Devdutt Pattanaik is a mythologist from Mumbai, India. He is also a speaker, illustrator and author, on Hindu sacred lore, legends, folklore, fables and parables. His work focuses largely on the areas of religion, mythology, and management. He has written books on the relevance of sacred stories, symbols and rituals in modern times; his more popular books include ''Myth = Mithya: A Handbook of Hindu Mythology'' ''Jaya: An Illustrated Retelling of the Mahabharata'' and ''Sita: An Illustrated Retelling of the Ramayana'' and ''My Gita''. Pattanaik has incorporated the

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the s ...

and the

Ramayana The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th ...

into human resource management. Pattanaik is a columnist for ''

Mid-Day ''Mid-Day'' (stylised as mid-day) is a morning daily Indian compact newspaper owned by Jagran Prakashan Limited. Editions in various languages were published in Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore and Pune. In 2011, the Delhi and Bangalore editions wer ...

'', Times of India, CN Traveller, Daily O, and Scroll.in. He hosts a radio show/podcast for Radio Mirchi, called ''The Devdutt Pattanaik Show''.

Early life and education

Pattanaik was born brought up in

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' fin ...

. He spent his childhood and student life in

Chembur Chembur (pronunciation: ͡ʃembuːɾ is an upmarket large suburb in central Mumbai, India. History Before reclamation, Chembur lay on the north-western corner of Trombay Island. It is suggested that Chembur is the same place referred to as Sa ...

, Mumbai. He studied in Our Lady of Perpetual Succour High School in Chembur. Pattanaik graduated in medicine ( M.B.B.S.) from

Grant Medical College The Grant Government Medical College, Mumbai, is a public medical college, affiliated to the Maharashtra University of Health Sciences. Founded in 1845, it is one of the oldest institutions teaching medicine in South Asia. Its clinical affil ...

, Mumbai, and subsequently obtained a diploma in

Comparative Mythology Comparative mythology is the comparison of myths from different cultures in an attempt to identify shared themes and characteristics.Littleton, p. 32 Comparative mythology has served a variety of academic purposes. For example, scholars have used ...

from Mumbai University.

Career

Pattanaik worked in the pharmaceutical and healthcare industry (

Sanofi Aventis Sanofi S.A. is a French multinational pharmaceutical and healthcare company headquartered in Paris, France. Originally, the corporation was established in 1973 and merged with Synthélabo in 1999 to form Sanofi-Synthélabo. In 2004, Sanofi-Syn ...

and Apollo Group of Hospitals, respectively) for 14 years and spent his spare time writing articles and books on mythology, which eventually became his full-time profession. His first book ''Shiva: An Introduction'' was published in 1997. Pattanaik illustrates most of his own books. He has worked as a consultant at

Ernst and Young Ernst & Young Global Limited, trade name EY, is a multinational professional services partnership headquartered in London, England. EY is one of the largest professional services networks in the world. Along with Deloitte, KPMG and Pricewaterh ...

. He also served as the Chief Belief Officer at

Future Group Future Group is an Indian conglomerate, founded by Kishore Biyani and based in Mumbai. The company is known in Indian retail and fashion sectors, operating supermarket chains Big Bazaar and Food Bazaar, lifestyle stores Brand Factory and Centra ...

, one of India's largest retailers. He was a speaker at the first

TED conference TED Conferences, LLC (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is an American-Canadian non-profit media organization that posts international talks online for free distribution under the slogan "ideas worth spreading". TED was founded by Richard Sau ...

in India held in November 2009. Pattanaik has consulted Star TV network on mythological television series like ''Mahabharata'' and ''Siya Ke Ram''; these serials have challenged conventional views of the narratives and opened up new avenues of interpretation. He has also been the story consultant at Indian television network Star TV, where '' Devon Ke Dev...Mahadev'' is based on his work and Epic channel, where he presents ''

Devlok with Devdutt Pattanaik ''Devlok with Devdutt Pattanaik'' is an Indian Hindi television series which airs on the EPIC Channel. The show is based on Indian mythology and presented by mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik. The show takes viewers on a story of Indian mythology a ...

