Characters / Arjun: The Warrior Prince

Beware of spoilers, including spoilers from later parts.

The Pandavas

Arjuna

Arjuna / Brihannala

Voiced by: Yuddvir Bakolia (UTV Motion Pictures) (Hindi), (Walt Disney Pictures) (English Subtitled)

Arjuna

Click ^here to see Arjuna as Brihannala

"..All I see is an eye.."

Arjuna is the third son of King Pandu and Kunti and the main protagonist of the story. After the death of Pandu, the Pandavas went to live in Hastinapura where they were brought up together with their cousins, the Kuravas. Along with his brothers and the Kuravas, Arjuna studied religion, science, administration and military arts by Acharya Drona, the Kuru princes' teacher and Master of Martial Arts. Arjuna becomes Drona's prodigy. Excelling in the art of the bow and arrow and becoming one of the greatest archers in his time. He later wins princess Draupadi's hand in marriage and they both live happily in their new kingdom of Indraprastha, until the day of his older brother's coronation. Where they lost everything in a rigged game of dice. A plan that was cooked up by the Kuravas. Their penalty was to spend 12 years in an exile and a year in anonymity. And if they were found out in the last year, their 12 years of exile would restart again. While all the Pandavas go one way, Arjuna travels North to the mountains to do tapasya(a hindu practice of meditation and self-discipline). Before leaving, Draupadi makes him promise that he will take revenge for her insult. He then leaves, and does tapasya, during which he earns a bow from Lord Shiva.

Along with his brothers, Arjuna spent his last year of exile in the kingdom of Virata. Adopting new secret identities and new lives, he disguised himself as Brihannala, the female Art, Music and Dance teacher. Before the last day of the exile came to an end, the kuravas found out their hiding and launched an attack on the city with the help of some bandits, presumably to steal their cattle. But in reality, they wanted to drag the Pandavas out of anonymity. While the king of Virata leaves to thrash the marauding bandits, leaving an unprotected city behind, where the young prince is the only one left to fight. The young prince goes to face the kuru army with Brihannala as his charioteer. But when he sees the Kurava army, he loses his nerve and attempts to flee. Only for Brihannala to calm him down with a Rousing Speech before revealing his true identity to the young prince. Defending the land that had given him refuge, Arjuna defeats the Kuru army and emerges victorious alongside prince Uttar and the movie concludes.

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• The Atoner: He goes on penance in the mountains to do this.
• Attractive Bent-Gender: He is actually a very convincing, good-looking woman. When he is disguised as one that is. Complete with a lipstick and a bindi. His handsome face and his slim physique really helped him pass as a the fairer sex.
• Barehanded Blade Block: Done Right. He blocks his master's sword by the hilt which is the right way to block a swinging blade.
• Beware the Nice Ones: It's known that Arjuna is the kindest and the most compassionate one out of the brothers. But even he has limits to how long he can tolerate injustice. He has suffered through much of Duryodhana's evil conspiracies. And when the time finally came for him to take revenge, all hell was broken loose.
• Blue Is Heroic: He wears blue colored garments, in contrast to his evil nemesis who wears scarlet tones.
• Chandelier Swing: He does this when the escape route from the conflagration is destroyed.
• Character Development: He starts off as an inexperienced, care-free fighter who doesn't take being a warrior seriously. But as the movie progresses, we see him mellow down and becoming more mature and serious from years of trials and tribulations that shaped him into the expert warrior that he aspired to be.
• Child Prodigy: Arjuna is extremely brilliant and talented, far more than any of his brothers as he excelled in every subject at his studies in a very early age.
• Despair Event Horizon: The moments between Yudhishthira announcing that he is betting him, and the shear horror that arrives seconds after that. Arjuna remains silent for the rest of the game.
• Dual Wielding: Both of his hands are dominant in sword fight and archery. Arjun charges on the foot soldiers riding a chariot with the young prince as his charioteer, wielding 2 God-made urumis on each hand as he slices and dices them.
• Dude Looks Like a Lady: At a first glance, it is impossible to figure out that he is a man in disguise as a woman.
• Empowered Badass Normal: Even before acquiring the magical bow and arrow from Shiva, Arjuna is a very skilled fighter on his own right, with and without the usage of ordinary and supernatural weapons. He is the best fighter known in his time. He shot a bird dead in the eye while still a young lad. Won the archery competition meant for kings and princes when he was only a refugee. And in the final battle against Duryodhana's army, he defeated his master, saved him from a trampling elephant, and defeated Duryodhana in one on one, all while being injured.
• Exposed to the Elements: Arjuna heads to the northern, cold, icy mountains to pray and meditate. Wearing nothing but an old dhoti.
• Expository Hairstyle Change: From a young boy with a short hair, to a grown man with long hair, to disguising himself as a monk with a top bun, to self-exile with shaggy longer hair and a Perma-Stubble. To wearing a woman's head-dress covering his hair. Each look comes with it's own phase and story.
• Engagement Challenge: Arjun wins a swayamvar,(a hindu matchmaking festival), for the hand of Princess Draupadi, the daughter of King Drupada of (Southern) Panchala. The challenge is to use the bow and arrow and shoot the golden fish. Impossible? Maybe. But not for Arjun.
• Full-Body Disguise: Unlike his previous renditions in live action movies and in the illustrated graphic novels where he dresses up completely in "drag".◊, wearing 1 ton makeup and the girliest hairstyle and sari a woman could wear. It's obviously done for theatrical and comedic intentions, but it defeats the purpose of his suffering through his exile and him hiding in plain sight. In the animated movie however, Arjuna covers himself up completely from head to toe in a woman's garb with a scarf covering his head and obscuring most of his visage, a long sari and a longer shawl to hide his masculine body which emphasizes his "hiding".
• Genius Bruiser: Stated by his uncle.
  Shakuni: The wisdom of Yudhishthir, the strength of Bheem...he has both.
• Heroic Build: His slender build and great upper-body strength required to draw a powerful bow without mechanical assistance is a dead giveaway of a warrior's body.
• Heroic Vow: Enforced by his wife. She told him to promise her that he will avenge her humiliation.
• He's Back!: The look he gave to the young prince as soon as he revealed himself to him. More determined and stronger than before.
• Hyper-Awareness: One could figure out that Brihannala was Arjuna all along. A simple deduction can reveal the followings:-
  • 1) If one takes a close examination on Brihannala, they'd notice that some of her body features are way too bulky and broad for a woman. Especially visible ones like hands and the torso.
  • 2) When she narrates the emotional and serious parts of the story that concerns the hero's well fairness, her voice cracks and becomes heavy. Also when the young prince calls her to continue the story where she left off, she deliberately avoids him because she doesn't want to relive the dice game incident.
  • 3) When the young prince asks her about the story's origin, she replies that no one told her the story. This could only indicate 2 things: A) She made it all up. Which is impossible considering the meticulous details and the real live events and characters. B) (The true clue) Because of the meticulous details of the story and that the story was narrated by no one before her and that it was narrated from Arjun's point of view, it's only logical that she had witnessed it all first-hand. Meaning she was the hero all along, AKA, she is Arjun.
• I Am X, Son of Y:
  Shiva: WHO.ARE.YOU?
  Arjuna: I am Arjun. Son of Kunti.
• Iconic Item: His weapon, the Agneyastra, a supernatural bow and arrows.
• It Gets Easier: Arjuna is a good warrior. But his flaw was that he was too afraid to take risks and gets cold-feet easily. Justified since he spent most of his upbringing in a sheltered school where he knew his opponents. Unlike the real world where anything in battle is possible and real lives are at risk. Fortunately, this all changes when he gains the will to kill for the first time. Realizing that being a warrior is not simple and yet it is once you get past your fear.
• It Was a Gift: Arjuna is gifted a lot of weapons by Shiva after the latter tested him in his tapyasa in the mountains.
• Last Stand: He goes up against a behemoth army and gores through them like grated cheese. Leaving behind a devastating amount of collateral damage.
• Let Me Tell You a Story: The movie's begins with Brihannala reading prince Uttar a bedtime story, which prompted her to tell the story of Arjun. Of course, she is Arjun.
• Like Father, Like Son: Both Arjuna and his father go on a self-exile journey one time in their lives.
• Moment Of Awesome: How he won the hand of the princess in the archery contest...
• The Main Characters Do Everything: Even though his older brothers are the ones who conjure up the plan to win the archery contest and to fight the bandits, it is Arjun who gets both jobs done.
• Obstructive Code of Conduct: Arjun must respect and obey his elders. And as his eldest brother was a king for a while, he can't disobey an order by him. So he had no options. The only thing he could do was to stand and take on the humiliation and that of his brothers and wife. He couldn't fight back and go against his king's orders and shame him.
• The Promise: The Catalysts that drives the plot forward. He has 2 promises to keep.
• Rage Against the Mentor:
  Arjuna: I AM NOT A CHILD! I am a trained warrior! And I can take care of myself!
  Drona: (slaps him)
• Redemption Quest: He goes on a self-exile to the mountains to pray and meditate about what he has done, or in this case, the lack there of it that could have prevented his wife's humiliation.
• Sacred Bow and Arrows: He receives the Agneyastra (a supernatural bow) from Shiva. This bow when flicked by the string, makes a sound so loud, that alarms an entire city. It also shoots Rain of Arrows in a single shot.
• Shared Family Quirks: Bheema has a special hour to snack. And that's around mid-night. Arjuna took that and incorporated it in his training. Where he practices archery every midnight to strengthen his eyesight.
• Sweet Polly Oliver: Inverted. He lives an entire year disguised as a woman to hide from the Kuravas. Obviously, he is not enjoying this.
• Sword over Head: More like to his neck actually. Arjun almost delivers the finishing blow to Duryudhan. But stops just as the blade touches his neck, followed by a Dramatic Pause. And decides to spare his life.
• Suddenly Suitable Suitor: When Arjuna petitions himself to the archery competition, he gets a confused look from the audience and the announcer. Who becomes baffled and gestures to the king to which the king gives his approval for his participation. That's because he is dressed as a monk, when the participants were supposed to be of royal caliber. Unbeknownst to everyone, that he is actually a prince in disguise. But once he wins the princess' hand, he takes her back to Hastinapura as the new rulers of Indraphrastha.
• Tall, Dark, and Handsome: Has a long, silky black hair, a sexy tan bod from years of training and exercise that chiseled him into the indian adonis that he is. And a handsome face that won the heart of the princess in one glance.
• There Is No Kill Like Overkill: Arjuna charges through the kuru army with supernatural weapons, filled with rage and anger, wiping the floor with their blood.
• Walking Shirtless Scene: He is always topless. From Rags to Riches and vice versa. And even in the final battle, he's not wearing any protective armor to shield his torso. Whether it's done to satisfy the female audience or because it's historically accurate is up to the viewers.
• Warrior Monk: Arjun who is trained in warrior-hood and battle, disguises as a monk for a while.
• Warrior Prince: Exactly what it says on the title. He is first and foremost a prince. Then he becomes a formidable warrior.

