Epics and oral narratives have long been a part of the cultural ethos of the Indian subcontinent. Given the long years of their existence and expression in oral, performance and written traditions, several characters which might be part of one narrative may not be part of another. A critical examination of Tamil Mahabharatas reveals the existence of several women characters, whose stories can be read simultaneously as resisting as well as conforming to the dominant patriarchal order. This reveals the ambiguous attitudes towards non-conforming women, and how even the dissemination of their narratives are seen as a threat to the dominant patriarchal social order.
