BIDYAPATI 

It is festival time and in Mithila around the palace of King Shiba Singha (Durgadas) Basanta Utsab

is being celebrated……In the gay atmosphere the king introduces his childhood friend poet

Bidyapati to his queen Lachhmi (Chhaya Debi). The king also invites the poet to settle in Mithila and

be the court poet, an offer that limits the freedom of Bidyapati but he cannot say “no” to his friend….

The queen is delighted for she has developed a liking for the verses of the poet……..

Bidyapati leaves his village Bishapi and hands over the charge of daily worship of his lord Shree

Krishna to his obedient servant Madhusudan (Krishna Chandra Dey) but can not  escape from the

devoted Anuradha (KANAN)  who refuses to let the poet alone and sits in the chariot to accompany

him to Mithila. The royal couple is happy to see her because her presence spreads delight all over…

The queen gets engrossed in Bidyapati’s poems, sometimes neglecting her duties. Days pass and

she feels that her craving for a glimpse of the poet, her distress when the poet is not around means

love for him and loses peace of mind with her divided loyalties……….

The king is also distressed and neglects his royal duties… Anuradha tries to explain that true love

does not need reciprocation ……Bidyapati maintains that living in a society one has to abide by the

norms and it is wrong for the queen to be loyal to anyone but her husband….

The king falls ill but has to go to the battle ground when a neighbouring state wages war. He comes

back unharmed and victorious, but the prime minister, worried at the effects of Bidyapati’s  poetry on

the royal couple, incites the queen to consume poison to save the kingdom from ignominy of a

queen, who is in love with a court poet…

The queen takes the poison given to her by the prime minister and the king appears a bit too late to

save her and the statue of Lord Vishnu appears to weep at the tragedy……

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