Yudhishthira

Yudhishthira / Kanka

Voiced by: Brajesh Jha (UTV Motion Pictures) (Hindi), (Walt Disney Pictures) (English Subtitled)

Yudhishthira

Click ^here to see Yudhishthira as Kanka

"You were right. It's not just a city, but a great kingdom that we need to build. We will build it over these ashes... lord Indra's home on earth."

Yudhishthira is the First and the eldest son of King Pandu and Kunti and the Deuteragonist to the main character, Arjuna. After the death of Pandu, the Pandavas went to live in Hastinapura where they were brought up together with their cousins, the Kauravas. Along with his brothers and the Kuravas, Yudhishthira studied religion, science, administration and military arts by Acharya Drona, the Kuru princes' teacher and Master of Martial Arts. Because of his analytical and calculating traits and his righteous and religious views, he excelled in religion and administration. He is also a skilled combatant. His weapons are the spear and the chariot. After the Pandavas lose their new home to the fire caused by the Kuravas, they temporarily hide themselves disguised as monks. When they hear about the swayamvar that's been going on in Panchala, Yudhishthira devises up a plan to win the princess' hand and by that they'd recover the throne back and become powerful enough to take on Duryodhana. They win the swayamvar and the princess' hand, and return back to Hastinapura. When the king sees them, he announces that he will divide the kingdom into two. Giving his son the ruling of hastinapura while Yudhishthir, the secluded land of Khandaprastha. When they arrive at Khandaprastha, they discover it's a desolate swamp that seems uninhabited by any soul. As they go further, they are greeted by an unwelcoming frightened citizens. The people apologies and ask their king's forgiveness explaining that they were just defending their home from the bandits. Yudhishthir vows to help them and fixes the problem. With Krishna's help, the pandavas transform the forest into the kingdom of Indraprastha, as new king, Princes and Queen of the City of Gold. Where they all live happily.

When the day of his coronation came, the kurus devised a plan to dethrone him. It's customary that once a new king is being crowned, should he be given a challenge, he must not refuse. Thus the infamous gambling game of dice happened. As the game proceeds, Yudhishthira gambles away everything which leads to losing his new kingdom. For Shakuni, the humiliation of the Pandavas was not complete. He prods Yudhishthira that he has not lost everything yet. Bound by the game's rules, Yudhishthira, to the horror of everybody present, puts Arjun up as a bet for the next round. Playing the next round, Shakuni wins. Then Yudhishthira bets Bheem, then Nakul, then Sehdev. Lastly, he bets himself. Eventually he loses his freedom and that of his brothers. Unbeknownst to him that the game was rigged. Their penalty was to spend 12 years in an exile and a year in anonymity. And if they were found out in the last year, their 12 years of exile would restart again.

Along with his brothers, Yudhishthira spent his last year of exile in the kingdom of Virata. Adopting new secret identities and new lives, he disguised himself as Kanka, the king's advisor and dice game partner. Before the last day of the exile came to an end, the kuravas found out their hiding and launched an attack on the city. Presumably to steal their cattle. But in reality, they wanted to drag the Pandavas out of anonymity. Kanka, with 3 of his brothers, all went with the king of Virata to thrash the marauding bandits while Arjuna and prince Uttar went to face the Kuru army itself.

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• All for Nothing: He kept on bidding in hopes of regaining some of his losses. But to no avail.
• Brains and Brawn: Yudhishthira and Bheema.
• Break the Cutie: During the dice game, we see him slowly getting stripped away from his power by his so called "family" as they break him down one gambit after another. Descending from the confident, lovable king we all root for into a helpless, broken, ruined man.
• Cool Chair: His throne looks like a peacock.
• Cunning Linguist: Yudhishthira knows many unusual languages. One of them is Mleccha.
• Founder of the Kingdom: He created Indraphrastha from the ruins of a war-ridden city and ruled it as a king.
• From Bad to Worse: Just when things couldn't get anymore worse, Yudhishthira bets his own brother, Arjuna. Then the rest of his brothers. Then Arjuna's wife. A moment when Arjun had realized that everything went down hill from here on out.
• Gold-Colored Superiority: He wore an ensemble of gold and white attire as the crowned king of Indraprastha.
• Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow: He had hair before. But he shaves it later.
• How the Mighty Have Fallen: What Yudhishthira did was inexcusable. He preferred/was pressured to continue the game than to forfeit and lose his pride, screwing everyone involved. Realizing it was his lowest moment were he had to gamble away his brothers as if they were commodities. It's obvious that he was so tortured and ashamed while doing this.
• I Did What I Had to Do: Yudhishthira had no other choice but to raise the stakes and keep on betting until his 20th turn is up or he is all out of pride. whichever came first.
• I Gave My Word: Yuddhishtira gave his word never to back down from a challenge; this is a doubly huge issue because he is a Kshatriya(a warrior who abides by the hindu warrior-hood and creed), for whom such promises are very much Serious Business. He is challenged to a rigged game of dice and has to gamble away his brothers, Draupadi, and everything he possesses or rules.
• Important Haircut: In Hinduism, the underlying concept is that hair is a symbolic offering to the gods. It becomes a real sacrifice of beauty to shave one's head. It's also a symbolism of one's grief for the departed soul. In the movie, a lot of stuff happened after the ridiculing game of dice. It could indicate that Yudhishthira shaved his head to separate his past old self and every fault that came along with it from the new him.
• The Leader: Being the eldest of the 5 brothers, he takes up the torch to take care of his family and guide them after the death of their father.
• My Greatest Failure: Not being able to save his brothers from the humiliation that was mostly inflicted by him definitely haunted him for a long time. Despite that, he gets back on his feet stronger and tougher. He learns from this ordeal and becomes more wiser.
• My God, What Have I Done?: The look he gave when he realized he had just lost everything to a game of dice.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Yudhishtira plays the Kauravas' dice betting game and gambles away everything he has, including his kingdom, himself, and his brothers. He ends up losing, the punishment being that the Pandavas must go into exile for a total of thirteen years and mustn't get caught by the Kauravas lest they have to restart their punishment.
• Parental Substitute: He becomes a sort of father figure to his younger siblings once their father has passed.
• Shorter Means Smarter: Compared to his younger brother Bheema, who is twice his size and taller than him. Yudhishtira is shorter and thinner than Bheema. He also prefers to analyze the situation first than charge into action.
• The Smart Guy: He is the eldest and the most intellectual out of the five brothers.
• Smart People Play Chess: He loves to play pachisi a (game of dice). Even though it's the game that gave him his downfall. He is an avid player and a good game partner for the king of Virata.
• Survivor Guilt: The dice game incident left him and his brothers living his mistake and guilt for the rest of their 13 strenuous years.
• Token Religious Teammate: He is known for his piety, honesty, justice and tolerance. He is devoted to the brahmacharyapractices, (hindu monk-hood), which could also indicate his shaven head later in the movie.
• Universally Beloved Leader: After he fixed a city that was desolate and war-ridden, turning it into the most beautiful city on earth. He made luxurious homes for the inhabitants, who before, lived like homeless in ruins. Giving them proper homes befitting human beings and protected their city with armies and weapons. It's only logical that they love their new king dearly and blessing him for a long prosperous reign.
• Little Big Brother: Yudhishtira is shorter, slimmer and paler than his younger brother Bheema despite being the oldest.
• What Could Possibly Go Wrong?: Offering the bandits as a "gift" to the Kurus was the biggest mistake he ever made. Not knowing that it will incite the kuru's anger in return, but also rob him of everything he owns later on.

