The play “The Importance of being Draupadi” by Krishnan Rangaraju, ‘offers another alternative vision of society and culture through the inner world of Draupadi’ notes N. Manu Chakravarthy in his foreword. It is a work that amalgamates a unique Bheel narrative of the Mahabharatha, with the conventionally accepted version of Sage Vyasa’s great epic. This combination makes the play an exciting prospect to read and explore its presentation. On the one hand the Bheel version as Prof. Chakravarthy states, ‘is a severe indictment of the hierarchical order established by any monarchy that privileges a few chosen individuals and marginalizes the many unfortunate ones who, actually, represent the human spirit’. Even as the colourful tribal rendition interrogates the conventional position that mythology accords to ‘heroes’, Krishnan Rangaraju weaves the two together – the convention and the interrogation, dramatizing the conflict with great confidence and clarity. K. V. Akshara in his detailed analysis - "Encountering the Puranas", elaborates extensively as to just how difficult a task, this juggling of conflict is. To say anything more would be giving away too much, as the Prabhandhaka of “Draupadi” says at the end of the Prelude – “The story should unfold itself with the right momentum. Let us get started.”