Bhima Meets Balandhara

Bhima’s eyes followed her graceful yet determined moves. She and her opponent, a tall, powerful man with rippling muscles, circled lightly, waiting to find the right vulnerability to strike each other. Her hands moved gently, like a swan, but Bhima could see her triceps bulge under her blouse, ever so lightly, showcasing the strength beneath the feminine grace of her curvaceous hip, the slight bulge of her small breasts through the blouse. 

“She’s gorgeous. And so strong!” Bhima thought, lost in her graceful motion as her opponent tried to strike her with a powerful kick. Her long plait of black hair formed a whooshing circle as she turned and bent low to deftly avoid the kick. In an instant, she regained her balance and pivoted. A strike from her, a counterpunch from him, a high kick that seemed effortless from her. And finally, a perfectly timed hit, and the man fell to the ground, conceding defeat. 

The duel lasted a little more than a minute. But for Bhima, the world came to a standstill. There was no one else in the room except for him and her. 

Who was she? What an amazing martial artist! What amazing grace? Yet, so powerful. Can someone be beautiful and strong?

Of course, his first wife, Hidimbi, was powerful. But she was from the Rakshasa clan. Strength was in their genes. This lady seemed to be from a noble family. 

Krishna poked Bhima in the ribs, bringing him back to reality. The woman who had been fighting on stage was now standing in front of him. A moment ago, she was a fierce warrior. Now, she was standing before him, her eyes filled with shyness, and her face blushing pink. 

“Meet Balandhara, Bhima. She is the Princess of Kashi.”

Bhima’s joy knew no bounds. Bhima stared at Balandhara, his desire for her consuming him. He hadn’t met anyone like her. She was somehow different. Diffident yet ready for a fight. Bhima already had two lovely wives: Draupadi, the unparalleled beauty, and Hidimbi, with ogress origins but the beauty and heart of a gentle creature. 

Balandhara’s Swayamvar

But today, he had eyes only for Balandhara, the Princess of Kashi. Her father, King Devesha of Kashi, had organised a swayamvar for her and invited worthy princes and kings from near and far to compete for her hand. 

The Pandavas hadn’t thought of participating in this swayamvar, considering all of them were happily married to not just Draupadi, their common wife, but also to other women who had borne them sons.

But Krishna, the King of Dwarka, mentor and friend of the Pandavas, thought otherwise. His wise words were, “Having the allegiance of Kashi’s financial power and military strength through an alliance of marriage can be a powerful aid for you. Moreover, friends of Kashi are likely to be your friends too.”

Bhima asked, “But why do we need to strengthen our power and influence any more than we already have? The Kauravas and we have achieved a reasonable truce, thanks to the intervention of our elders. We are happy at Indraprastha, and our cousins are happy at Hastinapura. Can we just live happily with our respectful families?”

Krishna smiled meaningfully, “Today is good, certainly good, for everyone. But we don’t know what will come tomorrow. It could be better or worse. As Kshatriyas, your job is to safeguard your kingdom and its citizens. Your job is to continuously build alliances and find ways to secure the future of your kingdom. Your job is to prepare for the worst and hope for the best.”

And so, the Pandavas trooped to Kashi to participate in Balandhara’s swayamvar. And when Bhima laid eyes on the tantalisingly beautiful Balandhar, he realised he should thank Krishna for his insistence on coming to Kashi. Alliance or allegiance aside, Bhima was in love with the Princess of Kashi.

Balandhara’s swayamvar had many contestants. According to the swayamvar’s condition, the last man standing after a series of martial bouts between the contestants will win the hand of Balandhara.

Bhima had no doubt about his abilities in martial arts. Yet, knowing his love for Balandhara was at stake, he was a little nervous. But once in the ring, he lost that nervousness, and one after another, his opponents fell by the wayside, leaving him the last man standing.

The smile on Balandhara’s face when his name as the winner of the swayavamvar was announced was unmistakable. Bhima’s heart raced in happiness, knowing she wanted him to be her husband as much as he desired her.

The Condition of Balandhara’s Father

The marriage was conducted with pomp and show. But before that, the King of Kashi imposed a condition that Bhima strongly opposed. The condition was that after the marriage, Balandhara would remain in her parents’ house because her son was destined to rule Kashi as the next king.

Even as Bhima began to protest, Krishna placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. Seeking permission to speak to Bhima separately, the two of them went outside the room where the marriage discussions were on.

Bhima’s outrage was evident as he sputtered his angst. “How can husband and wife be separated? I want her to come with us to Indraprastha?”

Krishna’s eyes had a meaningful glint. “How come you agreed to the same condition when it came to Hidimbi? You let her live in the forest alone with your child, Gatotkacha, right?”

Bhima had the grace to look down, not wanting to meet Krishna’s eyes as he realised this truth. Krishna continued talking.

“There are no hard and fast rules to such things, especially among nobility. Marriages are mostly alliances for the good of the kingdom. The King of Kashi is not wrong to expect someone from his bloodline to take over his kingdom after his time. Moreover, both of you could travel and see each other whenever you want.”

Balandhara – the Mother of Sarvaga – the Future King of Kashi

Bhima stood adamant and refused to be moved from his obstinate view of taking his beloved Balandhara with him to Indraprastha. 

Krishna then said, “You do realise that it is better to let your wives live separately instead of together, right? That each would be a queen in her own home would give her the peace and strength needed to keep the marriage strong. Together, unwanted emotions and frictions between wives living under the same roof, fighting for dominance in an enclosed space, could ruin a marriage. Imagine what horrible days they would be when Draupadi and Balandhara are fighting each other!”

Bhima shuddered at the thought of his two beloved wives fighting over him. He didn’t want that. Now, Krishna’s advice made sense, a lot of sense. He decided to heed the sage counsel.

And with that critical condition taken care of, the marriage was conducted with pomp and show. Balandhara gave birth to Sarvaga, who later became the King of Kashi after the Kurukshetra War.

Author’s Note:

The story of Balandhara, the Princess of Kashi, and her marriage as the third wife of Bhima is recounted in Adi Parva of the Mahabharata. Her son, Sarvaga, is also mentioned in the same chapter of the Adi Parva. I have used my creative liberty only to add some romance to their love story. 

This post is a part of BlogchatterA2Z Challenge 2026

Pictures created using Google Gemini.