Birth	Garalpati Ramakrishna 16th century
occupation	King Krishnadeva Raya  ‘s chief clown, poet
Religion	Vaishnava
wife	Shardha
Son	Bhaskar Sharma
death	16th century Tenali, Andhra Pradesh

1. Sone ke mango

With the passage of time, the mother of King Krishna Deva Raya had become very old. Once she fell very ill. They thought that she would soon die. She was very fond of mangoes, so she wanted to donate mangoes in the last days of her life, so she expressed her desire to donate mangoes to Brahmins from the king.

She understood that by donating in this way she would attain heaven, so after a few days the mother of the king died without fulfilling her last wish. After her death the king called all the learned brahmins and told about his mother’s last unfulfilled wish.

After remaining silent for some time, the brahmin said, ‘It is very bad sir, in the event of not fulfilling the last wish, they cannot get salvation. Those phantoms will keep wandering in the vagina. Sir, you should take measures for the peace of his soul.

Then Maharaj asked him the way to fulfill his mother’s last wish. The Brahmin said, ‘For the peace of his soul, you will have to donate gold mangoes on his death anniversary. Therefore, on the death anniversary of the mother, the king invited some brahmins for food and gave each one mangoes made of gold in charity.

When Tenaliram came to know of this, he immediately understood that the brahmins were taking advantage of the king’s simplicity and innocence, so he devised a plan to teach a lesson to those brahmins.

The next day Tenaliram sent invitation letters to the brahmins. It was written in it that Tenaliram also wants to donate on the death anniversary of his mother, because she too died with an unfulfilled wish. .

He is very sad and wants his mother’s soul to rest in peace soon. The Brahmins thought that even from Tenaliram’s house, he would get a lot of donations, because he is a royal clown. All the Brahmins reached Tenaliram’s house on a certain day. Delicious food was served to the Brahmins.

After having food, everyone started waiting for the donation. Then he saw Tenaliram heating iron bars in the fire. On being asked, Tenaliram said, ‘My mother was troubled by the pain of boils.

He was in severe pain at the time of his death. Before I could soak her with hot bars, she was dead. Now for the peace of his soul, I will have to do to you as his last wish was. Hearing this, the brahmins were furious. They wanted to leave immediately. He said to Tenaliram in anger that your mother’s soul will rest in peace if we are fired with hot bars?

‘No sir, I’m not lying. If the soul of Maharaj’s mother can find peace in heaven by giving in a common donation of gold, then why can’t I fulfill my mother’s last wish?

On hearing this all the brahmins understood what Tenaliram wanted to say. They said, ‘Tenaliram, forgive us. We give you those golden mangoes. Just you let us go.’ Tenaliram took the gold mangoes and let the Brahmins go, but a greedy Brahmin went and told the whole thing to the king.

Hearing this, the king became angry and called Tenaliram. He said, ‘Tenaliram, if you wanted golden mangoes, you would have asked me. How did you become so greedy that you took gold mangoes from Brahmins?

Sir, I am not greedy, but I was stopping their greedy tendencies. If they can accept gold mangoes on your mother’s death anniversary, why can’t they take hot iron bars on my mother’s death anniversary? The king understood the meaning of Tenaliram’s words.

He called the brahmins and asked them to give up greed in future .

2. Magical Well

Once King Krishna Deva Raya ordered his Home Minister to build several wells in the state. As summer was approaching, the king wanted the wells to be ready soon so that people could get some relief in the summer.

The Home Minister took a lot of money from the royal treasury for this work. Soon many wells were prepared in the city as per the orders of the king. After this one day the king visited the city and inspected some wells himself.

He was satisfied to see his order being fulfilled. One day in summer, some villagers from outside the city approached Tenaliram, all of them with complaints against the Home Minister. Tenaliram listened to his complaint and told him the way to get justice.

Tenaliram met the king the next day and said, ‘Maharaj! I have received information about the presence of some thieves in Vijayanagara. They are stealing our wells. On this the king said, ‘What are you talking about, Tenali! How can a thief steal a well?’ King! This is certainly surprising, but it is true. Those thieves have stolen many wells till now.

Tenaliram said very naively. Hearing his words, all the courtiers present in the court started laughing. The Maharaj said, ‘Tenaliram, your health is fine. What nonsense are you talking about today? No one can believe your words.

