Women in Mahabharata - Shakuntala
Shakuntala, Menaka's older daughter, is one of the most famous Indian heroines, her story starting from the Vedas and culminating in full poetic glory in Kalidasa's work.
However, Shakuntala's characterization in Mahabharata is vastly different from that of Kalidasa's. Here, she is vastly more confident, independent and headstrong. Whatever is dished to her, she is perfectly capable of dishing it all right back!
Even as Dushyanta dupes her into being intimate with a false promise of marriage, Shakuntala receives full support of her father, Kanva, and takes Dushyanta to 'court' to win back her son's birthright.
She is a capable mother who proved herself capable of raising Bharata on her own, and I prefer to believe that Bharata's liberal views on various issues were in fact something that he inherited from her.