Bheema

Bheema / Ballava

Voiced by: Ashok Banthia (UTV Motion Pictures) (Hindi), (Walt Disney Pictures) (English Subtitled)

Bheema

Click ^here to see Bheema as Ballava

"The jackals will feast tonight...dinner is served!"

Bheema is the second born son of King Pandu and Kunti and the 2nd deuteragonist of the story. After the death of Pandu, the Pandavas went to live in Hastinapura where they were brought up together with their cousins, the Kauravas. Along with his brothers and the Kuravas, Bheema studied religion, science, administration and military arts by Acharya Drona, the Kuru princes' teacher and Master of Martial Arts. He is an expert in using his signature weapon, the Gada (a wooden mace/club that has a spherical head mounted on a shaft). Bheema's strong point throughout the franchise remains in his towering strength. He defended his younger brother Arjuna when he was being bullied by Duryodhana in Acharya Drona's organised event. Almost killing Duryodhana on the spot had Arjuna not intervened to stop him. Bheema was also renowned for his giant appetite. At times, half of the food consumed by the Pandavas was eaten by him.

After the pandavas were sent to Varnavrat to live in their new home, Duryodana executed a plan to burn the Pandavas alive inside. They managed to escape out from the palace with Bheema leading them to safety. When they were hiding themselves from the kuravas disguised as monks, Yudhishthira pitched a plan with Bheema to rise up again by winning the archery contest that's being held in Panchala. After they win the swayamvar, the were assigned to the wasteland Khandavprastha. Referred to as an "unclaimed swamp" by Bheem. But after building the city into Indraphrasta, soon they become the new King, Princes and Queen of Indraprastha. When Yudhishthira loses the game and therefore loses his kingdom and their freedoms, they were forced to live 12 years in exile and a year in anonymity.

During that year, Bheema worked as the cook in the kingdom of virata as his new disguise and goes by the name of Ballava. Before the last day of the exile came to an end, the kuravas found out their hiding and launched an attack on the city with the help of some bandits, presumably to steal their cattle. But in reality, they wanted to drag the Pandavas out of anonymity. Ballava, along with his twin brothers and Kanka, followed the king of Virata to defend the city from the marauding bandits.

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• Big Brother Instinct: He is very protective of his brothers.
• Big Eater: Bheema LOVES food. He LOVES to eat food. He could eat up food worth five people and he'd still ask for seconds. Even when he kills he still thinks about food. He loves food so much he made a special hour just for his snack time. And that's around midnight. When he was exiled, he disguises himself as the cook he loves food that much. Word of caution though, don't ever take his portion of food. Cause he will protect it with his life.
• The Big Guy: Well, he is! A brutal, violent fighter who is blessed with superhuman strength. He is able to withstand any enemy and fight without surrendering.
• Big Guy, Little Guy: Bheema and Yudhishthira.
• Big Little Brother: Bheema is bigger, taller and tanner than his older brother Yudhishthira.
• Boisterous Bruiser: He is loud, extreme, fun to hang around and thinks with his stomach more than his head.
• Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling: It goes back and forth Between him and Yudhishthir. When bheem isn't being childishly immature and causing trouble, he'd be the one to remind his brother Yudhishthir that as the eldest he should've taken more responsibility in protecting the family. And though Yudhishthir is the wisest of his brothers, he made some irresponsible choices that ruined him and his family.
• Formerly Fit: He really let himself go out of shape in these 13 years. Despite growing a bear belly, it still won't stop him from kicking the enemy's ass.
• Gentle Giant: When the Pandavas first arrive, he can be seen caring for both of his twin brothers who were children at the time.
• Hot-Blooded: He is easily angered and is the most passionate one out of the five brothers. He trusts his instincts and his guts more than his wits.
• Hunk: His face is squarish and sharp-featured, with a prominent chin and thick neck. He has big, well-muscled arms and a burly abdomen with a packed torso and pronounced muscles. He's also fairly darker skin tone compared to his brothers.
• Loose Lips: When Bheem was cooking alone in his kitchen one night, he suddenly feels the presence of someone behind him. He turns around and lets his guard down by greeting the familiar person with their real name. Causing the other person to tackle him on the floor. Revealing to the audience right away who those characters really are.
• Meaningful Name: In hindi, Bheema means "powerful". Which describes his physical strength perfectly.
• No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: He does this to one of the bandits just after witnessing his home burning down.
• The Gadfly: He is the jokester of the team. His snarky remarks and jokes can rile up most people who hang around him. Especially when his antiques are foiled by his little brothers Nakula and Sahadeva.
• Sibling Yin-Yang: Bheema is the brawn of the team while Yudhishthira is the brains. They complete one another making their team strong and tied.
• Super-Strength: In The Mahabharata and in the movie. There are many events which portrayed Bheema's might. Bheema is responsible for slaying all hundred Kaurava brothers in the Kurukshetra War. In The Mahabharata, he was considered to have the physical strength of 10,000 elephants. In the movie he kills one of the bandits using only his fists.
• Screw This, I'm Outta Here: He rage quits silently just when they had lost their kingdom, while the game isn't over yet. Leaving his brothers in the face of the fire.
• Time-Passage Beard: After the 13 year exile, he grows a beard. It could be a part of the disguise.

Nakula and Sahadeva

Nakula and Sahadeva / Granthika and Tantripala

Nakula and Sahadeva

Click ^here to see Nakula and Sahadeva as Granthika and Tantripala

Both Nakula and Sahadeva are born to king Pandu and his second wife, Queen Madri. And are the tertiary characters to the main one, Arjuna. Making the twins half-siblings to Arjuna, Yudhishthira and Bheema. Despite that, both were loved dearly by Kunti and the three older brothers. After the death of Pandu, the Pandavas went to live in Hastinapura where they were brought up together with their cousins, the Kauravas. Along with their brothers and the Kuravas, Nakula and Sahadeva studied religion, science, administration and military arts by Acharya Drona. The Kuru princes' teacher and Master of Martial Arts.

• Nakula excelled in the art of Equestrianism. This includes taming, training, charioteer and horse breeding and is a skilled swordsman and astrologer. He is also an expert in Ayurveda,(Hindu Medicine and health care), which enabled him to use this knowledge in treating the horses of Virata.

• Sahadeva excelled in the art of general medicine and bovine veterinary (which enabled him to use this knowledge in treating the cows and cattle of Virata). He also studied politics and humanities. He had the most knowledge and wisdom out of his brothers. And because of that, he was Yudhishthira's private counselor for a while when Yudhishthira was king. He is also an expert in equestrian skills (horse riding).
  

When Arjuna wins the swayamvar, both Nakula and Sahadeva were crowned princes of Indraprastha. On the day of their older brother's coronation, where they lose everything, both the twins spend their 13 years hiding from the Kuravas in Virata. Nakula adopted the name Granthika and was in-charge of taking care of the horses of Virata. While Sahadeva adopted the name Tantripala and was in-charge of taking care of the cows and cattle of Virata. When the city was being attacked by the Kuru army, both the twins went along with their older brothers to defend the city from the marauding bandits.