‘King! I knew that you would not believe me, so I have brought some villagers along. They are all standing outside. If you don’t believe me, you can call him in the court and ask.

They will tell you everything in detail. The king called the villagers standing outside to the court. A villager said, ‘Maharaj! All the wells made by the Home Minister are exhausted, you can see for yourself.

The king agreed to them and the Home Minister, Tenaliram, accompanied by some courtiers and villagers went to inspect the wells. After inspecting the whole city, he found that there is no well in other places and villages around the capital.

Seeing the king coming to know about this, the Home Minister was terrified. In fact he had ordered only a few wells to be built. He spent the remaining money on his comforts. By now even the king had understood the meaning of Tenaliram’s words.

He started getting angry at the Home Minister, when Tenaliram interrupted, ‘Maharaj! It’s not their fault in this. In fact they were magic wells, which ended up in the air a few days after they were built. Ending his talk, Tenali Ram started looking at the Home Minister.

The home minister bowed his head in shame. The king scolded the home minister a lot and ordered him to build a hundred more wells. All the responsibility of this work was entrusted to Tenaliram.

3. Borrowed burden

Once, trapped in some financial problem, Tenaliram had borrowed some money from King Krishnadeva Raya. Time passed and the time to return the money also drew near, but Tenali could not have any arrangement to return the money, so he made a plan to avoid repaying the loan.

One day the king received a letter from Tenaliram’s wife. It was written in that letter that Tenaliram is very ill. Tenaliram was not even coming to the court for many days, so the king thought that he should go and meet Tenali himself. At the same time, the king also doubted whether Tenaliram had any plans to avoid borrowing. The king reached Tenaliram’s house.

There Tenaliram was lying on the bed wearing a blanket. Seeing his condition, the king asked his wife the reason. She said, ‘Sir, their heart is burdened by your loan. This worry is eating them inside and maybe that’s why they got sick.

‘ The king consoled Tenali and said, ‘Tenali, don’t you worry. You are not bound to repay my loan. Quit worrying and get well soon.’ Hearing this, Tenaliram jumped out of the bed and laughed and said, ‘Thank you sir.

What is this, Tenali? It doesn’t mean you weren’t sick. How dare you lie to me?’ The king said in anger. No, sir, I didn’t lie to you. I was sick with the burden of debt.

As soon as you freed me from debt, from then all my worries ended and the burden of debt was removed from me. As soon as this burden was removed, my illness also kept going and I started feeling healthy. Now I am free, healthy and happy as per your orders.’ As usual the king had nothing to say, he smiled at Tenali’s plan .

4. Kuye ki Shaadi

Once there was a dispute between King Krishnadevaraya and Tenaliram over something. Tenaliram left in awe. Eight or ten days passed, the king’s heart became sad. The king immediately sent servants to find Tenaliram. Scored the entire surrounding area, but Tenaliram was nowhere to be found.

Suddenly the king got an idea. He made a statement in all the villages that the king was arranging the marriage of his royal well, so all the headmen of the village reached the capital with the wells of their respective villages.

The person who does not obey this command will have to pay one thousand gold coins in fine. Everyone got upset hearing Munadi. Well, wells can also be brought and taken anywhere. In the village where Tenaliram lived in disguise, this hymn was also heard. The head of the village was upset.

Tenaliram understood that Maharaj had played this trick only to find him. Tenaliram called the chief and said, ‘Mukhiji, you do not worry, you have given me shelter in the village, so I will repay your favor.

One trick I suggest is to gather the chiefs around and head towards the capital. All proceeded towards the capital as per the advice. Tenaliram was also with him. It did not take long for the king to understand their point that it was Tenaliram’s trick.

The king asked, tell the truth, who has given you this wisdom? Rajan! A few days ago a foreigner had come and stayed in our village, he told us this trick, replied the visitor. Hearing all this, the king himself came out of the capital on a chariot and brought Tenaliram back to the court with respect. The villagers were also given away with prizes.

After reaching outside the capital, they stopped at one place. A man was sent to the court with the message of the chief. The man reached the court and told Tainaliram according to his opinion, ‘Maharaj! The wells of our village have camped outside the capital to attend marriages.

You kindly send the state well to receive them so that the wells of our village can appear in front of the court with respect. It did not take long for the king to understand their point that it was Tenaliram’s trick. The king asked, tell the truth, who has given you this wisdom? Rajan!

