'I find the feud between the Ambani brothers -- a story of corporate greed -- similar to the rivalry between the Pandavas and the Kauravas, who were also brothers. B. Ramalinga Raju, the former chairman of Satyam, was like Dhritarashtra whose love for his son destroyed him. During my business career, I found that a number of middle class parents wanted their children to grow up as Arjuna and not like Yudhisthira -- to be successful in life,' Das said.

Human beings, says Das, are all flawed.

'This human proclivity to paint people in black and white is all wrong. Reading Mahabharata is a humbling realisation because it teaches us not to judge people on the surface. There are no easy answers. The character of Duryodhana, for instance, in Mahabharata grows enormously,' Das said.

'At the gates of heaven, Yudhisthira asks Lord Indra whether stray dogs are allowed inside heaven. Yudhisthira had picked up a stray dog a few days ago. When Indra says no, he asks the ruler of heaven to make an exception. It makes you believe that good deeds are possible,' Das says, commenting on his favourite characters in the epic.

According to Das, Mahabharata also makes a statement on women's empowerment. 'The whole epic is full of feisty women. Draupadi stops the show and makes the men realise they are deceiving themselves. How could they gamble with a woman? She is the character I admire the most,' the writer said.

The book published by Penguin-Allen Lane is divided into 10 chapters. It ends with an essay on 'The Difficulty of Being Good'.

Das, author of three books, is also a veteran columnist for several Indian newspapers, along with the New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. A graduate of Harvard University, he was also the CEO of Procter & Gamble in India.