''. In 2015, Pattanaik presented the Hindi television series

on the "EPIC ON" channel. In the show, he attempts to demystify and decode the folklore and traditions that accompanies Indian mythology. In December 2016, he made "his debut on the Forbes India Celeb 100 list, on the 93rd spot." Pattanaik worked on Audible Originals (India)'s

audiobook An audiobook (or a talking book) is a recording of a book or other work being read out loud. A reading of the complete text is described as "unabridged", while readings of shorter versions are abridgements. Spoken audio has been available in sc ...

titled ''Suno Mahabharat Devdutt Pattanaik ke Saath'' and '' Revisiting Mahabharata with Devdutt Pattanaik''. In his show he talks about the details of the war in the Mahabharata, how it affected the world, and what happened to India after the death of the

Pandava The Pandavas (Sanskrit: पाण्डव, IAST: Pāṇḍava) refers to the five legendary brothers— Yudhishthira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula and Sahadeva—who are the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata''. They are acknowledge ...

s and the

Kaurava ''Kaurava'' is a Sanskrit term which refers to descendants of Kuru, a legendary king of India who is the ancestor of many of the characters of the epic ''Mahabharata''. Usually, the term is used for the 100 sons of King Dhritarashtra and his wi ...

s. He also communicates the Vedic tenets which describes

karma Karma (; sa, कर्म}, ; pi, kamma, italic=yes) in Sanskrit means an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptivel ...

and dharma.

Art

Columnist Koral Dasgupta mentions, "Pattanaik’s art follows a particular style and is dependent on expertly sketched lines but the focus is never the perfection of hands and limbs and props. The pursuit is clearly that of beauty and depiction; not the grammatical detailing of a photograph!"

Views

Myth and Mythology

Pattanaik opines that "no society can exist without myth as it creates notions of right and wrong, good and bad, heaven and hell, rights and duties". To him, mythology "tells people how they should see the world... Different people will have their own mythology, reframing old ones or creating new ones." His desire is "to get Saraswati out of the closet. Saraswati belongs everywhere, she has to flow everywhere" and his body of work is aimed "to make knowledge accessible." In ''Shiva to Shankara: Giving Form to the Formless'', Pattanaik explores the layers of meanings embedded in Shiva's

linga A lingam ( sa, लिङ्ग , lit. "sign, symbol or mark"), sometimes referred to as linga or Shiva linga, is an abstract or aniconic representation of the Hindu god Shiva in Shaivism. It is typically the primary ''murti'' or devotional ...

and the transformation of Shiva, the hermit, into Shankara, the householder by the Goddess. ''Culture: 50 Insights from Mythology'' contextualises mythology and proposes that myths are alive, dynamic, shaped by perception and the times one lives in.

Business

In his book, ''Business Sutra: An Indian Approach to Management'', "the central theme … is that when individual beliefs come into conflict with corporate beliefs, problems surface in organisations. Conversely, when institutional beliefs and individual beliefs are congruent, harmony is the resultant corporate climate. It is when people are seen as mere resources meant to be managed ead: manipulatedthrough compensation and so-called motivation; it is when they are treated like switches in a circuit board; it is then that disharmony descends causing disruption".

Politics

Pattanaik is wary of the influence of "white saviours" on liberals as well as religious radicals. He has been rather contemptuous of the hyper-nationalism of a section of American Hindus who are clueless about Indian realities. He also frowns on secularists and atheists who deny their own missionary zeal and mythic structure, and see themselves as "rational".

Sexuality

Pattanaik has been frank about the LGBTQ revolution in India. Pattnaik realised that he was gay in 10th standard and came out to his parents when he was 30. After the 2018 decriminalization of homosexuality in India, Pattanaik came out as gay in a televised interview. He has written about the presence, and at several instances, the celebration, of the queer within the Indian mythos. Elucidating that karmic faiths can be used to affirm the dignity of queer people, he speaks of how when one discovers love and appreciation for the world as it is, not the way one wants it to be, one develops wisdom.