A few days ago a foreigner had come and stayed in our village, he told us this trick, the visitor replied. Hearing all this, the king himself came out of the capital on a chariot and brought Tenaliram back to the court with respect. The villagers were also given away with prizes.

5. Dog’s tail straight

One day there was a heated debate in the court of King Krishnadeva Raya whether the nature of man could be changed or not. Some said that human nature can be changed. Some thought that this could not happen, as a dog’s tail could never be straight.

The king got a sense of humor. He said, ‘The point reached here is that if the tail of a dog can be straightened, then the nature of man can also be changed, otherwise it cannot be changed. The king again thought of taking Vinod forward, said, ‘Okay, you guys try this .

The king got ten selected persons a puppy of a dog and decided to give ten gold coins every month for six months. All these people had to try to straighten the tail of the dogs. Tenaliram was also one of these persons. The remaining nine made great efforts to straighten the tails of the puppies during these six months. One pressed the tail end of the puppy with a heavy weight so that it straightened the tail.

Another put the tail of the puppy in a straight brass tube. The third got the tail massaged every day to straighten the tail of his puppy. The sixth gentleman got hold of a tantrik from somewhere, who was trying to do this work by uttering ludicrous sentences and reciting mantras in various ways.

The seventh gentleman got his puppy surgically operated. The eighth person kept the puppy in front and gave him speech every day for six months that keep the tail straight, brother, keep it straight. The ninth person kept feeding sweets to the puppy so that it might agree and straighten his tail.

But Tenaliram would feed the puppy only as long as he lived. His tail also hanged lifeless, which seemed to be straight in sight. After six months, the king ordered the ten puppies to be present in the court. Nine individuals produced stocky and healthy pups.

When the weight was removed from the first puppy’s tail, it rose upright and crooked. When the tail of the other was removed from the tube, it also got crooked at the same time. The tails of the remaining seven puppies were also crooked . Tenaliram presented his half-dead puppy in front of the king.

All his limbs were drooping. Tenaliram said, ‘Sir, I have straightened the dog’s tail.’ The king said, ‘You didn’t even have any pity on the poor animal? You killed it by starvation. It doesn’t even have the power to wag its tail.

Sir, if you had said that it should be fed well, I would leave no stone unturned, but your order was to straighten its tail against nature, which could be accomplished only by starving it. Just like that, the nature of a human being does not actually change. Yes, you can make him dead by keeping him in a dungeon, starving him.

6. Fool

King Krishnadevaraya of Vijayanagara celebrated the festival of Holi with great pomp. On this occasion many programs of humor and entertainment were held. Prizes were also given to the successful performers of each program. The highest award was given to the one who received the title of ‘Mahamoorkh’.

Tenaliram used to entertain everyone in the court of Krishna Deva Raya. He was very sharp minded. Not only did he get the award for the best comedian of the year, he would have won the title of ‘Mahamoorkh’ every year. The courtiers used to envy him for this reason.

Once together they devised a strategy to defeat Tenaliram. This time on the day of Holi, he made Tenaliram drink cannabis. On the day of Holi , Tenaliram slept for a long time under the influence of cannabis. When he woke up, he saw that it was noon.

They reached the court running away. Half the program was over. Krishna Deva Raya stooped on seeing him and asked, ‘Oh foolish Tenaliramji, did you sleep after drinking cannabis on this day too?’ All the courtiers were happy to hear that the king called Tenaliram ‘a fool’.

He also nodded yes to the king and said, ‘You are absolutely right, Tenaliram is not only a fool but a great fool.’ When Tenaliram heard this from everyone’s mouth, he smiled and said to the king, ‘Thank you sir, you have given me the biggest reward of the day by declaring me a great fool with your mouth.

Hearing this from Tenaliram, the courtiers came to know of their mistake, but what could they do now? Because he himself had made Tenaliram a great fool with his own mouth. Like every year, this year also Tenaliram went on to win the ‘Mahamoorkh’ award.

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7. Matke Mein Muh

Once Maharaja Krishnadeva Raya got angry with Tenaliram on some issue. Enraged, he said in the court full of Tenaliram that from tomorrow, do not show your face to me in the court. At the same time Tenaliram left the court.

