The doves who flew off with the net

Told in English, Telugu.

Once upon a time, in a big forest, there lived a flock of doves. They had soft grey feathers and they cooed all day long. Their king was a wise old dove named Chitragriva. He had shiny feathers around his neck, like a pretty necklace.

Every morning, the doves flew out together to look for food. And every morning, King Chitragriva said, "Stay together, my little ones. Together we are strong."

One sunny day, the doves flew over a quiet field. Down below, they saw rice grains, lots and lots of them, scattered on the ground.

"Food! Yummy food!" cried the young doves. Down, down, down they flew, and they began to peck. Peck, peck, peck.

But oh dear! Hidden under the rice was a big net. A hunter had spread it there to catch birds. When the doves tried to fly away, their little feet got tangled. They flapped and flapped, but they could not get out.

Far away, the hunter saw them and came walking towards the net.

"What shall we do?" cried the doves. "We are stuck!"

King Chitragriva stayed calm. "Listen to me, my dear ones," he said. "If each of us flaps alone, we will never get free. But if we all fly up at the same time, we can carry the net with us. Remember, together we are strong."

The doves looked at each other. They nodded.

"When I say three, everybody fly up," said the king. "One... two... three!"

All the doves flapped their wings at the very same moment. Flap, flap, flap! And up, up, up went the doves, and up went the whole net with them, high into the sky!

The hunter stopped and stared. He rubbed his eyes. He scratched his head. "The birds are flying away with my net!" he said. He ran a little way after them, but soon they were far beyond the trees. So he sighed and walked back home.

The doves flew on and on. Can you say it with me? Together we are strong!

"Where are we going?" asked a little dove.

"To my old friend Hiranyaka," said the king. "He is a mouse, and he has very sharp teeth."

At last they landed near a tall tree. At the bottom was a tiny hole. "Hiranyaka, my friend!" called the king. "We need your help!"

Out popped a little mouse with twitchy whiskers. "Chitragriva! What happened?" he squeaked.

The king told him everything. Hiranyaka smiled. "Don't worry. I will cut the net. Let me start with you, my friend."

But the king shook his head. "No, please free my flock first. They trusted me. I will go last."

The mouse was so happy to hear this. "You are a true king," he said.

Then Hiranyaka began to gnaw. Nibble, nibble, nibble went his little teeth. Snip went one string, snip went another. One by one, every dove was set free. And last of all, King Chitragriva stepped out too.

The doves cooed and danced in a happy circle. "Thank you, Hiranyaka!" they sang. "Thank you, King!"

That evening, the doves flew home, wing beside wing, under the pink sky. And as they settled into their nests, the little doves whispered the words they would never forget. Aikamatyame mahabalam. Together we are strong.

Good night, little one. Good night.