Karuvaki was the second queen of the third Mauryan emperor,

Ashoka Ashoka (, ; also ''Asoka''; 304 – 232 BCE), popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was the third emperor of the Maurya Empire of Indian subcontinent during to 232 BCE. His empire covered a large part of the Indian subcontinent, s ...

. She was also the mother of Ashoka's son, Prince Tivala.

Life

Karuvaki is mentioned in the Queen Edict wherein her religious and charitable donations were recorded as per her wishes. This gives an image of her being a self-possessed and strong-willed consort, who wanted an act of philanthropy recorded as specifically hers. The edict also identifies her as mother to their son, Prince Tivala (also referred to as Tivara), who is the only son of Ashoka mentioned by name in his inscriptions. Despite the fact that Ashoka had many queens, Kaurwaki is the only queen of Ashoka, who was named in his inscriptions and edicts.

Queen's Edict

The Queen's Edict on the Allahabad Pillar refers to the charitable deeds of Karuvaki:

In popular culture

* Karuvaki was portrayed by

Kareena Kapoor Kareena Kapoor Khan (; '' née'' Kapoor; born 21 September 1980) is an Indian actress who appears in Hindi films. She is the daughter of actors Randhir Kapoor and Babita, and the younger sister of actress Karisma Kapoor. Noted for playing a va ...

in the 2001

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...

film, ''

Aśoka Ashoka (, ; also ''Asoka''; 304 – 232 BCE), popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was the third emperor of the Maurya Empire of Indian subcontinent during to 232 BCE. His empire covered a large part of the Indian subcontinent, ...

''. *

Saumya Seth Soumya Seth is a former Indian television actress. She gained popularity by playing the role of Navya in the serial '' Navya..Naye Dhadkan Naye Sawaal''. She portrayed the role of Kaurwaki in '' Chakravartin Ashoka Samrat''. She worked in shows ...

portrays Karuvaki in Colors TV's 2015 historical drama, '' Chakravartin Ashoka Samrat'' while

Reem Sheikh Reem Sameer Shaikh is an Indian actress, known for her works in Indian television and Hindi cinema. Her most notable work includes '' Na Bole Tum Na Maine Kuch Kaha'', ''Chakravartin Ashoka Samrat'', '' Tujhse Hai Raabta'', ''Gul Makai'' and '' ...

portrays the young Karuvaki. *She is the main character of The Ashoka Trilogy, The Prince of Pataliputra by Shreyas Bhave. *Kalinga Karubaki Award established by

Kalinga Literary Festival The Kalinga Literary Festival ( Odia: କଳିଙ୍ଗ ସାହିତ୍ୟ ମହୋତ୍ସବ), also known as KLF, is a literary festival which takes place annually in the Indian city Bhubaneswar, Odisha. Rashmi Ranjan Parida is the founder ...

to honour the great warrior princess of Kalinga

References

Sources

* * {{cite book , last=Smith , first=Vincent Arthur , author-link=Vincent Arthur Smith , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4o_URem5WMcC , title=Ashoka, the Buddhist Emperor of India , publisher=Asian Educational Services, year=1920 , pages=215–219 , isbn=8120613031 3rd-century BC women Women from Odisha Kalinga (India) History of Odisha Indian Buddhists Converts to Buddhism from Hinduism Wives of Ashoka 3rd-century BC Indian people