost too perfectly. It was as if everyone was so joyous and happy yet so sad and full of tears emerging out of situations that were totally out of their control, whereas oftentimes it was due to their pride. (e.g. Bharata giving up the throne and acting as regent). I suppose this had to follow the original mythology which usually has happy endings anyway. Thankfully the book had an original twist for an ending which I appreciated.

Whether you've read Ramayana or not, this is a refreshing read!

[Romita Mukherjee · Rating 3 out of 5]

"What does one do on a night like this, when a beautiful dewdrop is poised to hold one's life within? When it reflects our entire existence with such clarity?
We begin at the beginning. We gauge life's gains and losses. We make a tally, we tell the story."

In this accounted retelling of the Ramayana, Sini Panicker gives voice to Sita to share her journey of life from being the child of Mother Earth to being Rama's beloved, from being the queen of Koshala to being the ascetic mother of twins. Through this retelling, the author has tried to give us an insight into the woman who was Sita.

First of all, I would like to appreciate the author's efforts in accounting this story giving Sita's perspective a voice. The author has done a good job with the narration by keeping it simple and easy to follow.

However, Sita's recollection felt incomplete to me on several occasions like the ordeal of Agnipariksha undergone by her. Another thing is that I have read quite a few retellings from Sita's point of view and I have always found her character to be strong and charismatic. But in this book, I found her quite melancholic and missing that spark. At some points in the story, it was a bit difficult to assess her emotions for me.

Overall, it was an okay read for me. Amateur mythology enthusiasts can check out this book, however, I think hardcore mythology lovers may feel a bit disconnected.

Happy Reading.

[Srishti · Rating 4 out of 5]

When the lockdown was first imposed I took to religiously watching the Ramanand Sagar Ramayana. Sita's kidnapping is one of the crucial incidents that shaped up the story and propelled it forward, nonetheless there are rarely any instances which give us a clear insight to how she felt and what she felt. So to understand her perspective better I began reading Sini Panicker's Sita: Now You Know Me.

It is a delightful book that brings us face to face with Sita's life, and her profound and earnest love for Lord Rama. It is, in the rightful terms, a narration of accounts of her life experiences delineated by her. The fluid narration is gracefully interwoven with poignant sentiments, gently introducing it's readers to the social, cultural and historical context of the time.

A pivotal event in the epic was when she was a captive of Ravana and later was restored to the position of the Queen, after Agni Pariksha. Unavoidable circumstances led to her being sent away from Ayodhya, she found herself knocking on the doors of Rishi Valmiki's ashram. Luv and Kush were born in the ashram, a mother strengthens herself for her children and that is what Sita did. Through this novel, Sini Panicker brings alive the gentle yet determined character of Sita.

[Shreshtha Mehta (intriguedonlybybooks) · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story is told from the perspective of Sita and from the very first page she takes us to a journey that includes all the significant events that happened in her life. For me it started out as an amazing read but as the story was progressing, I felt as if I wanted the protagonist (Sita) to be portrayed more powerful and self-righteous. As a child, my mother used to narrate a lot of stories from Ramayana but the storyline wasn’t as powerful in my opinion. No doubt, I got to know a lot of things that I didn't know earlier.

I really appreciate that the author has done enough research before writing the story. But a couple of times I felt that the direction in which the author is taking the story is not going hand in hand with what actually happened in reality according to Ramayana.

As far as the writing style is concerned, it was easy to understand but I could not connect with the characters. To some extent, I did but I think that’s entirely because I have already heard stories from Ramayana.

[Sruthi Pillai · Rating 1 out of 5]

Yeah... no.

Just no.

It was a chore to read through, and yes I could've dropped it but I'm one of those unfortunate peeps who just needs finish anything I start. And I was hoping it'd maybe get better because I really liked the premise. Also I just love reading mythology.

I was honestly so excited to read it because Indian myths are always told from the male perspective, and I was excited to read the Ramayana from Sita's perspective.

But no. Cringy is the best word I can describe it with. Or maybe it was because I was so excited that I feel this disappointed. Because I feel bad, I can tell that a lot of heart went into writing this, and I feel harsh for saying this but for me it was just a chore to read through. Sorry.

One thing I do grant is that I have a newfound admiration for Sita. It reminded me of her resilience, and that's something I'll always keep with me. And maybe that's why I kept reading, despite everything.

[Suba Srinivasaraghavan · Rating 5 out of 5]

beautiful perspective

I loved the final chapter and the many other paragraphs that made me feel like a witness to the great epic while it happened
I loved the slightly modern retelling of the story, especially the strength in the characters and human nature, breaking apart the symbolisms like Ravana’s 10 heads etc.. helped me make many simple observations that I might not have considered.
While the author hasn’t mentioned Kamba Ramayana, several parts in this reminded me of the many verses.
I have been widely recommending this to many especially since one of the readers from my book club has made a audio version.
I held back 1/2 a star for rating only because at times in the initial chapters, the language made me wonder if it was rewritten as a translation… soon enough the story despite being a known one drew me in fast and made me anticipate the many beautiful perspectives the author had in store.

[Malini Sekhar · Rating 5 out of 5]

A thoughtful retelling that brings long-quieted voices into greater light.

While I found myself longing for a version of Sita that leaned even more into her agency and sovereignty, I also recognize how vital it is to start somewhere and begin with voices like this—complex, vulnerable, and deeply spiritual. It is time for more takes like this. Stories that open space for the divine feminine to be seen, heard, and honored in all her forms. This book is part of a necessary and inevitable wave—one that reclaims our mythologies with nuance, grace, and a fuller story that is inclusive of a woman's voice.

[Sejuti Majumdar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Who is your favorite character from Ramayana?

Sita Now you know me by Sini Panicker is a retelling of Ramayana from the point of view of Sita. Here Sita is not presented as the soft spoken, submissive woman but a strong willed person with independent mind.

The story starts from when she's in Valmiki's ashram and has been summoned in Ayodhya and the rest of the story alternates in flashback and present time. The language is medium and the writing style is good. There is not much to talk about the characters as they are already known.

Some of the crucial aspects of the Sita's story are manipulated or omitted which I didn't enjoy because somehow the purpose felt lost. The end especially was not justified. I didn't feel the book provided much to take away which is a common aspects of Indian Mythology.

Overall the book is enjoyable for a one time read and good for fans of Indian Mythology.

Thank you @rupa_publications
for the copy.