Chandragupta Maurya

Chandragupta Maurya is an Indian historical television show that aired on Sony TV from 14 November 2018 to 30 August 2019. Written by Raj Routh, the show is based on the life of Chandragupta Maurya, the first Mauryan emperor and founder of the Maurya Empire. The show is produced by Siddharth Kumar Tewary's One Life Studios. The show is a seamless continuation of One Life Studio's earlier show Porus. Plot The show starts in 323 BCE, immediately after the deaths of the Paurava king Purushottam (nicknamed Puru, called Porus by foreigners) and the Macedonian emperor Alexander the Great. Alexander's general Seleucus Nicator is still in India, having vassalized Ambhiraj (formerly Ambhikumar in the prequel Porus), the king of Takshashila and also captured the Paurava Kingdom after assassinating Puru. Chanakya, a Takshashilan Brahmin, scholar and the former prime minister of the Paurava Kingdom arrives in Magadha ruled by the unjust and cruel Nanda emperor Dhana Nanda. He seeks his help in overthrowing the Macedonians out of India and uniting the Mahajanapadas (Indian kingdoms). However, Dhana Nanda openly humiliates Chanakya in the court, mocking his dream of a united India and informs him that it was he who financially helped Seleucus assassinate Puru so that Seleucus will not attack Magadha. This prompts Chanakya to take a vow of eradicating the Nanda dynasty and putting a capable ruler on the throne of Magadha. Chanakya finds Chandragupta (nicknamed Chandra), a slave who in reality is the crown prince of Piplivan, a kingdom which was destroyed by Dhana Nanda, and sees in him the talent to become a ruler. Meanwhile Dhana Nanda (unaware of Chandra's lineage), also recognises his aptitude and appoints him as the bodyguard of his beloved younger sister, Durdhara. Gradually, Durdhara develops a liking for Chandragupta. With the help of the former soldiers of Piplivan and the king of the janapada (Indian kingdom) Assaka, Vajrabahu, Chandra forms a small army. Chandragupta faces Dhana Nanda in a series of encounters and kills his elder brother Govishanka. However, due to the betrayal of Vajrabahu (who later loses both his life and kingdom to Dhana Nanda) he is eventually badly defeated and forced to flee from Magadha. Before being defeated, Chandra managed to inform Durdhara that her father Mahapadma Nanda was killed by Dhana Nanda as he did not want him to divide the Nanda Empire between his eight sons. This totally estranges her from Dhana Nanda.