The Curse or Karna

Tyagraj Paramasiva Iyer Kailasam

 1884–1946 

was a playwright and prominent writer of Kannada literature. His contribution to Kannada theatrical comedy earned him the title Prahasana Prapitamaha, "the father of humorous plays" and later he was also called "Kannadakke Obbane Kailasam" meaning "One and Only Kailasam for Kannada".

Kailasam was born in a Tamil brahmin family in southern Karnataka, India. He belonged to the Mangudi Brahacharanam subsect. His father, T Paramasiva Iyer, was employed as munsi in the Mysore state service and progressed to become the Chief Justice of the Mysore High Court. His father's brother was the Madras High Court judge, Sir T. Sadasiva Iyer.

Kailasam had a good education and was supported by the Maharaja of Mysore to study geology at the Royal College of Science London. His close friends and classmates included K. V. Iyer and V. Seetharamaiah. Kailasam repeated several classes to have an excuse to extend his stay in England. He spent seven years in school there, to complete his fellowship by participating in theatre whenever possible.

Soon after his return, he joined the government geology service. He became disillusioned with a government job, quit writing plays, and lived a bohemian life. His father's failed ambitious plan that he would become the Director General of the Geology Department led him to stop talking to him.

THE CURSE OR KARNA

सूतो वा सूतपुत्रो वा यो वा को वा भवाम्यहम्।
दैवायत्तं कुले जन्म मदायत्तं तु पौरुषम्॥

मैं चाहे सूत हूँ या सूतपुत्र, अथवा कोई और। किसी कुल-विशेष में जन्म लेना यह तो दैव के अधीन है,

लेकिन मेरे पास जो पौरुष है उसे मैने पैदा किया है॥

Whether I am a weaver or his son, whoever or whatever I am, the birth in this family was given by my Daiva or fate. But the prowess and power I have accomplished are by my own self.

Low-born king "KARNA"

Karna comes across as the most evocative one. One cannot but be awed by his towering personality and sheer strength of character, and at the same time help to identify oneself with the moments of frailty in his tragic life. 

Karna is among the most popular and complex characters in the Mahabharata, showing both nobility and nastiness throughout the story. He was resentful because he did not know whose child he was. But the people who brought him up did so with utmost love. His foster parents, Radha and Athiratha, loved him immensely and brought him up very well, the way they knew. He always remembered how much his mother loved him. “That is one person who loved me for who I am,” he says. Out of his competence and the will of fate, he became Angaraja – the king of Anga. He got many things and was given a position and place in the palace. In many ways, he was also a big king’s sidekick. Duryodhana held him dear and took advice from him. He had everything that life could offer. If you look at his life, the fact of it is that he was a charioteer’s son who became a king. He should have been really happy. A child who is found floating on the water grows up to become a king. Is it not a wonderful thing? But no, he did not give up his resentment. He was always unhappy and miserable because he could not come to terms with what he was being labeled as. Wherever he went, people referred to him as a suta or “low-born” because of his ambitions. Throughout his life, he complained about this. All the time, he nourished bitterness within himself about his so-called low birth.

This bitterness made a wonderful human being into such a nasty and ugly character in the Mahabharata. He was a great human being and showed his greatness in different situations, but because of this bitterness, in many ways, it was he who turned everything wrong. For Duryodhana, it did not matter what Shakuni said or did, it was Karna’s advice that permanently sealed the deal. After everything was decided, he would look at Karna, “What shall we do?” Karna could very easily have turned the direction of the whole story.

Fate of Karna 

 In the scene Where Draupadi rejects him

Hotstar's Mythological series Mahabharata

Karna as the voice of the subaltern

What is Subaltern according to Mariam Webster Dictionary 

a person holding a subordinate positionspecifically: a junior officer (as in the British army)Mahabharata

Karna as voice of subaltern Here's the link to my presentation on Karna as the voice of the subaltern.
2) Interpretation of myths