Remythologization of the Ahalya Story and its Modern Emanations

Journal of Research and Development Peer Reviewed International, Open Access Journal. ISSN : 2230-9578 | Website: https://jrdrvb.org Volume-17, Issue-10(II)| October2025 9 Remythologization of the Ahalya Story and its Modern Emanations Dr. Sunita Prasanna Kulkarni Associate Professor, Dept of English, L.J.N.J. Mahila Mahavidyalaya, Vile Parle, Mumbai. Email: [email protected] Manuscript ID: JRD -2025-171003 ISSN: 2230-9578 Volume 17 Issue 10(II) Pp. 9-12 October 2025 Submitted: 15 Sept. 2025 Revised: 25 Sept. 2025 Accepted: 05 Oct. 2025 Published: 31 Oct. 2025 Abstract Myths are narratives that explain natural phenomena, serve as repositories of traditional practices and preserve the cultural heritage of communities. They are common to all civilizations, encapsulate the community’s ancient wisdom and influence history and literature. The revisiting and reinterpretation of myths has emerged as an interesting and vibrant area of study in modern times. The present paper attempts to explore the story of Ahalya, its traditional versions as well as some modern retellings and portrayals. The researcher will compare and contrast the traditional and the modern retellings and critically examine each perspective and interpretation before stating the conclusion. Key Words: Myths, Culture, transgression, Redemption, Self-realization Introduction: The Ahalya Myth features in the Ramayana and describes Ahalya’s redemption and liberation at the hands of Shri Ram, the focus being the celebration and glorification of Rama’s powers and highlighting Ahalya’s sin. In modern times, several writers have retold the story of Ahalya from several perspectives and provided their own interpretations of the myth. The present paper attempts to explore the traditional as well as the modern perspectives and try to arrive at a consensus. Rationale of the Study: Myths are cultural artefacts and repositories of traditional wisdom, carried through centuries to younger generations. Myths evolve over time and their interpretations change as per contemporary contexts. The Ahalya Myth is a classic example of this, as there are several modern retellings of it through stories, novels as well as films. This paper explores both the traditional and the modern versions and traces the evolution of the story and the character. Objectives: 1. To explore the story of Ahalya and question the various traditional interpretations 2. To look at some retellings of the myth from contemporary perspectives 3. To explore the retellings and weigh their effectiveness Hypothesis: The myth of Ahalya and its traditional as well as modern retellings point towards a person’s journey of self-understanding, acknowledgement of innermost desires, facing the consequences of their actions and through them the attainment of self-realization and self-actualization. Methodology: Close study of Ahalya’s traditional story and its modern retellings and their analysis as well as critical examination of the various perspectives. Analysis and Data analysis: Myths are narratives that explain natural phenomena, serve as repositories of traditional practices and preserve the cultural heritage of communities. Quick Response Code: Website: https://jrdrvb.org/ DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17464074 Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) This is an open access journal, and articles are distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International Public License, which allows others to remix, tweak, and build upon the work noncommercially, as long as appropriate credit is given and the new creations ae licensed under the idential terms. Address for correspondence: Dr. Sunita Prasanna Kulkarni ,Associate Professor, Dept of English,L.J.N.J.Mahila Mahavidyalaya, Vile Parle, Mumbai. How to cite this article: Sunita Prasanna Kulkarni ,(2025). Remythologization of the Ahalya Story and its Modern Emanations, Journal of Research & Development, 17(10(II)), 9-12 Original Article Journal of Research and Development Peer Reviewed International, Open Access Journal. ISSN : 2230-9578 | Website: https://jrdrvb.org Volume-17, Issue-10(II)| October2025 10 They are common to all civilizations, encapsulate the community’s ancient wisdom and influence history and literature. The revisiting and reinterpretation of myths has emerged as an interesting and vibrant area of study in modern times.As myths narrate stories that are timeless, contain universal themes and exhibit human nature that entire humanity may understand and relate to, they assist us in discovering ourselves through the understanding of our ancient heritage. Remythologization is a process that reinterprets existing myths in different, often more contemporary contexts, thus making them more relatable to younger generations. By exploring the underlying themes in the myths and adapting them to a different locale, the retelling is able to critically examine contemporary societal issues. Many myths and their retellings have found their way in modern literature, films, video games and graphic content. The Tradional myth of Ahalya: Ahalya’s story