Tenali Tales: Raman, the thief catcher

The kotwal (chief of police) of Vijayanagara was a worried man. A gang of thieves had entered the city, and a string of robberies had already taken place. The kotwal’s men could not lay their hands on the culprits. King Krishnadeva Raya was upset with the kotwal…

Tenali Tales: Face-saving formula

Krishnadeva Raya, the king of Vijayanagara, had ordered Tenali Raman to not show his face. Raman was…

Tenali Tales: Battle of wits

A great pundit came to Vijayanagara. He had mastered all the scriptures, and had won the admiration of learned men all over India. He had come to challenge the pundits in the court of King Krishnadeva Raya to face him in a debate.

Guess who came to dinner!

Vidyasagar was invited to a party. When he reached the venue, the person at the gate told him that guests had to…

Moocha Raja and the crying prince

Raja Garga was the ruler of a small kingdom by the banks of a river. The king was kind at heart, but was short-tempered. He would bark out orders and expect them to be carried out immediately. Luckily, he was surrounded by wise ministers who would take the right…

Smart wife

Sujata loved her kind-hearted husband, Madhav. Although poor, Madhav was a generous man. Every day he would bring guests home for lunch. Often, the couple would go hungry after serving guests.

Sujata told her husband that it was difficult to feed guests when they were themselves…

Panchatantra: The crab and the crane

Dandy the crane had travelled to places far and wide. But it was a small lake, deep inside a great forest, that he called home. The fishes of this lake were plump and juicy. They were the most delicious fishes in the world, according to Dandy.

Moocha Raja finds his soulmate

One day, a monkey entered Moocha Raja’s bedroom through an open window. It sat on the window sill and watched a maid fanning the king, who was sleeping.

The maid left on some errand. The monkey jumped into the room, picked up the fan, and started…

Work of art

Keshav studied art under the guidance of a great Master. The art school was at the foot of a mountain. The Master taught Keshav how to draw, paint, and many other techniques, like mixing colours, and various kinds of shading. Keshav was a quick learner, and the Master was proud of his student.