Draupathi 2 Isn’t History — How a Traitor Was Recast as a Defender of Faith
⚔️ Who Was Veera Ballala III — Really?
Ruling between 1291 and 1343, Veera Ballala III was the last Hoysala monarch, governing from Dwarasamudra (Halebidu) after consolidating northern karnataka and parts of northern tamil Nadu. His reign was marked not by heroic resistance but by continuous warfare against the Yadavas of Devagiri, the Pandya kings of madurai, and several South indian chieftains.
This was not a defender of Dharma. This was a ruler obsessed with territorial dominance — especially over tamil regions.
🩸 A tamil Enemy Rebranded as a Virtuous King
Veera Ballala III actively intervened in the Pandya civil war, backing Sundara Pandya against Veera Pandya, not out of principle, but to install a puppet ruler and secure Hoysala supremacy in tamil territory.
Portraying such a ruler positively — without historical context — is not artistic liberty. It is intellectual dishonesty.
🏳️ The Moment of Cowardice: Malik Kafur, 1311
When Alauddin Khalji ordered his general Malik Kafur to invade South India, the so-called “hero” did not fight.
In 1311, Malik Kafur laid siege to Dwarasamudra. Veera Ballala III refused battle. Instead, he signed a humiliating peace treaty, handing over the entire royal treasury, accepting vassalage under the delhi Sultanate, and agreeing to annual tribute payments.
This is not resistance.
This is surrender.
📜 Epigraphic Evidence Doesn’t Lie
According to Epigraphia Carnatica, Volume VII, shimoga Taluk Inscription No. 68, Veera Ballala III didn’t stop at surrender — he actively assisted Malik Kafur’s campaign against the Pandya kingdom.
Yes.
The man now marketed as a “protector of the Hindu faith” helped an invading army destroy another Hindu empire.
💰 Rewarded for Betrayal
Historical sources record that alauddin khalji was so pleased with Veera Ballala’s loyalty that he rewarded him with:
A robe of honour
A crown
A royal parasol
One million tankas (gold coins)
This is not folklore. It is recorded by K. S. Lal, former NCERT Chairman, in History of the Khaljis.
You don’t get rewarded by an invader for resistance.
You get rewarded for collaboration.
🌍 The Pandya Empire That Was Deliberately Destroyed
The Pandya kingdom — praised by Marco Polo as one of the world’s richest empires — was not destroyed by chance. It was weakened systematically.
Veera Ballala III waited patiently after his earlier defeat by Kulasekhara Pandya, and once succession disputes erupted after Kulasekhara’s death, he seized the moment — data-aligning with delhi forces to finish what he could not win alone.
⚠️ Mass Violence in tamil Lands (1312–1330)
Between 1312 and 1330, repeated Hoysala incursions into Pandya territory resulted in:
Large-scale civilian killings
Destruction of temples and settlements
Widespread instability in tamil regions
These were not defensive wars. These were occupation campaigns.
☠️ The End history Didn’t Glorify
Ironically, Veera Ballala III was eventually killed by the Madurai Sultanate — not as a martyr, but as a betrayer who broke his loyalty pact.
Historical accounts state his body was stuffed with straw and displayed on the walls of madurai fort — a public warning to collaborators who turned unreliable.
Calling this death a “sacrifice for Hinduism” is not an interpretation.
It is deliberate myth-making.
🩸 Final Word: Where Exactly Is the Patriotism?
He surrendered when resistance mattered.
He collaborated when faith was at stake.
He profited while Pandya land burned.
And he died not as a hero, but as a discarded asset.
So the question remains:
Where is the valor?
Where is the devotion?
Where, exactly, is the patriotism?
history remembers what cinema tries to erase.
And facts don’t bend for propaganda.