is dominated by men. Created by Lord Brahma as the most beautiful woman, she was bestowed upon the much older sage Gautama as wife. Lord Indra, desirous of her, visited her in the guise of her husband and seduced her. Sage Gautama discovering this, cursed them both, Indra with losing his masculinity and a thousand vulvas sprouting all over his body, which were later transformed into a thousand eyes and Ahalya with being turned into a stone. Her story is famous for her redemption centuries later by Lord Rama’s touch. Some versions suggest Ahalya’s willing partnership in her relationship with Indra, while others depict her as an innocent victim. Whether willing or innocent, most versions agree that she was cursed and redeemed several centuries later by Rama’s touch. Her myth preaches the moral lesson of control over carnal desire, importance of chastity, patience and penitence to women. She comes through as a victim of patriarchy as all the men treat her as an object, either of pride, donation, desire, control or redemption. Also, she lacks agency, as neither her creator, not Indra ask for her consent either in marriage or in seduction. Her husband, without giving her a chance to explain her position, judges her harshly and condemns her to punishment and to people’s ridicule. Her punishment is much harsher than that meted out to Indra. At a time when purity and chastity were considered utmost prerequisites for women, Ahalya, through no fault of her own was condemned and is known as a woman who violated her marital vows. Sadly, her story is not really her story but yet another narrative celebrating the divine power and glory of Rama. Ahalya’s story is the story of patriarchal suppression of women and a study in hypocrisy and double standards. Nobody blames Indra for his roving eye, nor Gautama for being a dry and ascetic sage, who marries the most beautiful woman, but does nothing to cherish her. Her very beauty becomes the weapon of her destruction, with the men losing nothing. Ahalya lacks autonomy over her mind and body and ironically, her redemption comes at the hands of a man who, to prove his wife’s chastity and purity, makes her face the test of fire not once, but twice. Modern Emanations of the Ahalya Myth: Sujoy Ghosh’s Short Film Ahalya (2015) Ghosh’s Ahalya is a young, beautiful, flirty seductress portrayed by a youthful Radhika Apte, with Soumitra Chatterjee playing the elderly Gautam Sadhu, an artist famed for creating lifelike statuettes, and Tota Roy Chowdhury enacting Inspector Indra Sen, investigating the disappearance of a young model, reported to have been last seen at the Sadhu residence. Ghosh’s Ahalya is definitely not a victim nor a martyr to an older ascetic husband, but seems to be in perfect accord with him in their joint venture. The husbandwife are co-conspirators and act in collusion to punish men with weak moral fibre, who wish to take advantage of Ahalya’s youth and beauty by pretending to be her husband, by using the magic stone. The inspector is not immune to Ahalya’s charms either, and gives in to temptation and in a modern feminist twist, is turned into a stone statuette. Though the film initially comes through a naughty subversion of the original story, it has dark undertones. Gautam Sadhu understands human fallibility and men’s proclivity for carnal desire and uses this to his own ends. Ghosh’s version of the myth provides power and agency to the modern-day Ahalya, mitigating the injustice meted out to her traditional counterpart, in which venture, she is actively assisted by her husband Ahalya’s Awakening by Kavita Kane (2019) Kane’s novel traces Ahalya’s childhood, her relationship with her family, her unquenchable thirst for knowledge as well as her shelter in sage Gautam’s ashram and her liking and admiration for him. It describes Ahalya and Gautam’s eventual love, his winning the challenge set by Brahmadev for her swayamvar and traces their early blissful marital life. It also records Gautam’s growing preoccupation with his work, his unwitting neglect of Ahalya and her mounting dissatisfaction with it, and her yearning for her husband’s time, love and attention. This leads to her transgression with Indra in the guise of Gautam and the consequent punishment, estrangement from her children, moral stigma and isolation. The novel ends with a dialogue between Ahalya and Sita where they discuss love, desire, duty, loyalty and justice. Both women have been judged and spurned by society and abandoned by their husbands for their perceived or possibly real transgression. In Sita’s case, even though her innocence and purity had already been proved once by agnipariksha in Lanka, Lord Rama has abandoned her due to the drunken rambling of a washer-man. Ahalya’s position has never been clearly defined in the traditional story, though the novel portrays her as a willing participant in the act. Both Journal of Research and Development Peer Reviewed International, Open Access Journal. ISSN : 2230-9578 | Website: https://jrdrvb.org Volume-17, Issue-10(II)| October2025 11 women agree that their husbands’ decisions either to wage war or to incur curses were more to assuage their own