Ponnuruvi Ponnuruvi is the wife of Karna in the
Karna Moksham of
Kattaikkuttu, a Tamil drama written by Pukalentippulavar. She plays a major role in it and is depicted as a princess belonging to
Kshatriya (warrior) community. In the play, she is the princess of Kalinga and the story of her marriage is based on the
Mahabharata's narration of the abduction of the Kalinga princess. Though the princess marries Duryodhana in the original epic, in these folklores, she is named Ponnuruvi and is married to Karna because he was the one who touched her during the abduction.
Karna Moksham depicts her as abusive towards Karna as his lineage is not specified and she believes him to be of the lower caste. She doesn't even let Karna touch his son. However, when Karna discloses his true lineage before going to the Kurukshetra War, her attitude drastically changes and she apologizes. She advises Karna to not kill the
Pandavas (Karna's half-brothers). She also advises him to leave the side of the Duryodhana. However, Karna refuses as he believes Duryodhana to be his true friend. After Karna dies in the war, Ponnuruvi laments his death.
Padmavati In the
Kashidasi Mahabharat (the
Bengali retelling of the epic), Padmavati is attested as the wife of Karna. She was the maid of princess Asawari. They were rescued by
Karna from some attackers. When Karna asks Asawari's father, the king, for her hand, the king rejected her marriage with Karna. Later, Karna attacked the kings at Asawari's
swaymvara. Karna asked her if she would like to marry him. She says that she will do anything to save her father. Karna then accepts her maid Padmavati as his wife instead. Padmavati marries him and goes to
Anga Kingdom with him.
Vrishali and Supriya The characters Vrishali and Supriya, depicted as the wives of Karna, are literary creations introduced by author
Shivaji Sawant in his Marathi novel
Mrityunjaya. According to scholar Pradip Bhattacharya, the name "Vrushali" appears to have been coined by Sawant, drawing a parallel with "
Panchali", the heroine of the
Mahabharata, while the name "Supriya" resembles that of
Subhadra, the wife of Arjuna—Karna's arch-rival. In Mrityunjaya, Vrushali is portrayed as Karna's childhood companion and later his first wife, chosen by Adhiratha. She is described as wise, devout, and devoted to her husband. Following the deaths of Karna and their sons, she ends her life on his funeral pyre, symbolising her loyalty and grief. Supriya is depicted as Karna’s second wife in the same novel. In the narrative, Supriya serves as the maid of
Bhanumati, the princess of
Kalinga. After Duryodhana abducts and marries Bhanumati with Karna’s assistance, he arranges Supriya’s marriage to Karna. ==References==