The Neo-Liberal Myth: How Modern Indian English Fiction Repackages Ancient Wisdom as Management Tools and Self-Help Guides A Comparative Reading of Devdutt Pattanaik’s My Gita and Amish Tripathi’s The Shiva Trilogy

Neki Ram Bijarnia; Jyoti Kumar Verma

doi:10.36948/ijfmr.2026.v08i05.86984

The Neo-Liberal Myth: How Modern Indian English Fiction Repackages Ancient Wisdom as Management Tools and Self-Help Guides A Comparative Reading of Devdutt Pattanaik’s My Gita and Amish Tripathi’s The Shiva Trilogy

Author(s)	Mr. Neki Ram Bijarnia, Prof. Jyoti Kumar Verma
Country	India
Abstract	Contemporary Indian English literature has increasingly returned to Hindu mythology, not simply to preserve ancient narratives but to reinterpret them for the needs of the modern reader. Devdutt Pattanaik’s My Gita: A Commentary on the Bhagavad Gita and Amish Tripathi’s Shiva Trilogy—The Immortals of Meluha, The Secret of the Nagas, and The Oath of the Vayuputras—are prominent examples of this cultural and literary tendency. Although the two authors employ different genres and narrative methods, both transform mythological knowledge into a practical discourse of individual action, leadership, ethical choice, crisis management, social organization, and personal transformation. This paper examines how ancient wisdom is repackaged within the language of contemporary self-help and management culture. It argues that Pattanaik’s interpretive commentary converts the Bhagavad Gita into a guide for decision-making and organizational behaviour, while Tripathi’s fictional universe translates myth into a narrative of leadership, governance, innovation, crisis resolution, and institutional reform. The paper uses the term “neo-liberal myth” not to suggest that either author simply endorses market ideology, but to describe the process through which mythological values are reorganized around the modern individual: self-motivated, ethically responsible, adaptable, productive, and capable of managing uncertainty. At the same time, these works do not merely reduce mythology to corporate advice. They preserve elements of dharma, pluralism, sacrifice, ecological responsibility, collective welfare, and the critique of absolutist power. Their significance lies in this contradiction: they challenge modern alienation through ancient philosophy, yet often express that philosophy through the vocabulary of individual performance and self-management. The comparison demonstrates how Indian mythological fiction participates in the commercialization, democratization, and ideological transformation of sacred knowledge.
Keywords	neo-liberalism, Hindu mythology, self-help, management, Devdutt Pattanaik, Amish Tripathi, My Gita, Shiva Trilogy, dharma, popular fiction
Field	Sociology > Philosophy / Psychology / Religion
Published In	Volume 8, Issue 5, September-October 2026
Published On	2026-09-04
DOI	https://doi.org/10.36948/ijfmr.2026.v08i05.86984

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The Neo-Liberal Myth: How Modern Indian English Fiction Repackages Ancient Wisdom as Management Tools and Self-Help Guides A Comparative Reading of Devdutt Pattanaik’s My Gita and Amish Tripathi’s The Shiva Trilogy

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