On the second day when Maharaj was coming towards the court, a joker provoked him by saying that Tenaliram is present in the court against your order. Just hearing this, the Maharaj was furious. The chuckled courtier further said – You had clearly said that there would be floggings on coming to the court, he did not care about that either .

Now Tenaliram is busy disobeying your orders too. The king reached the court. He saw that Tenaliram, wearing a pot of clay on his head, was doing strange movements. The mouths of animals were made all around on the pitcher. Tenaliram! What nonsense is this? You have disobeyed our orders, said the Maharaj.

Get ready to be flogged as a punishment. Who did I not obey your orders, my lord?’ Tenaliram, hiding his face in the pitcher, said – ‘You said that if I do not show my face in the court tomorrow, do you see my face . Oh God! Somewhere the potter did not give a broken pot.

On hearing this, Maharaj laughed out loud. He said- ‘ No one can get angry with intelligent and smart like you . Now remove this pitcher and take your seat in a straight way.’

8. Big Who

Once King Krishna Deva Raya was sitting in the palace with his queen. Talking about Tenaliram, he said that there is really no one else as clever as him in our court, so till now no one has been able to defeat him. Hearing this, the queen said, you invite Tenaliram to the palace for food tomorrow. I will definitely beat him.

The king agreed with a smile. The next day the queen made a delicious dish with her own hands. Tenaliram, sitting with the king, was going on eating those dishes, praising them wholeheartedly. After eating, the queen gave him a piece of good paan to eat. Tenaliram smiled and said, ‘Really, I have never had the pleasure of eating like today!’ Then suddenly the queen asked, ‘Well Tenaliram, tell me one thing.

Is the king older or me? Now Tenaliram was baffled. Both the king and queen were eagerly watching what Tenaliram would answer .

The queen panicked and said, ‘Hey, what is this Tenaliram? Tenaliram stood up and said, ‘Maharaniji, to me you are the earth and the king of the sky! I am not able to say which of the two is smaller, which is bigger! Well today the food prepared by the queen’s hands was so delicious that she would have to say big, that’s why I was bowing down to the earth. Both laughed out.

Ran said, ‘You are really smart, Tenaliram. Gave me victory, but even after losing, I myself lived. On this, along with the Queen and King Krishnadevaraya, Tenaliram also laughed happily.

9. Tenali Rama’s Wisdom

Once in the royal court, a traveler named Neelketu came to meet King Krishna Deva Raya. The guards informed the king about his arrival. The king allowed Neelketu to meet him. The traveler was very thin. He came in front of the king and said- ‘Maharaj, I am Neelketu of Nildesh and at this time I have gone on a world tour.

After visiting all the places, I have reached your court. The king welcomed him and declared him the royal guest. Pleased with the respect received from the king, he said, ‘Maharaj! I know the place where many beautiful fairies live.

I can summon him here with my magic power. Hearing Neelketu, the king was happy and said, ‘What should I do for this?’ He asked King Krishnadev to come near the pond at night and said that I can also invite fairies to dance at that place.

After listening to Neelketu, the king left for the pond on a horse in the night. On reaching the bank of the pond, Neelketu welcomed King Krishnadev near the old fort and said- Maharaj! I have made all the arrangements. All those fairies are inside the fort. The king got off his horse and started going inside with Neelketu . At the same time to the king.

Noise was heard. When I saw Neelketu was captured by the king’s army . Seeing all this, the king asked- ‘What is happening? Then Tenaliram came out from inside the fort and said – ‘Maharaj! I tell you?’ Tenaliram told the king- ‘This Neelketu is a defense minister and Maharaj… there is nothing inside the fort.

This Neelketu is preparing to kill you. The king thanked Tenaliram for his protection and said- ‘Tell me this Tenaliram, how did you know all this? ‘ .

Then I asked my comrades to follow it where Neelketu was planning to kill you. King Krishnadeva was pleased and thanked him at Tenalirama’s understanding.

10. Tenali’s marial horse

 King Krishnadeva Raya’s horse was of good breed, hence its price was high. Tenaliram’s horse was Mariyal. Tenaliram wanted to sell it, but its price was very low.

They could not sell even if they wanted to. One day King Krishnadevaraya and Tenaliram went for a walk on their respective horses. During the walk, the king killed Tenaliram’s horse.