Reception

In 2014, Pattanaik was listed in the top category of bestselling Indian authors. His book ''Devlok'', based on the television programme of the same name, was one of the year's bestsellers in 2016. Forbes India had ranked Pattanaik among the 100 celebrities of India in 2016. Fiction author

Ashwin Sanghi Ashwin Sanghi (born 25 January 1969) is an Indian writer and author of the novels: '' The Rozabal Line'', '' Chanakya's Chant'', '' The Krishna Key'', Sialkot Saga, Keepers Of The Kalachakra, The Vault of Vishnu and The Magicians of Mazda. ...

has said that Pattanaik attempts to "explain mythology in simple words". Psychologist Urmi Chanda-Vaz, who calls Pattanaik "India's most beloved mythology explicator", praised his book ''My Gita''. Intellectual Shiv Visvanathan has praised Pattanaik by saying that he has made myth-reading "an open, playful, almost domestic game, like Chinese Checkers or Scrabble". Neil Gaiman praised Devdutt Pattanaik for his 2016 book ''Olympus: An Indian Retelling of the Greek Myth''. "I read a fantastic Indian writer recently where he told Greek myth but from an Indian perspective... He makes it so easy to understand but what is lovely is that he does from a very proud Indian connect." Pattanaik coined the phrase "Bharat Tyagi" to depict "a small group of PIOs, Queen Victoria’s frozen-in-time children, (who) imagine they must save India from Indians".

Publications

Mythology

# ''Shiva: An Introduction''. Vakils, Feffer and Simons Ltd., 1997. . (Based on

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

). # ''Vishnu: An Introduction''. Vakils, Feffer and Simons Ltd., 1999. . (Based on

Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" withi ...

). # ''Devi, The Mother-Goddess: An Introduction''. Vakils, Feffer, and Simons Ltd., 2000. . (Based on the concept of Devi). # ''The Goddess in India: The Five Faces of the Eternal Feminine''. Inner Traditions/ Bear & Company, 2000. . Translations: Hindi. # ''Hanuman: An Introduction''. Vakils, Feffer and Simons Ltd., 2001. . (Based on

Hanuman Hanuman (; sa, हनुमान, ), also called Anjaneya (), is a Hindu god and a divine '' vanara'' companion of the god Rama. Hanuman is one of the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. He is an ardent devotee of Rama and on ...

). # ''The Man Who Was A Woman and Other Queer Tales from Hindu Lore''. Harrington Park Press, 2002. . # ''Hindu India''. Brijbasi Art Press, 2003. . # ''Indian Mythology: Tales, Symbols, and Rituals from the Heart of the Subcontinent''. Inner Traditions/ Bear & Company, 2003. . # ''Lakshmi, The Goddess of Wealth and Fortune: An Introduction''. Vakils, Feffer, and Simons Ltd., 2003. . (Based on

Lakshmi Lakshmi (; , sometimes spelled Laxmi, ), also known as Shri (, ), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism. She is the goddess of wealth, fortune, power, beauty, fertility and prosperity, and associated with ''Maya'' ("Illusion"). Alo ...

). # ''Myth=Mithya: A Handbook of Hindu Mythology''. Penguin Books India, 2006. . Translations: Hindi, Marathi, Turkish. # ''Shiva to Shankara: Decoding the Phallic Symbol''. Indus Source, India. 2006. . Translations: Czech, Hindi (Based on

). # ''The Book of Ram''. Penguin Books India, 2009. . (Based on

Ram Ram, ram, or RAM may refer to: Animals * A male sheep * Ram cichlid, a freshwater tropical fish People * Ram (given name) * Ram (surname) * Ram (director) (Ramsubramaniam), an Indian Tamil film director * RAM (musician) (born 1974), Dutch * ...

) - Part of a book series on mythological figures published by Penguin. # ''7 Secrets from Hindu Calendar Art''. Westland Ltd., 2009. . Translations: Gujarati, Hindi (Based on Hindu Calendar art). # ''Hanuman's Ramayan''. Tulika Publishers, 2010. . (Based on

). # ''Jaya: An Illustrated Retelling of the Mahabharata''. Penguin Books India, 2010. . Translations: Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Tamil (Based on the

). # ''7 Secrets of Shiva''. Westland Ltd., 2011. . Translations: Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Marathi, Russian, Telugu (Based on

). # ''7 Secrets of Vishnu''. Westland Ltd., 2011. . Translations: Hindi, Kannada, Marathi, Russian (Based on

). # ''99 Thoughts on Ganesha: Stories, Symbols and Rituals of India's Beloved Elephant-headed Deity''. Jaico Publishing House, 2011. . Translations: Gujarati, Hindi, Malayalam, Marathi, Telugu (Based on

Ganesha Ganesha ( sa, गणेश, ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped Deva_(Hinduism), deities in the Hindu deities, Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in Ganapatya sect. His image is ...