inflated sense of male ego than to really avenge the honour of their respective wives, and that under the guise or name of ‘protecting’ women’s honour and chastity, men and patriarchy have established proprietorial rights and control over women’s bodies, minds and activities. Ahalya stresses the importance of respect and trust between husband and wife more than love, respect that a woman should receive unconditionally, not only as a woman, wife or mother, but as a sentient and intelligent human being who has hopes, aspirations and desires that are denied existence or acceptance in a patriarchal society. She claims that as Shri Ram, a sensitive, honest, fair and rational man, who recognized her as an unblemished, guiltless woman who had done nothing other than reponding to natural desire. Ahalya declares that though she is grateful to Ram for recognizing her purity, she did not need him to redeem her as the world believes. Her redemption and salvation are the results of suffering, penance, and self-denial, as well as self-understanding, complete freedom, control over her own life, and being true to herself. Pratibha Ray’s Ahalya in Mahamoha (2012) Ray’s Ahalya comes through as a rebel, a symbol for women’s never-ending quest for love, equality, respect and freedom from patriarchal suppression. The very title of the English translation of the original Odia novel, Ahalya: A Woman’s Eternal Quest for Love is self-explanatory. Ray’s novel is not a simplistic discussion of right or wrong, or of a woman’s fall from grace, but a nuanced and complex work, delving into societal, philosophical and spiritual issues and themes that resonate with today’s woman. It explores themes of attachment, desire, pride, gender discrimination, societal expectations, duty and spiritual awakening. Ray’s Ahalya is not a passive figure manipulated by men, but an intelligent, self-confident woman vocal about her desires and rights. She is ready to face the consequences of her actions and refuses to indulge in any subterfuge just to save her marriage or her reputation. When Gautama tells her to claim that she has been deceived and raped in order to hide the public shame, she refuses to do so. In doing so, she takes control and agency over her life. The novel presents Ahalya’s struggle between Indra’s attraction and Gautama’s asceticism, and raises questions about the nature of chastity and fidelity, about women’s desire and sin, about society’s double standards for the sexes, and society’s attitude towards women who defy societal norms of ideal womanly behaviour. Ray’s Ahalya is a beautiful woman, very much aware of her beauty and the responsibility and burden it may carry. She is unable to see or think beyond physical beauty initially and her husband’s indifference to her beauty irks her. Ray not only focuses on the character of Ahalya, but discusses the concepts of moha, attachment and desire with reference to Rishi Gautama and Indra as well. Indra symbolizes material and physical desires and passions, while Gautama symbolizes austerity. Gautama, too is governed by Moha, as he aspires to become a Brahmarishi, and wants Ahalya to free herself from the confines of pride for her physical beauty. Gautama’s obsession with becoming a Brahmarishi and his ambition lead to his indifference to Ahalya, in turn leading to dissatisfaction in her married life, which pushes her towards the attraction and fulfilment promised by Indra. Indra desires her beautiful body, and forgetting his elevated position and her marital status, gives in to physical passions. The novel places the blame squarely and equally on all three people involved in the incident, and not only on Ahalya as the traditional versions do. Ray treats Ahalya’s redemption as philosophical with her salvation coming from being free of moha, all attachments and illusions. It comes from acceptance, being true to oneself, maintaining integrity in the face of misfortune and ignominy and challenging and exposing society’s hypocritical norms Ahalya as seen in Volga’s The Liberation of Sita This is a short story collection by Volga (Popuri Lalita Kumari), with Sita as the central character, embarking on the journey of her life after being abandoned by Rama, reminiscing about the various stages of her life, her experiences and her encounters with the various people she met in the course of her exile. There are five stories, each featuring a famous woman, marginalized and partly forgotten by patriarchy, but emerging nevertheless, as mature and serene, at peace with themselves and in harmony with the natural world around them. The stories feature Surpanakha, Ahalya, Renuka Devi and Urmila, women who have broken free of the shackles of patriarchy, their stories of suffering, patience, and self-conscious introspection helping Sita on her life’s journey in a male dominated society , attain self-realization and come to a momentous decision. The story features Ahalya and Sita having several discussions about crime, punishment, subjectivity of truth, purity, pollution, honour-dishonour and patriarchy. Men including Rama, have judged Ahalya harshly, Rama calling her ‘characterless’ and Gautama condemning her