Chapter 15 - The Dark Side

Didn't the junior stateswoman Kundavai Devi and Kodumbalur princess Vanathi get into the chariot and proceed towards Kudanthai town? We need to know a little bit about what the women in the boat said and did after that.

"Aiyae, Tarakai!, look at the yoga that came to this Kodumbalur girl! Why is our junior stateswoman so fond of her?" said one.

"No desire, nothing, Varini! For four months the girl has been a kind of madman. She often faints and falls. The junior stateswoman was worried that they had entrusted us with a girl who had no father or mother. That is why he has taken Vanathi to an astrologer to ask what has happened to her! Could it be some demonic act? If that is the case, shouldn't you use some magic to drive it?" said Tarakai.

"No ghost, no devil! What devil is going to come and catch her? She will drive away a hundred devils," said Varini.

"Even Vanathi fainting is a pretense! She thinks that if she does all this, she can slowly trap the prince in her net!" said another.

"Niravati is right! That's all! Didn't she drop the lamp plate that day? Even that was to be noticed by him! Would the plate I was holding with both hands fall like that? Or is our prince a tiger or a bear, to be afraid of him?" said Varini.

"She immediately pretended to faint? How much cleverness does it take?" said Niravathi.

"The more funny that Kundavai Devi and the prince were deceived by that magic than hers!" said Senthiru.

"This is the time for those who lie, fabricate and deceive!" said Mandakini.

"After leaving for the war, the prince came back and saw this Vanathi, what more could he want? Do you see how far her magic has worked?" said Varini.

"That's nothing; The prince is such a noble character. If a woman fainted, would he not inquire after her? You don't have to interpret anything from that!" said Taraka.

"What you say about the prince is true. Who else in this world of seven or fourteen can be as virtuous as him? Not even in stories and epics; But what I'm saying is different. She – this Vanathi – fainted and fell, do you know what fainting it was? You don't have to go to an astrologer to ask for it. If you had asked me, I would have told you myself!" said Varini.

"What's that? I will tell you!" said Senthiru.

Varini whispered something in Sendiru's ear. "What secret did she say? Shouldn't we know?" asked Niravathi.

"That's no ordinary fainting! Ink is fainting!" said Senthiru.

Immediately everyone burst out laughing. Hearing this, the birds in the trees on the banks of the river fluttered their wings and flew away.

"If our prince returns from Ilankai, she will try to apply magic powder again. We should be careful not to give in to that!" said Niravathi.

"If this Vanathi does not go mad before the prince returns, my name will not be Taraka; I will change my name to Thadagai!" said Tarakai.

"Let it go! Shouldn't the junior stateswoman do what she said before he returns? Come on," said Mandakini.

Then two of the women removed a plank from the bottom of the boat that had already shifted a little. A crocodile was lying in a long box-like ditch where it had been moved! That is, the toy crocodile that had embalmed the carcass of a dead crocodile and stuffed it with cotton and fibre. They picked it up and put it outside. They rowed the boat a short distance and came to a big tree with huge roots on the bank of the river. On the edge of the tree they removed the crocodile, half in the roots of the tree and half in the flood of the river. It looked as horrible as a real crocodile. A small rope of bells was tied to one of its legs and tied to its roots. The rope was tied so that it would be buried in the water so that it would not be exposed.

"Hey, Mandakini! Why has the junior stateswoman asked me to tie this toy crocodile under a tree like this?" asked Tarakai.

"Don't you know? Isn't Vanathi very timid? To overcome her fear and make her brave!" said Mandakini.

"Taken together, it seems that Kundavai Devi intends to get Vanathi married to the prince!" said Niravathi.

"If there is any such talk, I will poison this Vanathi and kill her. Keep watching!" said the jealous Varini.

"There's no reason for you to be so upset. The emperor of the twin mandalams of Manikedathu, the king of Vengi, the king of Kalinga and even the emperor of Kannauj far to the north are waiting to give a bride to our prince! In that case, who is going to ignore this Kodumbalur Vaanathi!" said Mandakini.

"As you say, those kings can wait! But isn't it the will of our prince that matters? The prince is saying, 'If I ever get married, I will marry a Tamil girl'! Don't you all know this?"

"Then it was very good. Shouldn't we all have to show our hands individually? Will we not be able to do what this Vanathi can do? Don't we also have the magic powder that she has?" said Taraka.

We would now like to inform the viewers what is the source of these women's speeches.