States

A Resourceful Goldsmith (Kerala)

In the olden days, ornaments were made to order. If anyone wanted to have an ornament…
The Magic Ball (Gujarat)

Once upon a time there was a King who had two queens, one of whom was…
The Precious Present (Kashmir)

This story takes the reader to a village on the bank of the Wular, one of…
Real Music Lover (Kerala)

In Kerala, there was a king, who loved music. He used to invite eminent musicians to…
Mudiattei (Kerala)

A country bumpkin had a goat, which he called by the name Mudiattei. The meaning of…
The Earth and Humans (Jharkhand)

In the past, the universe was surrounded by water and only water creatures. The universe was…
The Girl with Golden Hair (Goa)

One day, a boy was throwing stones at frogs in the village well, when he noticed…
Four Wise Ministers (Maharashtra)

Veerasena, the king of Vijapur, was known far and wide as a wise and kind ruler.…
Ghughuti Basuti (Uttarakhand)

Submitted by anonymous Ghughuti basutiHum kahan haiGhar mei haiKya kar rahe haiPuri paka rahe haiEk puri…
Escape from the Pit (Chhattisgarh)

A Kuruk story from Karikot on the Indrawati River, Bastar State An old man and his…
Belariya Raja (Chhattisgarh)

A Dora-Kuruk story from Kaknar, Bastar State The name of the Raja of Belargarh City was…
Jal Jhulni Dhol Gyaras Utsav: A Town in Motion

Photo Essay by Harsh Choudhary, Archie Joshi, Gautam Dabi, andShubham Porwal Every year, shortly after Janmashtami,…
Bansin Kanya – The Bamboo Maiden (Madhya Pradesh)

Submitted and Cover Illustrated By Sara Long ago, there was a girl who lived with her…
The Legacy of the Velvet Feather (Maharashtra)

Submitted by Mitali Kapure In a bustling village of Khandesh, a wealthy landlord named Hiraman built…
The Queen, Washerwoman, and the Blessing of Marriage (Rajasthan)

Submitted by Nishu Rathore Once upon a time, there lived a king and a queen in…
A Holy Sage (Assam)

Submitted by Dr. Pompi Basumatary Edited by Rhianna Majumder There once lived a man in a…
A Daughter-in-Law’s Revenge (Tamil Nadu)

A husband and wife had one son, who was married to a girl from another town.…
A Parrot’s Story (Tamil Nadu)

A brother and his little sister lived together. One day, when they went out to graze…
Bordoisila (Assam)

Submitted by Evan Jyoti BorboraEdited by Harsh Haldonkar In Assam, when the month of Bohag arrives,…
Stone Curry and Banyan Leaf Rotis (West Bengal)

Submitted by Sara Bardhan Once upon a time, an old faqir set out on a long…
Chants from Bengal

Article by Rhianna MajumderEdited by Nikhita Singh Our home is lit up with warm, indigo-hued, cloth-bound…
Oceans and Folklore

Article by Harsh HaldonkarIllustrated by Sanika Kannawar Conceptualised by the International Centre for Ocean Development (ICOD),…
The Myths of Panna

Article by Dharmesh Edited by Jenica Amalita & Kamna Shastri Rivers know their paths. They have…
The Shadow Puller (Maharashtra)

Submitted by Mitali Kapure A heavy wooden bullock cart rolled through the dusty lanes of a…
Folktales from the Munda Tribe (Jharkhand)

Submitted by Aditi Natasha Bhuinyan For generations, the Munda people have preserved their beliefs and identity…
The Ambitious Fox

Master Fox had his home on the hillside. Every evening, he went down to the valley,…
Clever Narayani (Bihar)

A long long time ago, a man named Nandu and his daughter Narayani, lived in the town…
Buying a Song (Madhya Pradesh)

In a tranquil village in Madhya Pradesh, on a quaint morning, Vidyawati made her way to…
Chhura and the Beautiful Fly (Mizoram)

Once upon a time, Chhura caught a very pretty fly in the countryside. He was delighted,…
The Egotistical Elephant and Praying Pebet (Manipur)

A long time ago, at the edge of a big forest lived a Pebet with her…
The Mirror (Kerala)

Once upon a time, a man got a small mirror from somewhere. It was an unknown…
The Village Wiseacre (Uttarakhand)

There was once a certain man in an out-of-the way village. The man being a Padhan…
The Story of the Fish (Arunachal Pradesh)