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• Alleged Lookalikes: They are identical twins.
• Annoying Younger Sibling: They constantly foil Bheema's efforts driving him crazy.
• The Baby of the Bunch: Sahadeva is actually the younger twin. Making him the youngest of the five brothers.
• Coordinated Clothes: Both have the same pairs of clothes throughout the entire movie.
• Demoted to Extra: Nakula and Sahadeva can come across like this. Arjuna has many, many side-stories, while Bheema and Yudhistira got leading roles and feature rather prominently in the story. Nakula and Sahadeva, said to be the best swordsmen and the best-looking amongst the Pandava brothers, hardly got any screen time.They both have one or two lines compared to their older brothers. Of course, it can also be attributed to the many characters that the prose must cover.
• Identical Twin ID Tag: Nakula parts his hair bangs to the left while Sahadeva parts his bangs to the right. Other than that it's really impossible to tell them apart.
• Ambiguously Absent Parent: Kunti is not the twins biological mother. And it's never explained in the movie what happened to their real mother.
• Pretty Boy: Both twins are extremely beautiful and attractive and are regarded as the most popular out of all five brothers.
• Speak in Unison: They both call their mother at the exact same time.
• Trickster Twins: They play around with Bheema's fear of loosing his food. They also steal the ball away from him while playing together.

Kunti

Kunti

Voiced by: Ila Arun (UTV Motion Pictures) (Hindi), (Walt Disney Pictures) (English Subtitled)

"Time is the greatest teacher, Arjun. And a time will come when your bravery will be displayed for the world to see. I believe in you."

Kunti is the wife of king Pandu and the biological mother of the three Pandava sons: Yudhishthira, Bheema and Arjuna. And the step mother of the twins Nakula and Sahadeva. She is kind, wise and gave unconditional love and moral guidance to our heroes for their journey. After the death of her husband, Kunti took care of all five Pandava children. Eventually, along with her sons, they went to live in Hastinapura.

After her sons graduate from Acharya Drona's school, she leaves with them to live in their new home in Varnavrat. Where an attempt on their lives took place by a planed conflagration to burn them inside the lacquer castle. The Pandavas managed to escape thanks to Bheema. Who protected them and guided them all to safety and managed to kill two of the ones responsible. When a terrified Arjuna sees all that, he questions his bravery and feels incompetent for not protecting his family. Kunti comforts him and tells him that a day will come when he is strong enough for the whole world to witness his bravery. She was last seen returning back to Hastinapura presenting her new daughter-in-law to the Kuru king.

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• Ethereal White Dress: Kunti wears a simple white robe. It accentuates her purity and kindred spirit. But since the color white also means detachment and separation from all material things, she could also be wearing it for her deceased husband.
• Glamorous Single Mother: For a single mom who bared and raised five sons, she looks dazzling and very youthful.
• Good Parents: She is extremely wise and kind. She loved her husband dearly and gave the same amount of love to her children. It says a lot about her character when she successfully raises five boys in a secluded forest who all grew up to be fine, strong young men.
• Good Stepmother: The twins greet her excitingly, running towards her with open arms as she hugs them in return.
• Housewife: Most of her life.

The Kuravas

Dhuryudana

Dhuryudana

Voiced by: Hemanth Mahaur (UTV Motion Pictures) (Hindi), (Walt Disney Pictures) (English Subtitled)

"This kingdom is mine! And no part of it, no matter how small... belongs to those Pandavas!"

Dhuryudana is the first son of the blind King Dhritarashtra and Queen Gandhari and the main Antagonist of the story. Being the first born son, he was the crown prince of the Kuru Kingdom and its capital city, Hastinapura. Along with his brothers and the Pandavas, Dhuryudana studied religion, science, administration and military arts by Acharya Drona, his teacher and Master of Martial Arts. Although loved by his family, Duryodhana and most of his brothers are not seen on the same level as the Pandavas in their adherence to virtue, duty, and respect for elders. Most of his hatred for the Pandavas stems from his uncle's indoctrination and mentoring which led him to despise them and plot to get rid of them so many times. His failed attempts almost costed Arjuna and Bheema's lives. He participates in a plot to burn the Pandavas in a house of wax at Varnavrata. However, when it's revealed that they have survived the conflagration, with a new wife to boot, the king makes an appeal to the council to petition the Pandavas as the new kings of the country. A decision which made Dhuryudana very angry and outright objects at his father. The king, fearing for his son's wrath and vindictive tendency, decides to split the kingdom into two, giving the bigger half to his son, and the other half to Yudhishthra.

The Pandavas, along with Krishna, transform Khandavprastha to the beautiful Indraprastha. Indraprastha's prosperity and fame appear to exceed Hastinapura's. Duryodhana, unable to contain his anger and jealousy, visits the new kingdom to investigate. His anger only intensifies when he is made fool by the Pandavas for offering the Trigarta bandits as "gifts" who surrender their loyalty to the pandavas. To support his will, Shakuni devises a scheme to rob Yudhishthira of his kingdom by defeating him in a game of dice. Unable to resist the challenge, Yudhishthira gambles away his entire kingdom, his wealth, his four brothers and even Draupadi, in a series of gambits to retrieve one by staking another. Unable to go with this farce any longer, Dritarashtra sets a condition that upon losing, the loser must spend thirteen years in an exile while the thirteenth year must be passed incognito, or else the term of the exile would be repeated. The Pandavas lose and begin their exile.

When the end of the thirteenth year approaches, Duryodhan becomes nervous and sends some spies to find the Pandavas hiding place. Upon discovering their whereabouts, he orders an attack on the city. He comes with his army to intimidate and drag the pandavas out of their anonymity. But when he is faced with only Arjun and the young prince, he mocks and ridicules them. After Arjun reveals himself, he charges on and defeats the foot soldiers. Duryodhan steps in as the Final Boss to finish him off once and for all. When he is defeated and Arjun comes out victorious, he ends this man-hunt and warns him that their true war is far from over, thus the conclusion of the movie.

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• Antagonistic Offspring: Unlike his father who was tolerable and understanding, Duryodhan had none of these qualities. Instead, he was nursed with Incomprehensible malice and envy towards the Pandavas and was the direct source to all their problems.
• Arch-Enemy: Inverted in this version of the movie. Duryudhan is the arch nemesis to Arjun. But in the original Mahabharata novels, Duryudhan was the arch nemesis to Bheem and Karna was the arch nemesis to Arjun.
• Backstab Backfire: He charges onto an unarmed Arjun with his back turned by trampling him over with his elephant. It backfires when he is the one who gets shot down from his elephant.
• Bad Boss: He disrespects and defies orders from the major of his army and almost killed his teacher before the commencing of the final battle just because he is their king. They dare not object though.
• The Bad Guy Wins: In the second half of the movie. He crushes the pandavas entirely.
• Big Bad: He is the main villain of the movie and in the Mahabharata novels. And the one who foils all of our heroes success and efforts. He cheated the Pandavas out of their kingdom in a rigged game of dice, and then sent them into exile for 13 years.
• Bully Brutality: Every.Single.Act he does to the pandavas. It ranges from attempted first degree murder, hiring thugs to do the attempted murder, actual bullying, robbing, gambling, banishing, raiding cities, burning cities..etc.
• Brains Evil, Brawn Good: In contrast to Bheema, who uses his strength to protect his loved ones. Duryodhana couldn't possibly match Bheema's strength and power. Results to schemes and wits to humiliate and get rid of the Pandavas.
• Cannon Fodder: His entire army of foot soldiers were reduced to that.
• Captain Smooth and Sergeant Rough: Duryodhana and Karna. Duryodhan is the king and was the captain of his army. He relied on plans and schemes to throw down his opponents and never got his hands directly dirty until the final battle. In contrast to his loyal second in command, Karna. Who was The Heavy and manhandled all the dirty jobs Duryodhan never wanted to get physically involved.
• The Conqueror: He won Indraphrastha not by traditional means, like conquering it by battle or marrying the ruler. He used a clever and an unorthodox method to conquer it when it was too powerful to be defeated by war sparing any collateral damages.
• Deceptive Disciple: He was the student to Acharya Drona, who unlike him, wasn't too faithful to the code of Dharma and warrior-hood.
• Despotism Justifies the Means: He wanted to become the sole king of all Hastinapura (with Khandavprastha) no matter the consequences. And whether his country is in a good shape or not. Stated by Krishna after that, that the kingdom fell into greed, ruin and terrorism once Duryudhan took over.
• Evil Is Easy: He preferred to heed his uncle's poisonous words because it's faster and more effective than finding other neutral, peaceful ways to get what he wants.
• Evil Laugh: He does this one too many. Just to emphasizes how bad he is.
• The Evil Prince: He is, in contrast to Yudhishthir.
• Face of an Angel, Mind of a Demon: Putting his deeds aside, Duryudhan is a very good looking man. Too bad his character and mentality don't match his good looks.
• Faux Affably Evil: He feigns help and concern to Arjun when the latter is being bullied by Karna. Unbeknownst to Arjun that Duryudhan staged the entire thing so he could pick him out of the event.
• Flaunting Your Fleets: He comes in with a Million Mook March of an army that fills an entire small country to intimidate and scare the pandavas.
• The Heavy: He is to his uncle, as he executes all of his plans.
• Hope Crusher: He is the master when it comes to crushing the pandavas' spirits and dreams.
• JerkAss: Duryudhan isn't the nicest person around. He is rude, mean, and overall unpleasant. He doesn't have enough redeeming qualities that offsets his evil ones. Everything he does, does it out of disdain and to gain some profit in return. He uses every vile trick in the book to get what he wants and won't take "no" for an answer. If he doesn't get what he wants, he will physically harm the person standing in his way regardless of their age, position or family relation.
• Lack of Empathy: After he wins Yudhishthir's kingdom:

