Historians are not sure whether Padmavati is a mere legend or a historical figure. That doesn’t matter either. Objective truth is not the concern of most people. People want convenient truths. People want truths that serve their practical purposes. Most religious truths belong to that category. Padmavati is also one such expedient truth. What is that truth? I am Rani Padmavati, the Queen of Chittor. People call me the Queen of Beauty. I have never understood why our men bother about beauty at all. They are warriors and love fighting. Bravery, physical strength and honour are the values they really cherish and want all of us to possess. We cherish beauty too. But we’d prefer to keep beauty veiled behind the purdah. If anyone other than the husband dares to raise the purdah, he will be killed. Beauty is a private property among us. We, the women, are our men’s private properties. ...
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