without a thought. Ahalya claims that all men treat women as objects meant solely for men’s enjoyment or of possession and control, and expresses displeasure with her husband for failing to trust her and for cursing her as he feels she has been polluted and dishonoured by her seduction by Indra. For her, trust between husband and wife is of paramount importance and any kind of trial or enquiry spells distrust. Her denial to either accept her guilt or to play victim has kept people guessing about her role in the seduction, but choosing any one will either brand her as a sinner or make her a recipient for people’s sympathy, and she wishes for neither. Journal of Research and Development Peer Reviewed International, Open Access Journal. ISSN : 2230-9578 | Website: https://jrdrvb.org Volume-17, Issue-10(II)| October2025 12 Ahalya’s story seems to foreshadow Sita’s as both women face a somewhat similar fate and are unjustly accused of a crime they have not committed. Ahalya strongly recommends Sita not to face any trial, as that will be bowing to patriarchal authority. But after Ravana’s death Ram tell Sita to undergo a chastity test and for the sake of her love and honour, she does so readily. Rama has proved and his valour and satisfied his male ego by routing Lanka and killing Ravana, now it is Sita’s turn to prove her purity. Even after facing a trial and being proved pure and chaste, Sita is abandoned by Rama while pregnant and meets Ahalya, who advises her to search for her own identity separate from her other roles and find her own true self, her true goal in life. Several years later, after proudly accepting Luv and Kush as his sons and the rightful heirs to the Ayodhya throne, Rama asks Sita to return to Ayodhya, but she refuses to do so, tired of having to prove her innocence repeatedly and having found self-respect, has reclaimed autonomy and self-authority. Both Ahalya and Sita have come to terms with their roles as women, wives and mothers and have achieved enlightenment and salvation through patient suffering and understanding. Their redemption is through their understanding of themselves, of their mission and purpose and self-consciousness and not through any man’s agency as the traditional story has underlined. Conclusion The retellings of the Ahalya myth explored in this paper present some similarities, some difference, subversion of the original, and all in their own unique manner, attempting to correct the imbalance of power dynamics and crime and punishment seen in the traditional tale. The traditional Ahalya comes through as a meek, passive and voiceless entity lacking substance, accepting her lot without protest, while all the rewritings explored by the researcher present a vibrant, dynamic, vocal and self-conscious Ahalya, refusing to be suppressed by pressures of family, gender roles or societal norms. While each writer has discussed the story in their own way, Pratibha Ray’s Ahalya is more rebellious, argumentative but philosophical at the same time, her struggle more solitary and introspective. Kane’s Ahalya is more overtly feminist, accepts her desire and its consequences, at the same time overcoming psychological trauma resulting from isolation, familial and social ostracism and condemnation, and healing through suffering, acceptance and selfactualization. Volga’s Ahalya believes in building bonds with other women, sharing experiences and healing through sisterhood, as Volga believes sisterhood to be a important concept in feminism. Both Kane and Volga present a meeting and dialogue between Ahalya and Sita where both share a strong bond and Ahalya, being historically senior, assists Sita overcome her hurt and trauma and achieve peace. Ghosh’s Ahalya is a modern morality tale of crime and punishment, where the subversion lies in the man being punished for giving in to his temptation, with Ahalya and Gautam presented as modern-day vigilantes, working together to impart justice denied to the traditional Ahalya, and balancing the scales of justice. To sum up, all the retellings discussed in this paper, accept the victimization of Ahalya in the traditional version and attempt to bestow justice denied to her then. In addition, Ahalya is presented as an archetype of a bruised and traumatized woman, who is able to heal and regenerate herself through isolation, communion with nature, contemplation, self-analysis and self-realization. Recommendations Both Ramayan and Mahabharat are treasure troves of fascinating stories and as epics celebrating heroic deeds of men, contain many female characters such as Shurpanakha, Keikeyi, Urmila, Amba, Kunti, and Gandhari, who are marginalized and remain voiceless. As students of literature and culture, it our duty as researchers to provide identity, agency to them and feature them as heroes. References 1. Ahalya. Dir, Sujoy Ghosh 2. Kane, Kavita. Ahalya Awakening. Chennai, Westland Publications Private Limited, 2019. 3. Ray, Pratibha. Mahamoha/ Ahalya: A Woman’s Eternal Quest for Love. Trans, Samal Babru Bahan. Create space Independent Publishing Platform, 2018. 4. Volga. The Liberation of Sita. Trans, T. Vijay Kumar, C. Vijayasree. Harper Perennial, 2016.