Seeing the trick, he said, ‘What a marvelous horse is yours, the wonders I can show with my horse, you cannot show with your horse. Tenaliram replied to the king, ‘Sir, what I can do with my horse, you cannot do with your horse. The king was not ready to accept it at all. A bet of one hundred gold coins was made between the two . Both moved on.

They started crossing the bridge built on the Tungabhadra river in front . The river was very deep and the flow of water was fast. Vortexes were visible in many places. Suddenly, whirlpools were visible in many places. Suddenly Tenaliram got off his horse and pushed him into the water. He asked the king.

Said, ‘Sir, now you also do the same thing with your horse. But how could the king push his fine and precious horse into the water? He said to Tenaliram, ‘No Baba, I have agreed that I cannot perform this feat with my horse, which you can perform.

‘On this the king gave a hundred gold coins to Tenaliram. But how did you come to know this strange thing?’ The king asked Tenali Rama. Hearing this from Tenaliram, the king burst out laughing.

11. Tenali Ki Chutiya

One day, King Krishnadeva Raya asked Tenalirama, ‘Well, tell me which type of people are the most stupid and which type is the most mature? Tenaliram immediately replied, ‘Maharaj! Brahmins are the most foolish and traders are the most mature. How is it possible?’ The king said.

I can prove it’, Tenaliram said. How?’ The king asked. “You will know now, just a little. Call Rajguru. Rajguru was called. Tenaliram said, ‘Maharaj, now I will prove my point, but you will not interfere in this work. You give this promise, then only I will start the work. The king obeyed Tenaliram.

Tenaliram respectfully said to Rajguru, ‘Rajguruji, Maharaj needs your peak. In return, you will be given a handsome reward. If you cut Rajguru, there is no blood. How to cut off the lovely braid that has been cultivated over the years ? But how could the king’s order be avoided. He said, ‘Tenaliramji, how can I give it.

“Rajguruji, you have eaten Maharaj’s salt for the rest of your life. The peak is not something that cannot come again. Then Maharaj is also giving a handsome reward….’ Rajguru said, ‘Five gold coins will be plenty.

Five gold coins were given to Rajguru and the hairdresser was called and the top of Rajguru was cut off. Now Tenaliram called the most famous merchant of the city. Tenaliram said to the merchant, ‘Maharaj needs your braid. Everything belongs to the Maharaj, take it whenever you want, but just keep in mind that I am a poor man ‘, said the merchant.

You will be paid exorbitant price for your peak, Tenaliram said. All is your grace but…, said the merchant. What do you want to say’, Tenaliram asked. The thing is that when I got my daughter married, I had spent the entire five thousand gold coins to keep my top honor.

Last year my father died, even then five thousand gold coins were spent because of this, and because of this lovely peak, at least five thousand gold coins are borrowed from the market’, shaking his hand. said the merchant. In this way the value of your peak became fifteen thousand gold coins. OK, this price will be given to you.

Fifteen thousand gold coins were given to the merchant. The merchant sat down to shave the top. As the barber placed the razor on the top, the merchant said sternly, ‘Be careful, children of the barber. I don’t know, this is the peak of Maharaja Krishna Deva Raya. When the king heard it, he was furious.

It is the fun of this merchant to insult us? He said, ‘Push out this madman.’ The merchant fled from there with a bag of fifteen thousand gold coins. After sometime Tenaliram said, ‘You have seen, Maharaj, Rajguru has shaved his head with five gold coins.

The merchant also took fifteen thousand gold coins and also saved the peak. You yourself say, whether the Brahmin grew up to be a businessman?’ The king said, “You are really right.

12. Tenali and Kanjus Seth

A miserly Seth lived in the kingdom of King Krishna Deva Raya. He had no shortage of money, but his grandmother used to die while taking out a single penny from his pocket. Once some of his friends laughingly persuaded an artist to get him painted.

He agreed in front of him, but when the painter brought him a picture, Seth did not dare to give a hundred gold coins to the painter as the value of the picture. That is why Seth was also a kind of artist.

Seeing the painter coming, Seth went inside and came out changing his face in a few moments. He said to the painter, ‘Your picture did not turn out well at all. Tell me, does this face match my face at all? The painter saw that the picture really did not match Seth’s face at all.