Shakuni: Tell me something nephew... this land, this kingdom, is now all yours. [scoffs] What will you do with it?
Duryudhana: Burn it to the ground! '''All of it!'''

• Large and in Charge: He is physically the biggest and the most ripped out of the kurus. He acts as the big boss and later becomes in charge of everything once he is king.
• Man of Wealth and Taste: Duryudhan is a Sharp-Dressed Man with a sharp attitude. He grew up in a sheltered castle were everything is handed to him when he demands it. He is always dressed to look like he is about to conquer something, with his groomed mustache and hair, the finest of Indian silk robes and exquisite golden and precious Jewelry. He lavishly indulges in your typical everyday Rich People opulent lifestyle. Always surrounding himself with the finest of everything: women, party, food, music... etc.
• Pride: He wasn't just satisfied by winning Indraphrastha, he had to burn it to the ground so it won't match his own kingdom. Eliminating any proof of the pandava's progresses and successes.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: Duryudhan to Arjun.
  • Duryudhan being the red oni. Not only wears red garments that further emphasis the trope, he is temperamental, aggressive, driven by his passion and determination.
  • Arjun who is the blue oni, is the exact opposite of Duryudhan. He is calm, reserved, much politer and has more respect towards people and tradition.
• Sadist: He amuses himself at the sight of the defeated Pandavas. Even taunting and teasing them.
• Smug Smiler: He does this to taunt Yudhisthir, so he'd lose focus and fumble during the game.
• Status Quo Is God: Every time the Pandavas rise to the top, Duryodhan keeps devising up more plans to bring them down every single time rendering their trials and efforts meaningless and ruining their accomplishments.
• Would Harm a Senior: He almost kills his master in battle just to kill Arjun. Disregarding his master's years of service and loyalty to his family as if he was just another chess piece that could be replaced.

Dhritarashtra

Dhritarashtra

Voiced by: Niraj Sah (UTV Motion Pictures) (Hindi), (Walt Disney Pictures) (English Subtitled)

"May peace prevail between both kingdoms."

Dhritarashtra is the blind king of the Kuru Kingdom with its capital city, Hastinapura. He took over the kingdom after his brother's (King Pandu) death. Dhritarashtra is blind from birth. And became a father to one hundred sons by his wife, Queen Gandhari. These children include his eldest son Duryodhana, and his second son, Dushasana. He was present during the organised event of Acharya Drona's students were they displayed their skills and talents of what they learned at Acharya Drona's school. But it ended abruptly when a mystery competitor arrived and tried to kill Arjun who was competing at the time. After the incident, he went to consult Bhishma for the matter and to find a solution for the animosity between the Pandavas and the Kuravas. The discussion ended with the king sending off the pandavas away from hastinapura so they won't be victims of his son's schemes anymore. Not knowing that his son was eves-dropping on the whole conversation, who later sends some bandits to kill the pandavas in their new home. When they flee to safety and later marry the princess of Panchala, they return back to hastinapura, all alive and well. Which makes sudden news that surprises everyone, including the king himself (who in contrast to his son) welcomes them back warmly. But is shocked to find out that they married a daughter of a king. Fearing that this could lead to a war from both his sons and his nephews, he decides to divide the kingdom into two, Hastinapura and Khandavprastha (which later becomes Indraprastha).

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• Abdicate the Throne: He gives up his throne as the king of Hastinapura once he crowns his eldest son as the new king of Hastinapura.
• Blind Without 'Em: He uses a special cane to assist him while walking to enable him to "see" his path.
• Elective Monarchy: Even though Dhritarashtra is the supreme ruler by monarchy (meaning that his eldest son would inherit the throne once he is no longer a king), he still goes for the council's permission to decide who'd better rule the land.
• Like Father, Unlike Son: Unlike his son who bares deep hostility and hatred towards the pandavas, the king is very helpful and understanding.
• Monochromatic Eyes: His complete white eyes are indicators of his blindness.
• Parental Obliviousness: Dhritarashtra loves all of his children dearly. Especially his eldest son, Duryodhana. And because of that, he was in denial of what his son was becoming. It could also be metaphorical. Because of his "actual blindness", that he didn't see the evil that was consuming his son.
• Purple Is Powerful: Purple has always been regarded as a very rare and powerful color exclusive only to people in power positions. Thus this color was adopted by many royals and rulers in their regalia. As seen in the movie, he mostly wears purple.
• Requisite Royal Regalia: Dhritarashtra has a special one-of-a-kind elaborately designed cane that's made only for a king. It's a white rode with an golden elephant mounted on the top of the cane. He also wears the most elaborated jewelry designs out of the kuru family. As the king, he has an elephant-shaped ring just like his eldest son, Duryodhana.

Shakuni

Shakuni

Voiced by: Vijay Kashyap (UTV Motion Pictures) (Hindi), (Walt Disney Pictures) (English Subtitled)

"If you want to break the pandavas... get rid of Arjun first."

Shakuni is the secondary villain and the brother of Queen Gandhari, hence Duryodhana's maternal uncle. Portrayed as an extremely intelligent but devious man, Shakuni is often credited as the mastermind behind the Kurukshetra War. He was also a great illusionist of that era. He exhorted his nephew to get rid of the pandavas as he convinced him that they were an obstacle to the throne. Hatching two failed attempts on Bheem and Arjun's lives. Where his nephew unsuccessfully drown the former and hired someone to kill the latter. His plan finally came to fruition when he saw his troubled nephew all heated and furious for being made a fool by Yudhishthir. He comforted his nephew, saying that he will make Yudhishthir give out his own kingdom with both his hands. Using a special dice, Shakuni played the dice game in Yudhishtir's coronation. As he won every single round. Defeating, humiliating and destroying the Pandavas.

He is last seen leading the Trigartha bandits to steal the cattle and cows of Virata.

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• All According to Plan: He is seen in Acharya Drona's event in the audience witnessing his plan in action. Where a disturbance accours in the event that was a plot designed by him and executed by his nephew.
  • Xanatos Gambit: Also, every plan he culminated benefited him in a form or another. Rendering him the sole winner in the end.
• The Chessmaster: Literally and figuratively. Shakuni is perhaps best known for masterminding the infamous game of dice between the Kauravas and the Pandavas. He is the one who plays in place of his nephew, because as a master illusionist, he manipulated the dice any way he wanted. Guaranteeing him a constant win every round.
• The Corrupter: He mainly worked by inciting hatred between the Kuravas and Pandavas; his plans culminated in the largest war in Indian history. Thus, he is seen by many as one of the key persons that caused the Kurukshetra War.
• Evil Genius: Shakuni is usually perceived as being wicked, cunning and extremely scheming.
• Evil Laugh: He does this every time he wins a round in the dice game.
• Evil Uncle: He wasn't the most dearest exemplary uncle towards the Pandavas. As he persuades Yudhishtira to continue playing the game so he could lose. He also provoked Duryodhana, Dushasana and Karna to taunt and humiliate the Pandavas as they were losing.
• Fat Bastard: He is the bad guy. And he is fat.
• Fat Comic Relief: Kinda Played for Laughs. Very Downplayed. He is always wheezing and out of breath. Even after walking for a few miles, on his donkey no less. He pulls a great effort just to sit down due to his obesity.
• Greater-Scope Villain: A far-sighted man, his plan was much bigger than causing plight to the Pandavas; he wanted a full-scaled civil war between the kingdoms, which would destroy the Pandavas for generations.
• Master of Illusion: Heavily Implied in the movie and Played Straight in the books. A master of sorcery, Shakuni had his blessed dice which would always follow his will. As a sorcerer himself, he could manipulate the dice with magic to land on any side he wanted.
• The Man Infront Of The Man: Duryudhana to his uncle. He was the true mastermind behind everything. Duryudhan was mostly the enforcer.

