Tenali Rama's Clever Trick

Told in English, Hindi, Bengali, Telugu, Tamil, Spanish, French, Arabic, Mandarin Chinese.

Come sit with me, my dear, and let me tell you about the day cleverness itself got outsmarted. In the magnificent court of King Krishnadevaraya of Vijayanagar lived Tenali Rama, known far and wide as the wittiest man in the whole kingdom. One day, a very boastful poet arrived from another land. He strutted into the court, mocking everyone there, and dared anyone — anyone at all — to prove they were cleverer than him.

He placed a covered basket in front of the king and declared, quite proudly, that nobody could possibly guess what was hidden inside it. One by one, the ministers took their guesses — silks, jewels, gold — but every single answer was wrong, and the visiting poet laughed a little louder each time, feeling terribly pleased with himself. Can you imagine how frustrating that must have been for everyone watching?

Finally, Tenali Rama calmly stepped forward. He lifted the lid, peeked inside, and smiled a small, knowing smile. 'Whatever we guess will be wrong,' he said, 'because you have been secretly changing your answer each and every time, just to prove us wrong. That, my friend, is the real trick hidden in this basket.' Oh, the boastful poet's face turned bright red — his clever bluff had been caught! The whole court roared with laughter, and King Krishnadevaraya happily rewarded Tenali Rama, for he had done something remarkable: he had outwitted wit itself, my dear.