). # ''Sita: An Illustrated Retelling of the Ramayana''. Penguin Books India, 2013 . Translations: Hindi, Marathi, Tamil (Based on the

). # ''Shikhandi: And Other Tales They Don't Tell You''. Zubaan Books & Penguin Books India, 2014. . Translations: Hindi, Marathi. # ''7 Secrets of the Goddess''. Westland Ltd., 2014. . Translations: Hindi, Italian, Marathi, Russian (Based on the Goddess). # ''My Gita''. Rupa Publications India, 2015. . Translations: Hindi, Marathi (Based on

The Gita The Bhagavad Gita (; sa, श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता, lit=The Song by God, translit=śrīmadbhagavadgītā;), often referred to as the Gita (), is a 700- verse Hindu scripture that is part of the epic ''Mahabharata'' (c ...

). # ''Devlok with Devdutt Pattanaik''. Penguin Random House India, 2016. . # ''Olympus – An Indian Retelling of Greek Mythology''. Penguin Random House India, 2016. (Based on

Greek mythology A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the origin and nature of the world, the lives and activities ...

). # ''Devlok with Devdutt Pattanaik (Book 2)'' – Publisher: Penguin Random House, 2017 Translations: Hindi # ''Shiva to Shankara: Giving Form to the Formless''. HarperCollins India, Indus Source 2017. . – Based on Older Book / Reprint # ''My Hanuman Chalisa''. Rupa Publications, 2017. (Based in the

Hanuman Chalisa The ''Hanuman Chalisa'' (; ''Chaupai (poetry), Forty chaupais on Hanuman'') is a Hinduism, Hindu devotional hymn (''stotra'') in praise of Hanuman.Rambhadradas 1984pp. 1–8./ref> It was authored by Tulsidas in the Awadhi language, and is his bes ...

). # ''Devlok with Devdutt Pattanaik (Book 3)'' – Publisher: Penguin Random House, 2017 . # ''Shyam: An Illustrated Retelling of the Bhagavata.'' Penguin, 2018 (Based on the Bhagavata). # ''Ramayana Versus Mahabharata: My Playful Comparison.'' Rupa Publications India, 2018 (Based on the

). # ''Hindu Trinity: 21 Life-enhancing Secrets Revealed Through Stories and Art''. Westland India 2019. . – Based on Older Books / Reprint # ''Wisdom of the Gods for You and Me: My Gita and My Hanuman Chalisa''. Rupa Publications India 2019. . – Based on Older Books / Reprint # ''Faith: 40 Insights into Hinduism'' – Publisher: HarperCollins, 2019 . # ''Pilgrim Nation: The Making of Bharatvarsh'' - Aleph Book Company, 2020 . # ''Dharma Artha Kama Moksha: 40 Insights into Happiness'' - HarperCollins, India, 2021 . # ''Marriage: 100 Stories Around India's Favourite Ritual'' - Rupa Publications India, 2021 . # ''Adi Purana: Entire Veda as a Single Story'' - Westland, 2021 - quick read # ''Hope: Wisdom to Survive in a Hopeless World'' - Juggernaut, 2021 . # ''Eden: An Indian Exploration of Jewish, Christian and Islamic Lore'' - Penguin Random House, 2021 . # ''The Stories We Tell: Mythology to Make Sense of Modern Lives'' - Aleph Book Company, 2022 . # ''Dharm Aur Samlaingikta/धर्म और समलैंगिकता'' - Penguin India, 2022 .