Gandhari

Gandhari

Queen Gandhari is the wife of the blind king, Dhritrashtra, and the mother of the hundred Kurava sons including, but not limited to, Duryudhana and Dushasana.

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• Blindfolded Vision: She is seen wearing a blindfold on her eyes in the entire movie.
• Devoted to You: In the Mahabharata, Gandhari is regarded as an epitome of virtue, and is among the most respected moral forces in the epic. On contrary to popular beliefs, Ghandhari wasn't forced to blindfold herself because of her husband's disability. In fact, she did it all on her own accord. Being a loving wife, she voluntarily blindfolded herself depriving herself from the power of sight and lives the rest of her life as a blind woman to understand the pain and suffering her husband has to go through.
• Obfuscating Disability: Anyone who doesn't know her well will immediately assume that she is indeed blind, when in reality, she is not.
• The Voiceless: Unlike the novels, she has a voice and has a more active role. In the movie however she was heavily reduced to a tertiary character with no lines at all.

Dushasana

Dushasana

Voiced by: Imran Khan (UTV Motion Pictures) (Hindi), (Walt Disney Pictures) (English Subtitled)

Dushasana is a Kurav prince and the second son of the blind king Dhritarashtra and Queen Gandhari and the younger brother of Duryodhana. He is loyal to his older brother and is also closely involved in the various schemes and plots to kill the Pandavas along with his uncle Shakuni.

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• Attempted Rape: Heavily Implied in the movie and heavily Played Straight in the Mahabharata. This perhaps is his most infamous incident in the entire dice game premise. As soon as the Pandavas lose their freedom, Dushasana brings Draupadi into court. Dragging her by her hair, and attempts to tear off her garment from her body (happened off-screen in the movie). His attempts to strip Draupadi naked and either rape or sexually assault her, (depending on the versions), in front of her family is seen both as public humiliation and sexual violence.
• The Brute: He is openly hostile, immoral, cruel and pitiless like his older brother.
• Deadpan Snarker: He immediately insults the Pandavas on arrival.
  Duryodhan: Cattle herders? Are you here to herd the cattle?
  Dushasana: Herd the cattle? More like live with the cattle! [points at Bheem] Just look at the size of that bull!
• Lean and Mean: Like his older brother, he is sadistic, insolent, has no moral guidance with only half of his brother's physical mass and strength.
• Prince Charmless: Unlike his older brother who has some charismatic aura, Dushasana is slightly non-memorable. He lacks any moral conduct, manners and is repulsive by default. Even though he is a prince of royal descent.
• Sadist: He cackles and sneers as he amuses himself at the sight of a helpless, terrified and crying Drapuadi who pleads her husband for help to rescue her.
• Smug Snake: His ego and pride tends to go into his head. when he and Arjun were chariot racing, he mocks Arjun only to be hoisted by his own petard. Arjun slashes a wooden pole's ropes of a bazare's tent as Dushasana runs through it without warning and gets smacked in the face with it.
• Spare to the Throne: It's likely that he'll never usurp to rule his kingdom. Being the second son and all.

Allies

Acharya Drona

Acharya Drona

Voiced by: Ravi Khanvilkar (UTV Motion Pictures) (Hindi), (Walt Disney Pictures) (English Subtitled)

"Arjun... you may not understand this, but a day will come when we will fight each other. Just promise me, that on that day, you will fight me like a true warrior. That will be my gurudakshina."

Acharya Drona is the royal preceptor to the Kuravas and the Pandavas. He is the master of advanced military arts and taught his students the art of war, battle and warrior-hood. Of all the Kurava and Pandava brothers training under him, Arjuna emerged as the most dedicated, hard-working and most naturally talented of them all. He was greatly impressed by Arjuna's concentration, determination, and drive. As seen when he was a young lad able to shoot a bird dead in the eye with ease. Exceeding even his own son Ashwatthama. As the princes grow up under his tutelage, so does their hostility towards one another. On one morning when the princes were out chariot racing, a collusion was carried out by Duryudhana against Bheema's life. Fortunately, Bheema was rescued and Duryudhana wasn't caught. But Drona knew about it right away and gives him a look that says it all. After some time, an event is held in his honor. The students performed at the event and displayed their talents and skills of what they learned at school. But it was cut short when Karna infiltrates the arena and attempts to kill Arjun. Drona immediately intervenes and stops the match. But when Arjun verbally retaliates back, Drona slaps him angrily. Scolding him for his lack of perception and brash behavior that almost costed his life.

The next day as the Pandavas were leaving, Arjun pays his last respects and visits his master. Drona explains to him that what he did back at the arena was for his own good. And asks his forgiveness for acting so harshly towards him. But not before attacking him and challenging him to a fight. Arjun, daunted and can't bring himself to fight his master and father figure, refuses to fight back. Disappointed by what he sees, Drona berates him and tells him that he is still too inexperienced to fight in a real battle. He makes Arjun a promise. That one day, when both of them will meet again and face each other; and therefore fight against one another, that he will fight him as a true, accomplished warrior.

After the 13 year exile nears its end, the Kuru army infiltrates the city of Virata. Before the beginning of the war, both Drona and Bhishma contemplate. But Duryudhana rudely interrupts their conversation. When Arjun enters the battle and faces his master after a long time, Drona recognizes him immediately and reminds him of their promise. To which Arjun confirms that he never forgot. Drona warns him that he will do what's necessary to protect his king. Even if he has to hurt him in the process. They fight a long, crucial battle but Duryudhan breaks through their fight almost killing both of them. Arjuna saves his master, and then defeats Duryudhan and the movie concludes.

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• Badass Teacher: He is The Ace of his trade. Drona is the most famous and most professional educator in his time. He is seen in the Training Montage displaying in-human skills wielding weapons like the urumi with ease (which is considered the most dangerous weapons of all indian weaponry) and teaching it to his students both youths and kids.
  • He stops a sword being thrown by Karna in mid-air with his staff.
• Barefoot Sage: In formal events he wears a footwear but when he is at his study or training his students which happens most of the time, he is bare-footed.
  • Also in hindu customs, being bare-feet is being close to earth and humility.
• Cruel to Be Kind: He slaps Arjun and reprehends him in front of a gawking audience. Which seems un-called for and extremely humiliating on the surface. But in reality, this saved his life. Because of Arjun's naivete, he could have easily lost his life hadn't Drona stepped in.
• Declaration of Protection: He exclaims this to Arjun prior their final battle.
  Drona: You've learned nothing Arjun. Duryudhan is my king. It's my duty to protect him.
• Disc-One Final Boss: He is the mini boss in the final battle before Duryudhan jumps in.
• Hermit Guru: Ixnay on the hermit part, he is one of the most skillful and powerful Guru and warrior of his time.
• Honor Is Fair Play: He gives Arjun a fair chance to display his skills on the battle field to see what he had learned all these years. And whenever Arjun loses a weapon, instead of taking advantage of the opportunity to kill him, he lends him the exact same weapon as the one he wields so the fight would be equal and fair.
• Indentured Servitude: He is in service of the Kuravas and an employer to the Kuru family and his loyalty towards them throughout his life.
• Just Following Orders: He works for the Kuravas and is bound by duty to protect them. Even Duryudhana. Who is corrupt and evil. And fight against his favorite pupil, Arjuna.
• Like a Son to Me: Arjun to Dronacharya. Drona was partial especially to Arjun. He loved him more than any of his students.
• Master Swordsman: In addition to teaching sword fight, Flynning and fencing to his students. Dronacharya is a fearsome warrior who was trained in the use of weapons with his powerful armory of weapons and incredible skill.
• Mentor Archetype: Dronacharya is the teacher of the Pandavas and Kuravas. He trained them in the art of warfare. He is one of the most famous mentors and a skilled warrior and marksmen around.
• My Master, Right or Wrong: He is compelled to protect his king Duryudhan even though he did so many atrocities. His indebted servitude to him and his unwavering commitment to fight for Hastinapur irrespective of who the ruler is and whether or not the cause was just.
• Old Master: Despite being old, his tough and athletic built enables him to lead armies to wars and fight opponents stronger than him.
• Parental Substitute: Arjuna regards his master highly. And loves him dearly like a father figure.
• Stern Teacher: He is amiable when needed. But very serious when the situations needs to be as well as his methods of teachings are blunt and crude.
• Stronger Than They Look: Despite being old and somewhat thin and frail, he is actually very strong and tenacious and can whoop an enemy's ass with ease.
• The Promise: He made Arjun promise him that he will meet him again as an accomplished warrior.
• Tough Love: He cares for the welfare of his favorite student. That's why he was disappointed with him when he showed signs of hesitation. He throws him a sword and physically challenges him to a fight even though Arjun can't bring himself to fight back. All in order to toughen him up.
• Would Hurt a Child: Drona does this to Arjun twice. His teaching methods are harsh and aren't always lenient and soft.
  • Paper Cutting: He injures Arjun on his left cheek just below the eye to "teach him a lesson".
  • Only a Flesh Wound: Drona slashes Arjun's side with his sword drawing First Blood. Arjun agonizes for a couple of moments before continuing the fight like nothing happened.

