The Monkey and the Crocodile
A tale of friendship, betrayal, and quick thinking
A clever monkey outsmarts a crocodile who pretends to be his friend while plotting to eat his heart.
Indian Folk Tales
Stories from every corner of the Indian subcontinent
The Blue Jackal
When a jackal pretends to be something he is not
A jackal falls into a vat of blue dye and uses his strange new appearance to rule the jungle — until his own nature betrays him.
The Tortoise and the Geese
When keeping your mouth shut means staying alive
A talkative tortoise convinces his goose friends to carry him through the sky, but his inability to stay quiet costs him everything.
The Brahmin and the Cobra
Kindness to the wrong creature can be your undoing
A kind brahmin saves a cobra from a fire, only to learn a painful lesson about the nature of those who cannot change.
The Mice and the Elephants
Even the smallest can help the mightiest
A colony of mice makes a pact with elephants — and when the elephants are captured by hunters, the tiny mice prove that size means nothing when it comes to loyalty.
The Lion and the Rabbit
How a tiny rabbit defeated the king of the jungle with brains alone
A clever rabbit tricks a fearsome lion into fighting his own reflection, saving every animal in the forest.
The Merchant and the Iron Weights
How a clever man returned a cheat's trick in kind
When a merchant's friend claims mice ate his iron, he teaches the thief an unforgettable lesson.
The Crows and the Serpent
Using the powerful to fight your battles
A pair of crows devise a brilliant plan to rid their tree of a deadly serpent by turning the queen's guards into their unwitting allies.
The Musical Donkey
A donkey who loved singing too much for his own good
A donkey who sneaks into farms at night makes the fatal mistake of celebrating with a song.
The Wedge-Pulling Monkey
Why you should never meddle in things you don't understand
A curious monkey plays with a wedge in a half-split log — and learns an excruciating lesson about minding his own business.
The Clever Fish of Vembanad
A Kerala tale of wisdom from the backwaters
Three fish in the great Vembanad lake face a fisherman's net, but only the wisest survives.
The Jackfruit Tree and the Elephant
A tale of patience and hidden strength
An arrogant elephant mocks a small jackfruit tree, not knowing what it will become.
The Ghost of Munroe Island
A spooky backwater tale with a twist
A boy rowing through the backwaters at night encounters the infamous ghost — but discovers something unexpected.
The Rice That Walked
A harvest tale from Kuttanad
A generous farmer gives away rice to everyone who asks, and discovers that kindness has its own harvest.
Why the Coconut Has Three Eyes
An origin tale from the Malabar Coast
How the coconut palm became the most useful tree in Kerala — a creation story with a lesson.
The Blind Men and the Elephant
Everyone is right, and everyone is wrong
Six blind men each touch a different part of an elephant and come to wildly different conclusions about what it is.
About Indian Folk Tales
India has one of the richest storytelling traditions in the world, from ancient collections such as the Panchatantra and the Jataka tales to regional stories told in every language and state. Many of these tales travelled along trade routes and influenced stories in Persia, Arabia and Europe.
This collection brings together our retellings of classic Indian fables and our own Kerala-inspired stories, so readers can move between ancient wisdom tales and village stories from the south in one place.
The common thread is practical wisdom: knowing whom to trust, using your wits, and treating others, including animals and nature, with respect.
Reading tips for parents and teachers
- Ask children to compare an animal character here with one from Aesop.
- Discuss why so many Indian fables use animals instead of people.
- Pick a story and ask how it might be told differently in your own state or language.