The fish were born of a mythical mother, Pedong Nane, who made them from different things.…
The Bear’s Bad Bargain (Punjab)

Once upon a time, a very old woodman lived with his very old wife in a…
The Story of the Toad (Assam)

There was an aged couple, who were very poor. But they had a fish trap, which…
The Cooing of the Doves (Meghalaya)

Of all the birds there are none that keep themselves more separate than the doves. They…
The Wicked Stepmother (Kashmir)

One day, a Brahman adjured his wife not to eat anything without him lest she should…
A Drop of Milk (Rajasthan)

Ajay Singh was once on a visit to his friend’s house. He was not only an…
The Little Child’s Dilemma (Kerala)

If I tell the truth, father will kill mother; if I say nothing, he will eat…
The Wonderful Ox (Chhattisgarh)

Once upon a time, a buffalo chip (dried manure used for fuel) and a clod of…
The Old Man And The Monkeys (Gujarat)

There once lived an old man. Once he sowed chibdas on his farm. The old man…
Muk Zek Ding Rum Faat and the Season of Shared Renewal Among the Lepchas

Article by Pansanrip LepchaEdited by Jenica Amalita The Lepchas and their beliefs The Lepchas are one…
Hunchibili (Nagaland)

Once upon a time, a wild boar – the king of pigs – entered into a paddy…
Tales of the Punjab: Folklore of India, A Critical Review Examining Rhyme, Rhythm, Cultural Memory, Translation and Narratorial Voice

Article by Puneet KaurEdited by Jenica Amalita Introduction It is a hot summer evening in the…
The Story of the Seven Brothers and a Sister (West Bengal)

Here was a King who had seven Queens. All of them were pretty—but the youngest was…
Voices of Folk: Songs, Rituals, and Women in the Gangaur Festival

Article by Archie JoshiEdited by Angel Kolady & Jenica Amalita Festivals are often mirrors of society,…
Fruit of the Ghost (Karnataka)

Submitted by Shravan MedaPranava bundled his way through the thick forests of the Western Ghats. STOMP!…
River Narmada (Gujarat)

There once lived a carpenter by the name Kaliya. He went to the forests in the…
A Justice in the Jungle (Tripura)

In the forest, there lived a wild pig with her family members. She used to go…
The Snake Prince (Ladakh)

Donyo Dorje and Belsa were forever quarrelling with each other. The old woman would hurl her…
Mama (Himachal Pradesh)

Mama is the maternal uncle. A guest in Himachal is also usually called Mama and given…
Two Sisters in a Tree (Chhattisgarh)

A prince and a Diwan’s son were great friends. They used to go hunting every day,…
The King and the Robbers (Punjab)

In former days, it was the delight of kings and princes to disguise themselves and to…
The Bhill archer (Maharashtra)

The Bhill tribes were known for their bravery, exceptional hunting abilities, and strong connection to the…
The Orphan Boy and the Bottle Gourd (Odisha)

Once there was an orphan boy. He had nobody of his own. Nobody cared for him.…
The Lazy Boy (Assam)

There was once a very lazy boy. And when everybody else had planted out his paddy,…
Why is the Sky so High? (Gujarat)

In the olden days, the sky was very close to the earth. With the sky hovering…
Kanseri Katha – A Tale from the Western Ghats

Submitted by: Prasanna MattikopEdited by: Angel Kolady Illustration by: Prasanna Mattikop At the misty mountains where…
Tapta (Manipur)

It was night. A baby was crying. The mother was unable to calm the baby down.…
Shurpanakha’s Revenge (Andhra Pradesh)

In Andhra Pradesh, women sing tales from the Ramayana in the privacy of their homes. However,…
Pregnant Ravana (Karnataka)

There are many narratives about Sita’s birth. Valmiki states that Janaka, king of Videha, is the…
Bhovvali Gaayi (Goa)

In a small rustic town, there lived a cow by the name of Ganga with a…
The Broken Pot (Uttar Pradesh)

Once upon a time, there lived a Brahmin in a small hut. He was happily eating…
The Malpua Tale (Bihar)

Malpua has been the most sought-after delicacy in the rural homes of the Gangetic Plains for…
The Story of Jyamphi Moong the Yeti (Sikkim)

Atek was a herdsman who liked playing the Puntaong Palit, a Sikkimese flute. The flute has…
Why Goddess Lakshmi Comes on Fridays (Tamil Nadu)