Krishna Vasudeva

Krishna Vasudeva

Voiced by: Sachin Khedekar (UTV Motion Pictures) (Hindi), (Walt Disney Pictures) (English Subtitled)

"Just do what you have to do Arjun, forget the consequences. Focus on your task, and fear will take care of itself."

Krishna Vasudeva is an important prominent figure and a supporting character who aids our heroes to their journey and trials. He has functioned as an independent spiritual guide to the pandavas and was present as a guest of honor at the swayamvar that's been held in panchala for the princess' hand, where he first met Arjun. After Arjun wins the contest, he hands Draupadi to him as he is seen happy for both of them. After some while, he visits the Pandavas later in Khandavprastha where they lay down their plans and discuss their goals. He explains to them that in order to become the greatest nation on earth, they first have to deal with Greed, wars, terrorism and to eliminate the existing problems from the roots if they were to prosper. And that they should arm themselves with courage, faith and determination in order to see their plans succeed. He then takes Arjun inside the dark thicket of the forest and awaits the ambush of the bandits. Arjun, becomes scared and asks him for the reason and the intention behind it all. With a comforting warm smile, Krishna answers that fearing the unknown is trifling and unavailing. And one should do what they must and shouldn't concern themselves too much with the consequences lest they be paralyzed and can't precede. And that fear, will eventually take care of itself.

No moments later the bandits ambush them. But they both light the entire forest on fire to trap them inside. When they defeat them, they both discover that the bandits were sent by Duryudhan, as one of them was wearing Hastinapur's emblem. Upon discovering this, the leader of the Trigharth attacks them In the Back. But they subdue him. Arjun tells Krishna that he has a plan to use him properly that will benefit them later. When the dawn emerges, the Pandavas and Krishna look upon the aftermath of the forest as Yudhishthir agrees with krishna's advice. That they will build the greatest nation ever known from the ashes of the wasteland itself.

After a long absence, Krishna appears again bringing news back to the pandavas of Duryudhan's invasion on the city.

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• Agent Peacock: Both figuratively and literally. He is the complete package of Brains, Beauty and Brawn.
• Arrows on Fire: Krishna uses this tactic to light the entire forest on fire therefore, entrapping the bandits inside it.
• Beauty Is Never Tarnished: In the aftermath of the battle, they both emerge from the flames and fight unscathed and uncharred from the scorching flames and dirt. Especially Krishna who still has his peacock feather intact on his head.
• Big Brother Mentor: He counsels the Pandavas to broaden their goals so they could become better rulers than the Kurus. Krishna also does this to Arjuna when he loses his nerves before fighting the bandits. Calming him down and encouraging him with great words of wisdom.
• Chick Magnet: Averted in the movie, BUT, is a well known fact in the entire Hindu culture. Krishna has so many female admirers and devotees. And having a face that was carved by angels is proof enough of why he is so popular amongst all who know him.
• Feather Motif: A peacock feather to be exact. That's how he is identified. He is often depicted wearing a single peacock feather on his head or a wreath of peacock feathers.
• Officer and a Gentleman: He is a prince, a warrior, a teacher, a philosopher and a great leader. A compassionate, tender character who is a Friend to All Living Things. He is polite, gentle and very soft spoken.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: Him and Arjuna.
• Like Brother and Sister: Krishna and Draupadi. Draupadi was someone Krishna treated as his own sister as he acts as her chaperon and delivers her to her new husband.
• Martial Pacifist: He promotes peace and negotiates to spread prosperity and goodness everywhere. And only uses arms when the situation is dire and as a last resort. As seen twice when he fought alongside Arjun to protect the citizens of Khandavprastha. And when he killed the spy who was going to expose the pandavas' secrets identities and hiding place.
• Nerves of Steel: He stays calm and collected when he and Arjuna were about to face the bandits. In contrast to Arjun who gets extremely nervous by the moment.
• Prince Charming: He emanates a kind aura around him that puts anyone at ease. And to add the cherry on top, he is also a prince.
• The Wise Prince: Even more so than Yudhishthir. He has the rare combination of mind-set and temperament that made him more memorable than other intellectuals.
• Technicolor Eyes: He has purple eyes. The rarest of all eye colors.
  • Also, in the illustrated paintings and novels, his original skin color is blue-ish purple. So his eyes are also the same color when in human form.

Krishna Draupadi

Krishna Draupadi / Sairandhri

Voiced by: Rajeshwari Sachdev (UTV Motion Pictures) (Hindi), (Walt Disney Pictures) (English Subtitled)

Krishna Draupadi

Click ^here to see Krishna Draupadi as Sairandhri

"Promise me...that you will avenge my humiliation. You will have one purpose...the annihilation of the Kuravas! You will have one goal...to completely destroy Duryudhan!"

Princess Draupadi is the daughter of Drupada, King of Panchala. And the daughter-in-law of the pandavas and the wife and main Love Interest to Arjun. She was introduced alongside her father at her marriage matchmaking contest called the swayamvar where she is to choose her husband from the competing contestants. Almost all the assorted monarchs were unable to complete the challenge. But Arjun, disguised as a brahmin monk appears in front of her and wins both the contest and her heart immediately. As Draupadi gleefully rises up and bashfully greets her new husband, he gently grabs her hand and walks her down from the castle to her new family, as the entire city celebrate their marriage. With the Pandavas' survival made public, reaching news to hastinapur, Dhritrashtra invites the Pandavas warmly and greets his new in-law. He becomes worried upon learning that she is the daughter of a king. Fearing his son's grudge and vindictive tendencies, he announces the kingdom's division.

Eventually the Pandavas were assigned to the wasteland Khandavprastha. Where Draupadi distressingly remarks that it is uninhabitable and that it was unfair that they were to be thrown there. After the transformation of their kingdom and becoming their new rulers, it was eventually taken away in a challenge made by their cousins, the kuravas. They lose everything from kingdoms, to wealth, to possessions, and in the end, their freedoms]]. Draupadi, Who was horrified to be staked in the game as Dushasana drags her to court By the Hair. She screams and cries for help but to no avail. Fearing ill-omens, Dhritarashtra intervenes. He decrees that the loser be given an exile of 12 years followed by a year of Agnathavas, meaning "living in incognito". And if the loser were to be seen in any day at the last year, the 12 year exile would restart again. The Pandavas lose and they begin their exile. After being kicked out of their homes, Draupadi privately laments Arjun. She makes him a promise that he will avenge her humiliation by destroying the Kuravas permanently. Turning her into a Woman Scorned.

Draupadi was last seen hiding in Virata with her family disguising as Sairandhri. The queen's personal maid and hair-dresser.

