India, Sept. 26 -- Drawing from myths, folktales, and retellings from the epics, Stree Sutra edited by Koral Dasgupta features 22 diverse voices breathing life into the stories of lesser-known celestial women -- apsaras, yakshinis, gandharvis, nagas, yoginis and more. The contributers to this anthology include Anand Neelakantan, who writes about north Malabar's Muchilottu Bhagawati and K Hari Kumar, who gives voice to Hidimbi, mother of Ghatotkach in The Mahabharata. Shinie Antony writes about Bhadrakali, Kiran Manral looks at Dakini, one of the incarnations of Shakti, Sunita Pant Bansal draws on the traditions of her native Almora in a piece on Garh Devi, and Deep Halder writes about Bon Bibi. There are others too. Together, these works depict the forms of the Devi as powerful guardians of people, forests, mountains and rivers, whose presence is part of the spirit of the subcontinent....