Once there was a big businessman. He had a son and a daughter. Both were happily…
Towards the Sun (Andaman and Nicobar Islands)

This is a story from long ago. A man once set out to go towards the…
The Hand of Fate (Rajasthan)

After the first monsoon showers, there was great activity in Pipar. Fields had to be ploughed,…
Fire That Never Sleeps: Athirathram and the Living Memory of A Sacred Ritual in Kerala

Article by Abhirami RavichandranEdited by Angel Kolady & Jenica Amalita Right after completing my master’s degree,…
The Wishing Tree (Rajasthan)

One day, a traveller was passing through a desert. After walking for a few miles, he…
Purukh Pant (Uttarakhand)

Purukh Pant dreamt of accomplishing brave feats, and accordingly nurtured in himself traits common amongst the…
Fortune and Intelligence (Karnataka)

A mother had two sons named Fortune and Intelligence. They met a poor man who brought…
The Bear’s Pond (Mizoram)

To get the water supply all year round, a bear had a pond of his own.…
A Traveller’s Story (Haryana)

One day, a traveller came to the place where they gathered every day to kill time.…
Do Not Talk (Tripura)

A jhumia was living in a small village with his wife and two daughters. The daughters…
The Wise Minister (Ladakh)

Long, long ago, in Marpori, there lived the great king, Strontsan Gampo. He built himself a…
Pahsyntiew (Meghalaya)

A long time ago, in the beautiful hills of Shillong, there lived a powerful spirit called…
The Devil Outwitted (Kashmir)

Once there lived a young man in a village. He had no land of his own…
The Bracelet Sellers (Chhattisgarh)

Basanta Bai’s wedding was the talk of the village. Hearing this, there came two bracelet sellers,…
The Bell of Guirim Church (Goa)

The villages of Sangolda and Guirim in the districts of Bardez in Goa have one church…
The Tale of a Mouse (Gujarat)

Once there lived an old woman. One day the woman sat before the fire, preparing rotlas…
The Devotion of the Hunter (Andhra Pradesh)

In the Telugu language, ‘Shri’ means a spider, ‘Kal’ a snake and ‘Hasti’ means an elephant.…
The Fool’s Fate (Manipur)

A fool lived with his wife in a village, and that was a very long time…
Villadom Pickles (Kerala)

There was a village named Villadom in Kerala. The people there were very much united. They…
The Tiger, the Brahman and the Jackal (Punjab)

Once upon a time, a tiger was caught in a trap. He tried in vain to…
The Three Brothers (Nagaland)

Long ago, there lived three brothers. They had a small firm and a little cottage, in…
Science and Folklore 2: All Eyes on Eclipses

Article by Jenica Amalita Announcements on upcoming eclipses, whether solar or lunar, are usually accompanied by…
The Cowherd’s Sin (Chhattisgarh)

A cowherd took his cattle to graze in the forest. One of the calves was always…
The Disfigured Eye (Tamil Nadu)

Once, there was a raja who had just one son. But that son got up to…
The Clever Lawyer and the Cleverer Client (Kashmir)

Once upon a time there lived a clever lawyer named Ghulam Mustafa Khan. He had a…
The Cruel Daughter-in-Law (Pondicherry)

In a town there lived an old man and woman. For many years they had had…
The Pond of Kottazham (Kerala)

In the town of Kottazham, there was a big mango tree, standing on the brink of…
Ganga in a Trough (Uttar Pradesh)

Once upon a time, there was a pundit who was a great devotee of the river…
What Makes the Lightning (Meghalaya)

In the early days of the world, when the animals fraternised with mankind, they tried to…
The Creation of Men (Arunachal Pradesh)

At first, there were no men on the earth, which was entirely populated by woman. One…
A Flea’s Revenge (Tamil Nadu)

A little flea went to a Chettiyar and said, “Sir, please give me some oil.”“Nothing doing,”…
The Bull of Malanna (Andhra Pradesh)

Once there lived a farmer, Malanna, in a village. One day his bull was lost. It…
Raja Bana Bhat (Himachal Pradesh)

Long, long ago, a king called Bana Bhat ruled at Kangra. He was an ideal and…
The Story of the Jamboo Fruit (Maharashtra)

Once upon a. time, there lived a Rajah who had a charming daughter. There was also…
The King and the Jewel (Ladakh)

There once lived in Nubra an old woman and her son. The son’s name was Tundup.…