RETELLING AND INTERPRETING: A STUDY OF DEVDUTT’S TALENT SUTRA

Abstract

Myth plays a vital role in the new millennium literary works in India encompassing a wide range of literary texts in the form of books, films and television serials. The renowned mythologist and eminent writer of modern Indian Literature, Devdutt Pattanaik has written many books that reflect mythical and socio-political concepts which can be related to the present era. He has recapitulated many mythical characters from various religious scriptures in his works. Talent Sutra – An Indian Approach to Learning focuses on many learning techniques related to workplace management and creative talents. It also focuses on the importance of teamwork and the achievement of leadership qualities. Although he has derived the lessons from Indian mythology, those lessons are applicable to the entire human community as they draw attention to the human prosperity. This work focuses on mythical sutras that enable people to work with talent, build strong relationships in the workplace and nurture them to face the crises with patience and faith. This paper explores how great Indian epics such as Ramayana and Mahabhratha help the writer recapitulate their characters to derive the sutras for human success. Talent Sutra analyses the third book of the management series from the perspective of mythical retelling. Devdutt retells and interprets the mythical tales from Hindu and Buddhist epics and contextualizes them in a view of achieving the real talent of a human being. This paper investigates the mythological interpretations of the renowned Indian epics that have been done by Devdutt on the perspective of present life in the Indian society without breaking away from the framework of the original text.