Kaikeyi

Kaikeyi is a 2022 historical fiction novel by Vaishnavi Patel that focuses on the mythological retelling of the Ramayana from the perspective of Queen Kaikeyi, following her from her childhood as yuvradnyi, or princess, of the kingdom Kekaya to her ascent to radnyi, or queen, of the kingdom of Kosala after her marriage. The novel engages with themes of Feminism and the Role of Women, Destiny and Free Will, and The Complexities of Power and Leadership. Patel is an Indian American lawyer and writer whose work focuses on retellings of Indian mythology that engage with themes of feminism and postcolonialism. Kaikeyi is her first novel, which was followed by Goddess of the River, a retelling of the Mahabharata. 

This guide refers to the 2022 Orbit Kindle Edition of Kaikeyi. 

Plot Summary

Kaikeyi is born minutes before her twin brother, Yudhajit, on a full moon to Raja (King) Ashwapati and Radnyi (Queen) Kekaya in the kingdom of Kekaya. Though Kaikeyi is the oldest, Yudhajit is still the heir, or yuvraja. Ashwapati and Kekaya then have six more sons. Kaikeyi spends her early childhood playing with her brothers and learning to read from her mother. The responsibilities of being yuvradnyi are thrust upon her when her father banishes her mother without warning. Kaikeyi feels abandoned by her mother and by the gods, as they never answer her prayers. From a scroll she finds when searching for gods to whom she can pray for her mother’s return, she learns about the Binding Plane, a place between realms that allows her to see visual manifestations of her relationships with others as threads that she can manipulate. She uses the Binding Plane to excel at her duties as yuvradnyi, cultivating positive relationships with palace staff, especially her nurse Manthara. She also uses the Binding Plane to convince Yudhajit to train her to fight and drive chariots, activities typically not allowed for women. 

When Kaikeyi is 16, her father decrees she must marry. She asks for a swayamvara, an event in which suitors must compete for her hand. Her father agrees, but later betrays his promise and engages Kaikeyi to Dasharath, the Raja of Kosala, who already has two wives but no children. Kaikeyi feels betrayed, as her father and Yudhajit both promised she would have some level of choice in her marriage. She is angry at Yudhajit, and their bond in the Binding Plane breaks. She agrees to the marriage after she makes Dasharath promise that her son will be heir to the throne, not the sons of the other radnyis. They marry and leave for Ayodhya, the capital of Kosala, with Manthara accompanying them. 

In Ayodhya, Kaikeyi struggles to adjust. She wants to seem independent, so she rejects the help of her fellow radnyis Kaushalya and Sumitra, which offends them. She asks Dasharath to allow her to go with him to battle the warlord Sambarasura, and Dasharath agrees. At the war camp, Kaikeyi drives a chariot, which Dasharath sees, impressed by her skill, and asks her to be his charioteer in the battle. During the fighting, Kaikeyi struggles to adjust until she utilizes the Binding Plane to better visualize the soldiers on the field. She manages to save Dasharath’s life and slay Sambarasura, though she gives Dasharath the credit. When he recovers from his injury, Dasharath realizes that Kaikeyi was the one who saved him and grants her two boons, or wishes, that he must fulfill whenever she asks. The war reignites Kaikeyi’s passion to make change, and she asks Dasharath for a seat on his Mantri Parishad, or council of advisors, which he grants. 

Back in Ayodhya, Kaikeyi makes an effort to bond with Kaushayla and Sumitra. They build friendships and become closer as they spend time together. Kaikeyi uses her seat on the Mantri Parishad to champion the causes of women. She meets Ravana, the part-asura Raja of Lanka, who gifts her a scroll that lets her see the full Binding Plane and visualize the threads of relationships between others, not just herself. After a year of no pregnancy for any of the radnyis, Dasharath realizes he is the problem. He hosts a Yagna, an event to honor the gods. Agni, the god of fire, appears and tells Kaikeyi that she is gods-touched and forsaken. Agni then gives kheer to Dasharath for the radnyis to drink. Afterward, Kaikeyi, Kaushalya, and Sumitra soon become pregnant. Kaushalya gives birth to a son named Rama, then Kaikeyi gives birth to a son named Bharata, and finally Sumitra gives birth to twins named Lakshmana and Shatrugna. The three queens raise the children together, each viewing the others’ children as their own. Kaikeyi writes to Yudhajit and repairs their relationship after the birth of Bharata. 

