Surya Putra Karna - The Mahabharata Fanfiction

I started watching Sony's Surya Putra Karna because I had seen and enjoyed Starplus's Mahabharata which was made by the same team. Also because Karna is a character I love.

Given that the epic does not say much about Karna's childhood, I had expected some aspects of the series would be fictionalized. Also given the way Starplus's series was narrated, I knew some events from the original epic would be modified and presented in a way that would be relatable to the newer generation. What I wasn't prepared for was a fanfiction.

That is exactly what Surya Putra Karna is, a Mahabharata fanfiction. But I have to say, I am enjoying it thoroughly. I have set aside my brain  and am having a good laugh- although that was probably not the intended reaction of the makers. So without further ado, let me share some of the hilarious moments and sheer genius that the show provides us with.

 The show starts off with Karna's birth. We see Kunti setting off the newborn Karna down the river, on a basket. Then Adhirath sees the basket and rescues the kid from the river, while Suryadev shoots balls of fire down on earth.

Upon coming up from the river, Adhirath meets Kunti's maid who extracts a promise from Adhirath that he would never tell anyone that Karna is Kunti's son.

 Years pass and we see a nine year old Karna yearning for his mother's love. It is at this age that he discovers his natural talent for archery. In an effort to win his mother's love, Karna goes in search of a musk-deer and meets with Pandu and Kunti. (Keep in mind, at this point, Yudhisthir is not yet born.)

Circumstances force his family to go seek refuge in Hastinapura and from here on starts the fanfiction. Upon getting the news of Yudhisthir's birth the queen Gandhari, who's been pregnant for two years now attacks her own womb, forcefully induces labor and ends up delivering a blob of flesh.

Ganga tells Bhishma to get Ved Vyas for he has the skill to turn that blob of flesh into the hundred sons and one daughter that Gandhari was supposed to have. And who goes to get Ved Vyas? Not Bheeshma but our nine year old hero, Karna.

Look at that cute face, how could Ved Vyas say no?
 

Soon after Karna gets into fights with the Hastinapura court and Bhishma takes away Karna's bow. 

Why can't Bhishma stand straight? He always stands in this 45 degree angle. What's wrong with his center of gravity?

 Such circumstances are created that Karna is forbidden from practicing archery ever again. He is enrolled into the school for charioteers. Meanwhile, Duryodhan is born.

Ten years pass and now the 19-20 year-old Karna is preparing for the exam for charioteers and he comes to give the exam in this.

Hey Ravana came in Pushpak Vimaan to kidnap Sita. Why can't Karna fly in a hot air balloon?

And there he gets into a tiff with Dushyasana and eventually with Duryodhana. Now let me take a moment and remind you that when Karna was 9-10, Yudhisthira wasn't even born. And yet, somehow, by the time Karna is 19-20, the Kuru princes look like this. What growth potion have they been drinking?

How is Yudhistira (front, center) 10 years old? What sorcery is this?

With Pandu and Madri's deaths, the Pandavas are set to return to Hastinapura. But Shakuni's demon assassin attacks them and there the brothers along with Karna (seriously, he's everywhere!) kill the demon and save the day. Pandavas and Karna become BFFs. (EEYYUP).

Some days later Bheema is poisoned by Duryodhana and is drowned in the river. The Pandavas and Karna look for Bheema. Karna dons his sleuthing hat and figures out that Bheema has been poisoned.

Presenting Angraj Holmes!

They get into a fight with the Kauravas and are almost winning when Kunti intervenes and puts a stop to the fight. In the last episode that I saw, the Kauravas are planning to get Karna into their camp.

Thus far it has been a hilarious watch. Although, I can't help but wonder, what happens when a kid who is unfamiliar with the original epic watches this and believes this to be true?

My tip: Watch this for entertainment kids. If you want to know about the epic, read the Amar Chitra Katha version. It sticks closer to the original text written by Ved Vyasa.

 

Behold! Dushyasan's scowl of evil!