'Scion of Ikshvaku' to be 5-6 books series: Amish Tripathi

New Delhi: Bestselling author Amish Tripathi's new offering "Scion of Ikshvaku" is the first of a five-six book Ramchandra series and explores the life of Lord Ram.

"Scion of Ikshvaku" traces the story of Lord Ram, the son of Dashrath and the founder of what is known as Ram Rajya. A fictional interpretation based on the many versions of the Ramayana, the series is a fast-paced adventure melded with historical theories.

The book talks about the perfect empire where 'dharma' and honours prevailed over all, how a misunderstood king created a Ram Rajya and how a tortured prince turned into a great king and then into a god.
 

Ikshvaku was the first king of the Ikshvaku dynasty and founder of the Suryavanshis (sun gods), a dynasty Lord Ram belonged to.

"In other words he was young heir, or a 'scion'. Hence the name 'Scion Of Ikshvaku'," explains Tripathi.

The book, published by Westland, will be out some time later but a chapter is now exclusively available on Kindle.

The chapter (number three in the book) was unveiled yesterday here and there was a reading session too by Tripathi and actress Gul Panag.

"I am always experimenting with different and unique ways to engage with my readers. With this exclusive chapter launch on Kindle, I'm hoping to not just engage with my readers but also start a dialogue with a new set of readers and allow them to sample my narrative and hopefully excite them to join me in this journey," says Amish.

Westland CEO Gautam Padmanabhan terms Tripathi as a strong story teller who is extremely focused.

"While writing he is completely immersed and when he finishes his story he gets involved into marketing," he says.
 

Tripathi himself says follows two phases - writing and marketing.

He has written three books till now, "The Immortals of Meluha," "The Secret of the Nagas" and "The Oath of the Vayuputras," collectively called the "Shiva Trilogy," which is said to have sold 2.2 million copies till now, making it arguably the fastest-selling book series in Indian publishing history.
 

Samir Kumar, director of category management at Amazon India, says Tripathi connects well with "our DNA."

The chapter unveiled talks of a period when Kaushalya went into labour and is attended by a doctor named Nilanjana.

The doctor wasn't even sure if the child would be a boy. But she wouldn't risk the merest flagging of her mistress' spirits and so administered some herbal pain relievers to the queen and bided her time.

Ideally, the doctor wanted the birth to take place before midday. The royal astrologer had warned her that if the child was born later, he would suffer great hardships throughout his life.

On the other hand, if the child was born before the sun reached its zenith, he would be remembered as one of the greatest among men and would be celebrated for millennia.

"Kaushalya was stricken with another bout of dilatory pain. She pursed her lips together and began chanting in her mind the name she had chosen for her child. This gave her strength for it wasn't an ordinary name. The name she had picked was that of the sixth Vishnu.

"Vishnu was a title given to the greatest of leaders who were remembered as the propagators of good. The sixth man to have achieved this title was Lord Parshu Ram. That is how he was remembered by the common folk.

"Parshu means axe, and the word had been added to the name of the sixth Vishnu because the mighty battle axe had been his favourite weapon. His birth name was Ram. That was the name that reverberated in Kaushalya's mind..."