Patan trilogy

Patan trilogy consists of three Gujarati historical novels written by Indian writer Kanaiyalal Maneklal Munshi.

Written in chronological order, though having separate stories, the trilogy deals with the Solanki rule in Gujarat.

Minaldevi, the mother of the king, craves for power at any cost, while Munjal, the amatya (minister) believes in the people's rule.

His adventures, designed to fulfill his political ambitions and to win Manjari's heart, cover the major part of the novel and are narrated in a romantic style.

[5] Writers Radheshyam Sharma and Raghuveer Chaudhari note in their book Gujarati Navalkatha (Gujarati novel): "one cannot deny the allure of the aesthetic pleasure that Munshi has created by delightfully delineating the wrestling of the brawn with the brain in Patan Ni Prabhuta, Gujarat No Nath and Rajadhiraj.

[7] Critic Dhirendra Mehta also noted that, though there are references to Munjal and Kak in the history of Gujarat, they are quite transformed in the narrative.

He felt that the character of Kak is overly glorified in the novel and treated as a hero, while Siddharaja Jayasimha, who according to him, was a respectable king of Gujarat, loses his grace.

He praised the trilogy for the conflict and dramatisation of situations, individuality of characters, short and sparkling dialogues, and picturesque narration.