According to scholar Günther @-@ Dietz Sontheimer , the legend of Banai have close parallels with the story of King Dushyanta and Shakuntala from the Hindu epic Mahabharata . The tale of another folk god Mhaskoba ( Bhairava ) to gain his wife Balurani or Balai despite obstacles is also similar to Khandoba 's endeavour to win over Banai .