I agree with Pavithra It was not a flaw in Kundavai's Charector but Nandhini Building up to Periya Pazhuvettarayar to infuriate him against KD
But the same KD is not so kind to Poongizhali and Manimegalai....largely because she sees them as a threat to her ambitions of wider chola empire and demeaning her brother karikalans pugal respectively
There are two ways I would read this
1a.Kundavai knew where she stood..and what her responsibilities were more so after hearing her fathers story of battle between love and duty and his lifelong agony for sacrificing his love.....she didnt want arumozhi to suffer the same and she knew his responsibilties were more than that meets the eye.So she knew a king cant fall for a odakara penn.....
1b.She couldnt and wouldnt let a mad woman slander her brothers fame by claiming that she killed him...that can only be derogaratory to great warrior.
The other way to look at it is
Kalki wanted his charectors to be simple human beings with great achievements rather than super heros...
Kundavai was upset that his brother wasnt going according to his plan which is marry vanathi and get kodumbaloorar on their side and poonguzhali was in her way and she had a subconscious hatred for her...hence she gives her secondclass treatment....he clearly potrays this at the end of third bagam when
KD just ignores poonguzhali after just thankning her and focuses on Arumozhi and vanathi and poonguzhali lamaents to sendan and in her anger hits the bull etc etc...
One can then ask then why did she fall for VD.three reasons 1.Though he was homeless he was of a royal stock
2 she was a woman and wouldnt become queen
3 she chose well to stay in thanjai
The funadamental superiority of Kalkis charectors are they are all so human...
*thats why Karikalan accepts I am scared if I see her again I may muder my parents arrest my sister and marry nandhini ....
*Thats why Arulmozhi thinks about going to diustant lands in a boat with Poonguzhali...
*Thats why He goes back and forth in him becoming King..well he tries to accept the throne to release VD
*Thats why Kundavai asks kudanthai jothidar about the king and his sons when Vanathi has fainted
*thats why Parthibendran and Kandamaran get charmed by Nandhini not to mention PP
*thats why the hero VD gets caught and arrested and tricked so mant times...?(unlike sandilyans heros who can fool and defeat an entire army just like that...I love sandilyan yet)
you can see the same in SS as well all the petti ego clashes between Sivagami and narasimhar.....they are all humanly potrayed I didnt understand those when I read them in my teens but after growing up appreciate the greatness of kalki in potraying human emotions as true to life as possible
why did not KD wanted arulmozhi to marry only vanathi and not poonguzlali?BUt yet why did she want to marry vandiya thevan,an empireless king?
Simple.KD and Vandiathevan were devars,same caste.Vanathi and Arulmozhi were devars,same caste.Even though kings married across castes, even they married chalukyas it was for for politics.But still varna dharma prevailed in those days.
Kodumbalur velir belonged to a different caste and i don't think vandiya devan was of the same caste of cholas. Not very sure.
As far as KD is concerned, right from the beginning she is concerned only about the 'menmai' of chola nadu. Those who can contribute a lot for this were given good treatment/importance by her. Those who can be a hindrance were looked down by her.
She likes Arulmozhi very much cause he has the same ambitions like her. They think alike. She was not that keen on Aditha karikalan once she comes to know of his weakness for nandhini. She says in one place " Manathai kattupadutha theriyadhavarkal sadhanaikal padaika mudiyaadhu". She has full hope/confidence in Arulmozhi that he can take chola nadu to grater heights.
One important thing to be noted is Kundavai believes in Astrolgy. She wants Arulmozhi to marry vanathi for two reasons
* She has brought up vanathi and vanathi after marrying AV cannot go against her in any situation and thus the brother-sister bondage will continue for long.
* After she hears the prediction of vanathi's son by kudanthai jothidar the reason for the marriage becomes apparent. After her brother, vanathi's son is the person who can create history. She gets strong valid bases for her plans and then she goes ahead in implementing those. So she keeps poonguzhali at a distance.
Both vanathi and Av have high regard for her and if they become king/queen, must importance will be given to her thoughts and all her dreams can be fulfilled thru them.
She married VD cause she doesn't have to move out of chola naadu. She tells vanathi in the beginning chapters before she meets VD. She maintained that till the end.
KD is depicted as a strong willed lady. Her prime concern is 'cholanattu menmai' others are secondary. KD would have married any commoner for that matter if not for her love towards VD.
No yaar, its full of political game, Arulmozhi got married Vanthi because he will get political support, Kundavai married Vaidiyathevan as the reason is she and as well vaidiyathevan not in the race .
The support from Vanathi's family is the reason, its justa political arrangement and more there is no such kudanthai jothidar in real
Actually before joining this group, I was of the opinion that all the characters in PS were actually real and live characters. Including Senthan Amudhan, Kudanthai Josiyar, Aazhvaarkadiyaan, Poonkuzhali etc etc. I once went to Kumbakonam and I was passing thru a street called "Kamatchi Josiyar theru". I asked my friend, whether this was the name of the josiyar who lived in Rajaraja Chozhan's era. Since Kundhavai consulted this josiyar He asked his sister, who had settled down there and all of them had no clue. Such was Kalki's portrayal of all characters.
So in reality all these marriages might have been an arrangement of convenience and to gain political mileage. But the greatness of Kalki lies in how he had made us to believe this fiction as real truth.
Another reason for Kundhavai to marry Vandhiyadevan is to live in the Chola land itself.
Please do not bring reality into the PS related discussions and characters. Let them be separate from each other. Most of the fantasy things will get evaporated and we will not be able to fully enjoy the essence and twists of PS.
>> Please do not bring reality into the PS related > discussions and characters. > Let them be separate from each other. Most of the > fantasy things will get > evaporated and we will not be able to fully enjoy > the essence and twists of > PS.
I fully agree with the above, though one is still not sure about the caste of all the characters in PS.
Kalki in his novel has not spoken about caste except in one or two places. (e.g. about the Chief Minister Anirudha Bharamarayar, VD-a meat eater-still nothing about caste)
i have a doubt for a long time... are there any descendents (need not be direct line) of cholas, pandiyas or cheras? who used to live in the chola palaces before the government nationalized them? there are still people in maharashtra who are descendents of shivaji, and in rajasthan of some rajput kings.