Then Seth said, ‘When you bring such a picture , which will match my face, then only I will buy it. On the second day the painter brought another painting which was exactly like the face of Seth which Seth had drawn on the first day. This time again Seth changed his face and began to find fault with the portrait of the painter.

The painter was ashamed. He could not understand why such a mistake occurs in his picture. The next day he again took a new picture and took it, but the same thing happened to him again. By now , Seth’s trick had come to his senses.

He knew that this fugitive Seth really did not want to give money, but the painter did not want to let his many days of hard work go in vain. After much deliberation, the painter approached Tenaliram and narrated his problem to him.

After thinking for some time, Tenaliram said, ‘Tomorrow you go to him with a mirror and say that I have come with a very real picture of you. Mixing it well , Tenaliram said, ‘Tomorrow you go to him with a mirror and say that I have come with a very real picture of you. Mix it well. Take it

You won’t find any difference anywhere. Just then, consider your work done. The next day the painter did the same. He took the mirror and reached Seth’s place and placed it in front of him.

‘Take it, Sethji, your perfect picture. There is no room for error in this . The painter said, controlling his smile. But this is a mirror, Seth said angrily.

Who can make your real face apart from the mirror? Quickly get a thousand gold coins worth my paintings,’ said the painter. Seth understood that all this was the result of Tenaliram’s wisdom. He immediately gave one thousand gold coins to the painter. When Tenaliram narrated this incident to Maharaja Krishnadevaraya, he laughed a lot.

13. Winter sweets

Once Tenaliram and Rajpurohit were sitting with King Krishna Deva Raya in the palace. It was winter time The three were busy in conversation while soaking up the morning sun , when suddenly the king said – ‘Winter is the best season. Eat a lot and be healthy.

Hearing about the food, the priest’s mouth watered. Said “Sir, eating nuts and sweets in winter is its own pleasure, it is its own pleasure.” Well tell me, which is the best winter dessert?’ King Krishnadev Raya asked. The priest counted many sweets such as halwa, malpua, pistachio barfi etc. The priest liked all the sweets.

Which dessert describes you best? Tenaliram said, ‘All is well, but that sweet will not be found here. Which sweet?’ King Krishna Deva Raya asked curiously – ‘And what is the name of that sweet? If you come with me tonight, I will also feed you that sweet. King Krishna Deva Raya agreed.

In the night, in a simple dress, he left with Purohit and Tenaliram. By the way, all three went a long way. At one place, two or three men were lost in talking in front of the bonfire. All three also stopped there. People in this disguise could not even recognize the king. The crusher was running nearby. Tenaliram went there and took some hot jaggery after paying some money. Taking the jaggery, they came to the priest and the king.

In the dark, giving some hot jaggery to the king and the priest, he said – ‘Take, eat, the real sweets of winter.’ When the king ate hot jaggery, it was very tasty. The king said, ‘Wow, such a wonderful sweet, where did it come from here in the dark? Then Tenaliram saw leaves lying in a corner. He got up from his place and gathered some leaves and set it on fire.

Then he said, “Sir, this is jaggery. “Jaggery…and so delicious!” Sir, in winter the real flavor resides in hot cheeses. This jaggery is hot so it is delicious. Hearing this, King Krishnadev Raya smiled. The priest was still silent.

14. Theft caught  

Once the theft started continuously in Vijayanagara, the kingdom of King Krishnadeva Raya. The Seths came and cried in the king’s court, ‘Sir, we have been looted and ruined. By breaking the lock at night, the thieves took away all the money in our vault.’ King Krishnadev Raya got these incidents investigated by the Kotwal, but nothing worked.

They got very worried. Incidents of theft continued. The courage of the thieves was increasing. At last the king rebuked the courtiers and said, ‘Isn’t there any of you who can take the responsibility of catching the thieves?’ All the courtiers looked at each other’s faces. Tenaliram got up and said, ‘Your Majesty, I will take this responsibility. He got up from there and went to a prominent jeweler of Tenaliram Nagar.

He told her his plan and returned home. The jeweler got a big exhibition of jewelery set up in his place the next day. When it was night, he kept all the jewelery in a safe and locked it. Thieves came in the middle of the night. They came out by breaking the lock and putting all the jewelery kept in the safe in the bag.

As soon as they started going out of Seth’s mansion, Seth came to know, he made a noise. People around also gathered. Tenaliram also came there with his soldiers and said, ‘Catch those whose hands are painted.’ Soon all the thieves were caught.