Management

# ''Business Sutra: A Very Indian Approach to Management''. Aleph Book Company, 2013. . Translations: French, German, Hindi, Italian, Marathi, Tamil. # ''The Success Sutra: An Indian Approach to Wealth''. Aleph Book Company, 2015. . – Based on Older Book # ''The Leadership Sutra: An Indian Approach to Power''. Aleph Book Company, 2016. . – Based on Older Book # ''The Talent Sutra: An Indian Approach to Learning''. Aleph Book Company, 2016, – Based on Older Book # ''Culture: 50 Insights from Mythology.'' HarperCollins India, Indus Source 2017. . # ''Leader: 50 Insights from Mythology.'' HarperCollins India, Indus Source 2017. . # ''How to Become Rich: 12 Lessons I Learnt from Vedic and Puranic Stories'' – Publisher: Rupa Publications India, 2019 .

Fiction

# ''

The Pregnant King ''The Pregnant King'' is a 2008 book by Devdutt Pattanaik. It follows the story of Yuvanashva, a childless king, who accidentally drinks the magic potion meant to make his queens pregnant. It is set in the backdrop of the ''Mahabharata'' and make ...

''. Penguin Books India, 2008. . Translations: Hindi, Marathi # ''Is He Fresh?: Aka Kaula Hai''? (Penguin Petit). Penguin UK, 2015.

Children's Books

# ''Fun in Devlok: An Identity Card for Krishna''. Puffin India, 2011. . # ''Fun in Devlok: Gauri and the Talking Cow''. Puffin India, 2011. . # ''Fun in Devlok: Indra Finds Happiness''. Puffin India, 2011. . # ''Fun in Devlok: Kama vs Yama''. Puffin India, 2011. . # ''Fun in Devlok: Saraswati's Secret River''. Puffin India, 2011. . # ''Fun in Devlok: Shiva Plays Dumb Charades''. Puffin India, 2011. . # ''Fun in Devlok Omnibus''. Puffin India, 2014. . – Reprint (Compilation) # ''Pashu: Animal Tales from Hindu Mythology''. Penguin Books India, 2014. . Translations: Hindi. # ''The Girl Who Chose: A New Way of Narrating the Ramayana''. Puffin Books, 2016. (Based on the

). # ''The Jaya Colouring Book''. Penguin Random House India, 2016. . – Based on Older Book # ''The Sita Colouring Book''. Penguin Random House India, 2016. . – Based on Older Book # ''The Boys Who Fought: The Mahabharata for Children.'' Puffin, 2017 (Based on the

). # ''Vahana: Gods and Their Favourite Animals'' - Rupa Publications India, 2020 . # ''Shyam: Our Little Krishna'' - Puffin, 2021 . - Based on Older Book

Textbook

# ''Indian Culture, Art and Heritage For Civil Services Exam'' – Publisher: Pearson India, 2021 (1st Edition) .

Foreword/Contribution

# ''Close, Too Close: The Tranquebar Book of Queer Erotica''. Westland, 2012. # ''Celebrating Public Spaces of India''. Mapin Publishing, 2016. . # ''The Illustrated Mahabharata: The Definitive Guide to India’s Greatest Epic''. DK Publishing (Dorling Kindersley), 2017. # ''I Am Divine. So Are You: How Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and Hinduism Affirm the Dignity of Queer Identities and Sexualities''. HarperCollins, 2017 . # ''Padmavat: An Epic Love Story''. Rupa Publications, 2018. . -Illustrator # ''Behold, I Make All Things New: How Judaism, Christianity and Islam affirm the dignity of queer identities and sexualities''. HarperCollins, 2019 . # ''Kabir, Kabir: The life and work of the early modern poet-philosopher''. Westland, 2021 . -Illustrator # ''Urban Sadhu Yoga™ Chant Book: A Collection of Chants, Kirtans, Prayers, Sutras, Shlokas, Shastras, Devotional Songs, and Inspirational Texts for the Modern Yoga Practitioner.'' -Illustrator

Co-authored

# ''Yoga Mythology: 64 Asanas and Their Stories'' – Publisher: HarperCollins, 2019 . # ''Aranyaka: Book of the Forest'' – Publisher: Westland, 2019 .

References

External links

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Devlok with Devdutt Pattanaik
at EPIC ON {{DEFAULTSORT:Pattanaik, Devdutt 1970 births Living people Indian male writers 20th-century Indian medical doctors Mythographers Medical doctors from Mumbai University of Mumbai alumni Indian television presenters Indian columnists LGBT writers from India 21st-century LGBT people