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

One day, Sheikh decided to visit his would-be bride Fawzia’s village to see her. As he came near the village, he started thinking about how he should introduce himself to Fawzia. Suddenly, he saw a few girls coming towards a well to fetch water. He thought of talking to the girls and finding something about

One day, Sheikh Chilli’s mother told him that his grandparents got him engaged when he was very small. On hearing this Sheikh felt very shy. She also told Sheikh that he was invited at the girl’s house. Now this invitation worried his mother, because she knew that Sheikh had done several foolish acts in the

Sheikh Chilli’s mother scolded him constantly about not earning money. Sheikh, fed up of all the scolding, decided to take up any job, that very day. He came to know about a job at a house where the servants were ill treated. Still, he went to that house and met the master. The master said