Shikhandi: And Other Tales They Don't Tell You

This is a wonderful collection of stories, most of which you'll be aware of if you have extensively read various versions of our Hindu epics. What changes is the perspective that the author offers, looking at these stories from a queer perspective - how gender and sexuality were quite fluid in ancient times and it's only through the passage of time and influence of other cultures that has made our culture now more rigid and intolerant of anyone who don't confirm to the gender and sexual binaries.

This book definitely made me wonder how easy it has always been for me to accept the queer undertones of these stories without ever acknowledging it and just attributing it to the actions of gods. Wish life were that simple and there was widespread acceptance of everyone irrespective of their identity in our world.

Definitely give this book a try because it offers a very different approach to interpreting our traditional stories and might just open your eyes a little more.
And I leave you with this last one from the book —

“Krishna shows his cosmic form to Arjuna and says, ‘I am all there is, was and will be.' In Hinduism, the world is not distinct from God. The world is God. God contains everything. The queer is not excluded.”