The thieves were presented in the court the next day. Seeing the colors on everyone’s hands, the king asked, ‘Tenaliramji what is this? Sir, we had put wet paint on the vault so that the thieves who came with the intention of stealing could get paint on their bodies and we could catch them easily.

The king asked, ‘But you could have stationed the soldiers there . ‘ Hearing this, King Krishnadeva Raya praised Tenalirama very much .

15. Precious Gift

Precious Gifts King by winning the battle. Krishnadeva Raya celebrated the victory festival. At the end of the celebration, the king said, ‘The victory of the battle is not my victory alone, it is the victory of all my comrades and allies. I want all the members of my cabinet to receive awards on this occasion.

You all take the prize of your choice, but there is a condition that everyone has to take different prizes. Two men cannot take the same thing. After making this announcement, the king pulled the curtain of the pavilion in which all the prizes were decorated. Then what was there! Everyone started taking initiative to get the best prize. The prizes were placed by the count of all the people.

So, after a while of pushing and tinkering, everyone got a prize. All the prizes were valuable. Everyone was satisfied after receiving their respective award. In the end, the prize worth less than the sun was left – a silver platter. This award was to be given to the person who reached the court after everyone, that is, the penalty for arriving late.

When everyone did the calculations, it came to know that Mr. Tenaliram had not arrived yet. Everyone was happy to know this. Everyone thought that we would all tease Tenaliram a lot by getting this absurd, clumsy and cheap prize. It will be great fun Then Mr. Tenaliram came.

All the people shouted in one voice, ‘Come on, Tenaliramji! A unique prize awaits you. Tenaliram looked at all the courtiers. Everyone had their own awards in their hands. Some had a gold garland around their neck, while some had a golden spear in their hand.

Some had a silk turban of golden work on their head, while some had a diamond ring. He quietly lifted the silver plate. He put that silver plate on his head and covered it with a dupatta, as if something was kept on the plate.

King Krishnadeva Raya saw Tenalirama covering the plate with a dupatta. He said, ‘Tenaliram, why are you covering the plate like this with a dupatta?

This is the first time that I have received a silver platter. I am covering this plate with a dupatta to keep your word. Everyone should understand that this time also, the Maharaja has given the Asharfiyan award to Tenaliram by filling the plate. Maharaj was pleased with Tenaliram’s clever words. He took off his precious necklace from the neck and said, ‘Tenaliram, your plate will not be empty even today.

Today will be the most valuable prize in that. Carry the plate , Tenaliram! Tenaliram presented the plate in front of King Krishnadevaraya.

The king put his valuable necklace in it. Everyone accepted the iron of Tenaliram’s intellect. The courtiers who had been making fun of him a while back, were all looking at each other’s faces as wet cats, because this time too Tenaliram got the most precious prize.

16. How many crows

Maharaj Krishnadeva Raya used to ask inverted questions to ridicule Tenaliram. Tenaliram would give such an answer every time that the king’s speech would have stopped. One day the king asked Tenaliram, “Tenaliram! Can you tell how many crows live in our capital? Yes I can tell sir! Tenaliram spoke with alacrity. Maharaj said to tell the exact count.

Yes sir, I will be absolutely right. Tenaliram replied. The courtiers guessed that today Tenali Ram would definitely be trapped. Is it possible to count birds? “Give you two days’ time. On the third day you have to tell how many crows are there in our capital. Maharaj said in the language of the order.

On the third day the court joined again. Tenaliram got up from his place and said, “Your Majesty, there are a total of one lakh fifty thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine crows in our capital. Sir, if there is any doubt, get it counted.

The king said if the number turned out to be more or less after counting? Maharaj such, it will not happen, Tenaliram said with great confidence, if the count turns out to be wrong, then there will be a reason for this too. The king asked, “What could be the reason?”

Tenaliram replied “If! If the number of crows increases in the capital, it means that some relatives and friendly friends of crows have come to meet them in our capital. If the numbers have come down, it means that some of our crows have gone outside the capital to visit their relatives. Otherwise the number of crows would be only one lakh fifty thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine, the courtiers who were jealous of Tenaliram were fuming inside that as usual this trickster again escaped from the narrow alley with his cunning.