Vasanthika

Ammanagavalli

 The cart now passes through the orchard situated on the fringes of the river.

The small children were playing on the banks of river by jumping in the water. When they saw a carriage drawn by white stallion,they began to follow the vehicle shouting the words of joy.

"Hush you silly urchins," Amanagavalli irked by those noisy children.

" Ma,they are just children." came a soft voice of Vasanthika trying to pacify Amanagavalli

"Lurking behind each and every people." bellowed Amanagavalli.

Vasanthika looked at AVarna,but she insisted Vasanthika to keep her mouth shut,for her mother can never be convinced. She casted a glance over her mother's face. She could see her mother's sternious efforts to cover the signs of the age.Beneath the obsequious layers of greasepaint,there lies the undeniable sorrow ,anxiety,flattery and hurt of being cheated.

Her mother Amanagavalli was once a famous devadasi in the city .. She used to entertain elite of the city with her charms and dancing skills. The people used to throng to her place to see her dance. Her dancing skills attracted the attention of a young merchant named Subhandu a highly influential courtier in the Court of Hosyala. The liaison produced two children .Suddenly Subhandu began to keep distance away from Amanagavalli for some unknown reasons.

The loss was much for Amanagavalli as she was no more young to attract and delight the visitors. Soon she began to loose her audience for another young courtesan. Dejected by both personal and professional loss,she began to resort to amnesic pleasures of herbs like ganja and opium. Disgusted by her way of life,her firstborn son Nirmuktha ran away from the house and took a shelter in a vihara as a monk of Buddhist order. It came as a big jolt to Amanagavalli and she somehow came back to her normal senses.Now she solely depends on her daughters for bringing of fortune.But they She wants her daughter to mesmerize the city with her delicate feet. To full fill these ambitious dreams,Ammanagavalli takes Vasanthika  to an auditorium for her maiden performance. To make the event grand success,she beseech the governor of city to become a chief guest for the event,which he reluctantly accepted.

" That Mishrakeshi and Vamabhagini would soon lick the ground.They are nothing before my precious daughters." Vasanthika heard her mother boasting about her dancing prowess to a man who looked like an aristocrat. She bemused by her mother's praises began to ponder with distress.Whether her mother would fall dead instantly or heap curses on her if she leaks out that she has given her heart to Kulasekaran-the temple warrior.

Her mother would always warn about the ugly consequences of falling in love with man.Her mother's exasperated sigh and sorrowful eyes is a testimony to a fact that she reprimands herself for making a mess out of her carrier. Now she does not want her daughtersto repeat the mistake.