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• All Cloth Unravels: Happens off screen. We see her being dragged by her in-law with questionably lesser clothes than we saw her earlier...
• Beauty Equals Goodness: Her perfectly crescent-shaped eye brows, flawless leaf- shaped green eyes, her luscious rose bud lips. Matched by her elegance and kind nature of a Proper Lady.
• Damsel in Distress: She was put in that position when she was bet off by her family. She was reduced to a commodity much like her family, begging and crying for someone to save her.
• Graceful Ladies Like Purple: Being a princess with grace and beauty, it's only fitting that most of her garment colors are purple, the color of royalty.
• Perfectly Arranged Marriage: Draupadi and Arjun are a match made in the most convenient of circumstances.
• Princess in Rags: She becomes that after they lost their home.
• Rape and Revenge: Replacing "rape" with sexually assaulted. Justified. As she is mostly a third party to the whole Pandava/Kurava family issues and animosity. She had nothing to do with any of their problems other than being related to the family by marriage. And because of that, she was so outraged as her honor was violated.
• Shameful Strip: The infamous incident that is associated by her name. She is famous for having her clothes stripped off of her by her in-laws.
• The Promise: The promise she made Arjun vow to fulfill it. To destroy the Kuravas for humiliating her.
• This Means War!: She is the one who pushes the pandavas to wage war against the kuravas who humiliated them.

Uttar

Uttar

Voiced by: Asmit Kaushik (UTV Motion Pictures) (Hindi), (Walt Disney Pictures) (English Subtitled)

Uttar: Tell me...this story.... who told you this story?
Brihannala: ...no one.

Prince Uttar is the son of King Virata, king of Virat Kingdom and, at whose court the Pandavas spent one year in concealment during their exile. Like the rest of the residence of Virata, the young prince was unaware of the Pandava's true identity. The movie begins with the young prince practicing sword fight when he is called to retire to his dormitory. There, he asks Brihannala to tell him a bedtime story. Brihannala tells him the story of Arjun. And on every night, when the young prince is about to retire, she continues to tell the story to where she left off and then puts the story off for another night. One day, when prince Uttar was practicing his sword fight, he sees her walking away intentionally avoiding him. He calls out to her to continue the story, to which she agrees. She narrates the dice game part, where the Pandavas lose everything. This made the young prince distraught and depressed. He questions Arjun's actions calling him a coward for not jumping to his wife's rescue. Hurt by this, Brihannala tells him off by sending him to his father. Back at the young prince's dormitory, Brihannala comes in to continue the story but the young prince refuses to listen. She explains that he has to fully understand how the world works and what it takes to become a great warrior by listening till the end to learn what valuable lessons in-stored.

Towards the end of the year, Duryodhan attacks Virat. The city goes under alarm as the young prince awakens from his bed to the sound of the disturbance. He runs around and sees Kanka and his father gathering the army and getting ready for battle. Uttar learns from Kanka that the trigarth bandits are stealing their cattle and that they are heading north to fight them. This leaves their city vulnerable and without an army. When the actual Kuru army heads towards their frontal gate. As the court almost loses courage and surrenders their defeat, suddenly the young prince announces that he will fight the Kuru army. Making him The Unchosen One. Brihannala witnesses his courage and goes with him as his charioteer. As they approach the Kuru army, Uttar panics at the sight of the colossus army and tells Brihannala to turn back. But she encourages him with the same words of wisdom Krishna told him years ago. She then takes him to a secret hideout where Uttar finds the divine weapons that was gifted to Arjun. He immediately puts two and two together and comes to the uncertain conclusion that Brihannala is not who she seems to be. Brihannala reveals her true identity to him. And they both go fight the Kuru army together emerging victorious.

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• All Up to You: When his father the king takes every man and soldier away to defend their land from a decoy attack, leaving it unprotected when the actual attack from the Kuru army happens. Prince Uttar takes it upon himself to defend his country and home since he is the only eligible man left.
• Bait-and-Switch Accusation: A tense moment happens between Brihannala and the young prince as she was narrating the story. When he asks her if anybody knows where the Pandavas are hiding, she gives a Half-Truth answer saying that no one knows their whereabouts. Of course by that, avoiding her secret. But as Uttar pressures her some more to what it looks like she was about to spill the beans, he suddenly cuts in by saying that he knows EXACTLY where they are. Alarming her that he might know something—
  Uttar: So where did they go for their exile?
  Brihannala: [contemplating]...no one knows where they are.
  Uttar: What do you mean? Are they still in hiding?
  Brihannala: [hesitantly] ...Must be—
  Uttar: [interrupts] I know where they are!
  Brihannala: [shocked] What?!
  Uttar: [jokingly] At the bottom of the ocean, in the belly of a whale!
  Brihannala: [confused] What whale?
  Uttar: A huge whale! When their exile is through, they'll tear open it's stomach and leap out!
  Brihannala: [relieved] Don't worry your little head with such lofty matters. Or it'll burst.
• Cheerful Child: Prince Uttar can come off like this since he is just a teenager who is sheltered most of his life inside the castle walls. Despite having huge royal responsibilities, he still likes to play around and listen to bedtime stories. He also gets easily excited and engaged to a good story telling. And becomes extremely upset and scared when things don't go the way he wants.
• Cool Big Bro: Arjun to Uttar. In the end of the battle Uttar looks up to Arjun like a proud younger brother to his big brother as they walk together side by side.
• Downer Ending: His heart was broken to the Tone Shift of the story. The Part were the pandavas were humiliated and lose everything. He didn't want to continue listening after that.
• Heroes' Frontier Step: Even though he initially wanted to run away, in the end he stood his grounds and did what he had to do to save his country, his family and friends. Becoming just as great as Arjun himself.
• Kid Sidekick: He becomes that when him and Arjun protect their backs from the Kurus.
• Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right!: Even though he was reacting upon his limited knowledge of life and tradition, Uttar was the only one who spoke out his mind against Draupadi's public humiliation. Exclaiming that he would have beheaded Duryudhan himself if he were in Arjun's place.
• Supporting Protagonist: He becomes that to Arjun at the end of the movie.

Bhishma

Bhishma

Voiced by: Vishnu Sharma (UTV Motion Pictures) (Hindi), (Walt Disney Pictures) (English Subtitled)

"There's no place far enough from the flames of jealousy."

Bhishma is the major and the captain of the Kuru army and was the moral consultant to the king himself, Dhritarashtra. He is also a supporting character in the movie and has a greater role in the epic Mahabharata as he serves as the grandfather of both the Pandavas and the Kauravas.

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• Celibate Hero: He was well known for his pledge of Celibacy.
• Cool Old Guy: He was more than happy to order the army's retreat. A decision he was in favor of after Arjun ordered the Kuru army's retraction. An advice he gave Duryudhan earlier that could've prevented unecessary bloodshed had the latter listened and learned from his superiors. Much to Duryudhan's dismay.
• Death Glare: He does this to Duryodhan when he disrespects him and steps out of line.
• Forced to Watch: Like pretty much everyone at court during the dice game, he was forced to watch the public humiliation of the Pandavas.
• Gentle Giant: He is the nicest, most kindest member out of the Kurus.
• I Have Many Names: He, like many other characters in the Mahabharata, have many other names to go by. But his main name is Bhishima. Oddly it's not the name used in the movie. As the king calls him by his lesser known name "Pitamah". Which literally means "Grandfather". Implying Bhishima's divine origin. And that he is much much older than he looks. Even older than the king himself.
• My Master, Right or Wrong: Like Drona, Bhishma serves the Kuru family under the administration of a power hungry king.
• Oh No You Didn't: Duryodhan has very little respect to his elders. He steps in line when he threatens to take Bhishima's position as major. Only to be given the Death Glare.
• Old Soldier: He has been through many wars in his life time.
  Bhishma: Me and my sword are restless. We haven't witness a war in years.
  * Only Sane Man: Bhishma is the second to speak out his mind even when he is pretty much tied as he was with the kuru family. He is the voice of reason besides the king himself and acted on his moral guidance even when was crippled by the cultural dogma. Despite that, he'd spoke out his mind when he could defending the disenfranchised even when his voice was not popular or well perceived among the kuru sons.
• Reasonable Authority Figure: Besides the Blind king and Drona Acharya, He protested that the war on Virat was unecessary. Sadly it fell on deaf ears

Shiva

Kirat/Shiva

Voiced by: Aanjjan Srivastav (UTV Motion Pictures) (Hindi), (Walt Disney Pictures) (English Subtitled)

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• Anthropomorphic Personification: He comes to Arjun disguised as a human hunter named Kirat to test him.
• Dark Is Not Evil: Shiva, though he can get angry, is usually calm, reasonable, and peaceful, though he is the personification of Destruction.
• Multi-Armed and Dangerous: when he finally reveals himself, he sprouts two more arms from his torso, revealing his true identity to Arjun
• Impossible Task: He gives a test to Arjun to see if he can pass. To kill an army of ogres alone and flying monsters too.
• Unstoppable Rage: