151 Sheikh Chilli’s Tales

Once, Sheikh Chilli’s grandfather visited their house. Grandfather had a lot of sympathy for his grandson, as Sheikh was born silly. When he was leaving, Sheikh’s grandfather blessed him and gave him a silver coin. He told Sheikh to keep the coin a secret. Sheikh wondered where to hide it. He remembered a loose brick […]

When the British were invading India, local rulers were building large armies for defence. Sheikh Chilli was also asked to join the army. He refused after a lot of thought, saying that it would be shameful. The shocked recruiters asked how such a glorious job could be shameful? Sheikh said, “If I go to fight,

Sheikh Chilli had once grown a long beard and a moustache. He was of the opinion that bearded men looked mature. One day, he overheard some people discussing whether a beard should be kept or not. A man said, “According to a great book of wisdom, people with long beards were stupid. The theory was

A farmer had asked Sheikh that whenever he passed by his farm, he should say, “Fly away birds!” So one day, while chanting ‘Fly away birds…’ Sheikh came upon a hunter. On hearing Sheikh’s chants, he started hitting him. “You are telling the birds to fly away, you fool! Here, I am trying to catch

Sheikh Chilli once fell ill. He had fever and a stomachache. His mother told him to visit the Hakim and get some medicine. The Hakim checked him and gave him three doses of medicine to take home. He then advised Sheikh, “You should have only ‘khichri’ (a gruel made with rice and pulse) to eat.”

The head of Sheikh’s village once got Sheikh a job with a Nawab. Sheikh’s duty was to follow the young Nawab wherever he went. Once, Sheikh followed the junior Nawab’s horse when they went to the market and came back home. At home, the junior Nawab could not find his expensive diamond-studded dagger. Sheikh was

Sheikh Chilli got a job at a merchant’s house as a helper. One day, the merchant and Sheikh had to go to another town. They started early in the morning, as the town was far off. In the evening, they reached a village and decided to stay in an inn. The merchant asked Sheikh to

Once, Sheikh Chilli was staying with his aunt. She needed some wood. Sheikh decided to help her, and picking up the axe, started for the forest. He climbed up a tree and sat on a branch, cutting the very branch he was sitting on. A man passing by saw Sheikh doing this foolish thing. He

A merchant, known to Sheikh Chilli’s father, once employed him as a servant. When Sheikh was asked to get water for the merchant, Sheikh got water in his hands. Abdullah, the merchant, explained that he had to use his common sense and then act. He should have brought water in a glass, on a tray.

One night, Sheikh Chilli could not sleep well as mosquitoes were bothering him. He tiptoed out of his house and roamed around in the moonlit night. When he came near the well, a large cloud hid the moon. Sheikh wondered where the moon had vanished. The cloud cleared as he looked into the well, and

Once, at his aunt’s place, Sheikh pestered a man to predict his future. The man had told him about something, many months ago, which later actually happened. Insisting that it was just common sense, the man tried to convince Sheikh. But Sheikh wouldn’t let him go. Finally, to get rid of Sheikh, the man tied

Once, Aunt Fatima’s hen had laid a dozen eggs. The hen kept sitting on the eggs to hatch them. Sheikh was quite interested in this hatching and watched the hen very closely. He kept on wandering around the hen all the time, observing it minutely. Aunt Fatima knew Sheikh and his odd ways, so she

Sheikh was staying at his cousin Irfan’s house, once. He had gone there for a short visit, but overstayed. In spite of many hints from his hosts, to leave, Sheikh refused to go. One day, Irfan’s wife started crying, saying that she had a terrible stomachache. She told Sheikh that it was exactly like the

Sheikh’s wife, Fawzia, and her mother were going to another town for some days. Fawzia was worried about leaving Sheikh behind, alone at the house. Sheikh said that he too would go to some cousin’s place to stay. He set off for his cousin, Irfan’s place. Irfan welcomed Sheikh warmly, but his wife didn’t seem

Fawzia’s friends were impressed by Sheikh’s wit. They asked him to tell them some witty stories. Sheikh started telling them one story from his childhood, “This happened when I was five years old. One day, when I was sitting with my grandfather in the porch, his friend arrived. Since I was a small boy, I