Kaikeyi continues to use her position on the Mantri Parishad to advocate for the rights of women, encouraging Dasharath to open the market to female vendors. She and the other radnyis also form the Women’s Council, a council that handles the needs of all women, not just noblewomen. This angers the conservative sages who hold old-fashioned views on the roles of women, including Sage Vamadeva, a tutor of her sons. As the boys grow older, Rama becomes more conservative, parroting the views of Vamadeva. Kaikeyi slaps Rama after he calls women whores. In response, Dasharath names Kaikeyi his saciva, or chief advisor, to show their sons that women are valued and important. 

Kaikeyi takes Bharata and Rama back to Kekaya for a diplomatic mission. On the way, they stop at the Sarasvati River, and an encounter with the goddess leads Kaikeyi to realize that Rama is a god. In Kekaya, the boys bond with Yudhajit, especially Bharata, and he fully repairs his relationship with Kaikeyi. When they return to Ayodhya, Kaikeyi fires Vamadeva after he disrespects her, which upsets Rama who claims that Vamadeva was helping him understand his godhood, revealing Rama’s awareness of his divine status. 

Five years pass and Kaikeyi thinks all is well, until Rama brings her to the temple of the sages where she realizes that he has still been learning the conservative ways. She also realizes that Dasharath has reneged on his promise to her and named Rama the yuvraja/heir. She gracefully accepts Dasharath’s deceit and agrees to send Rama and Lakshmana to an ashram to learn from a powerful sage. While they are gone for two years, Kaikeyi continues her work with the Women’s Council. While at the ashram, Rama allegedly slays a rakshasa, a demon, on his own, under the tutelage of Vamadeva, whose presence Kaikeyi does not discover until after the two years of training are over. Dasharath decides it is time for the boys to marry, so they meet Rama and Lakshmana in a neighboring kingdom that is hosting a swayamvara for Sita, the daughter of the raja who was found as an infant buried in the earth and is also gods-touched. Rama wins the swayamvara, as he is the only one who can lift the bow gifted to the raja by Shiva. Ravana recognizes Sita as his daughter that was swallowed by the earth as an infant. Bharata, Lakshmana, and Shatrugna marry Sita’s sister and cousins, then the entire family returns to Ayodhya. 

Dasharath hears news of a danger near the northern kingdom of Janasthana, so Kaikeyi and Lakshmana go to investigate. On their journey, Kaikeyi realizes that Lakshmana has a blue threat on his neck that connects him to Rama and understands that Rama is using his godhood to control Lakshmana. Kaikeyi helps Lakshmana break the connection after they have a dangerous encounter with Shishir, the god of winter, who challenges Kaikeyi’s attempts to make the world more accessible to women. They arrive in Janasthana and realize an asura, a more powerful demon than a rakshasa, has been terrorizing the city. Kaikeyi reunites with her mother Kekaya who lives in Janasthana. Ravana saved the city from the asura before Kaikeyi’s arrival, and he and Kaikeyi make a plan to kill the asura. Before they leave, Kekaya reveals that Vamadeva is Gautama, a sage who turned his wife to stone after Indra tricked her into sexual intimacy. 

When they arrive home, Dasharath reveals he plans to abdicate the throne in favor of Rama, a decision clearly influenced by Rama. Rama now controls most of the people around him, but not Sita and Kaikeyi, as they are gods-touched. Kaikeyi tries to make Rama wait to become raja, to consider the costs of the war he plans to wage against the rakshasas and asuras, but he will not listen to her, espousing more misogynistic rhetoric from Vamadeva, even threatening to hit Sita when she does not listen to him. On a visit to see her dying father, Yudhajit tells her that Bharata must become raja of Kosala or Kekaya will be forced to go to war. Kaikeyi realizes she must use her boons to exile Rama and make Bharata raja to avoid war. When she uses her boons, it destroys her relationship with Dasharath and Sumitra, but not Kaushalya who understands her motivations. It also damages her relationships with her remaining sons. Rama and Sita go into exile with Lakshmana, who accompanies them to protect Sita from Rama as he is no longer under his control. Bharata refuses to rule in Rama’s place, and Shatrugna prepares for war against Kekaya, deciding to burn their army camp while they sleep. Kaikeyi goes to warn Yudhajit, but the Kosala troops burn the camp to the ground anyway, and Shatrugna kills Yudhajit. 

Yudhajit’s death brings Bharata out of Rama’s control. He agrees to rule Kosala and apologizes to Kaikeyi. They make peace, and 10 years later, toward the end of Rama’s exile, Kaikeyi is at peace and hopes that Rama has grown into a man worthy of ruling Kosala as he prepares for war against Ravana and the other asuras.