About the Book

Everyone knows the epic story of the Devi killing Mahishaasura. Mahishaa’s fault was that he was not prepared to fit into a conformist box. So, this cannot be a classic Good vs Evil tale. In the middle of the city, there was a dilapidated Kaali temple. Its condition was so because both the devotees and the priests were alien to love, although this was supposed to be the primary concept in places of worship. It was at such a time that a devotee decided to return the temple to its traditional practices of worship. This is accomplished in a pact with Kaali by the devotee becoming Mahishaasuramardini’s Mahishaa. What happens next is a marvellous cascade, flowing from the pen of poet Lakshmi Bayi.

About the Author

A tempestous child, poet Lakshmi Bayi found peace in the written word and ended up a student of English writings, only to discover that the present system of education kills all interest in literature. Shown the muse by poet and author Kamala Das, her mother-in-law, Lakshmi too, adopted poetry as her passion, and writing became as natural to her as breathing. Writing is her way of preserving her inner self. Kaali for her is as real as any of Kaali’s myriad creations. In 2000, she published a book of poems called Madness. The Composer King Swathi Thirunal, the artist Raja Ravi Varma, Maharani Sethu Parvathi Bayi, the strong and capable matriarch, mother of Chiththira Thirunal Rama Varma, the last Maharaja of erstwhile Travancore are her ancestors. On her husband M D Nalapat’s side may be included Poet Laureate of Kerala Balamani Amma, philosopher Narayana Menon, Founder of the Malabar Quarterly Review C V Subramania Iyer and satirist Aubrey Menen. Since childhood, Lakshmi loves travelling, and adores oceans, forests and elephants. Mahishaa, with its vivid imagery, is her second book.