The Best Lie in Vijayanagara
The king holds a contest for the best lie, with a prize of a thousand gold coins.
Funny short stories
These funny short stories bring together clever schemes, comic misunderstandings, and characters whose plans rarely go quite as expected. Enjoy classics such as “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” and “The Cop and the Anthem”; every story is free to read or listen to on Pagehush.
The Tales of Sheikh Chilli
Sheikh Chilli means well, works hard and dreams big, and somehow everything still goes wrong.
The Barber's Clever Wife
A lazy barber's wife sends him out to make his fortune and then saves him, again and again, from tigers, robbers and a king, with her quick wits.
Harisarman and Other Indian Tales
Five Indian folk tales: Harisarman, the poor Brahman who pretends to be a great fortune-teller and keeps getting lucky; the clever little Lambikin; the dreamer and…
Tenali Chooses How to Die
Tenali Raman finally goes too far, and the furious king sentences him to death.
The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County
Ask old Simon Wheeler a simple question and you'll get the whole tale of Jim Smiley, who would bet on anything, and his frog Dan'l Webster.
Washing the Black Dog
The royal barber pleases the king so much that he asks to be made a minister.
A Midsummer Night's Dream
Four young lovers run away into an enchanted wood outside Athens, where the fairy king Oberon and his mischievous servant Puck play tricks with a love potion.
The Best Weapon
Birbal tells the Emperor that the best weapon in the world is whatever happens to be at hand.
The Brave Little Tailor
A little tailor kills seven flies with one blow and stitches "Seven at one blow!"
The Cop and the Anthem
Winter is coming, and Soapy, who lives on a park bench, wants three months in a warm prison.
The Emperor's New Clothes
Two swindlers promise a vain emperor a suit of cloth so fine that fools can't see it.
The Open Window
A nervous man comes to the country for a rest cure and is entertained by a very self-possessed niece of fifteen, who tells him about the open window.
The Ransom of Red Chief
Two small-time crooks kidnap a banker's son for ransom. The boy turns out to be a terror they can't control, and soon they're begging his father to take him back.
The Story-Teller
On a hot railway journey, a bachelor tells three badly behaved children a story about a horribly good little girl.
The Three Deaf Men
A deaf husband, a deaf wife and a deaf passer-by try to settle a quarrel about cabbage, and nobody hears a word.
The £1,000,000 Bank-Note
Two rich brothers make a bet: what happens to a penniless stranger handed a single million-pound note that no shop can change?
Valiant Vicky, the Brave Weaver
A timid little weaver kills a mosquito, gets a reputation as a great warrior, and has to fight a tiger and an army.
A Chameleon
A dog has bitten a goldsmith in the market square, and Police Superintendent Otchumyelov is ready to punish it.
A Work of Art
A grateful young man gives his doctor a valuable antique candelabra, decorated with figures far too shocking to keep on a doctor's desk.
Alnaschar's Dream
Lazy Alnaschar spends his whole inheritance on a basket of glassware to sell.
Birbal Counts the Crows
Emperor Akbar asks Birbal a question that no one could possibly answer: exactly how many crows live in the city of Agra?
Birbal’s Journey to Heaven
The royal barber, who hates Birbal, persuades the Emperor to send him on a journey to heaven to visit Akbar’s ancestors, by way of a funeral fire.
Birbal’s Khichdi
A poor man stands all night in a freezing lake to win the Emperor’s prize, but Akbar refuses to pay him.
Feathertop
A witch makes a scarecrow from a broomstick, a pumpkin and old clothes, then puffs life into his pipe and sends him to the town as a fine gentleman to court the…
How Birbal Came to Court
A clever young man named Mahesh Das is promised a reward by the Emperor himself, but a greedy guard at the palace gate wants half of it.
How Many Stars in the Sky?
Akbar asks Birbal to count the stars in the sky. Birbal comes back with a sheep and a very confident answer.
How the First Letter Was Written
Taffimai Metallumai, called Taffy, goes fishing with her father Tegumai, and his spear breaks.
How the Rhinoceros Got His Skin
On an uninhabited island on the Red Sea, a rude Rhinoceros steals a Parsee's cake.
How the Whale Got His Throat
Once the Whale ate every fish in the sea, until the small 'Stute Fish told him to try a man.
More Blind Than Seeing
Akbar believes most of his subjects can see perfectly well. Birbal sits in the market weaving a bed and proves that most people are blind to what is in front of them.
Mr. Won’t-Give and Mr. Won’t-Leave
A miser who never gives anything and a beggar who never leaves without something meet at last, and only one can win.
My Fair Neighbour
The narrator secretly worships the young widow next door. His friend Nabin has caught the poetry bug and begs for help writing verses to a woman he loves.
My Financial Career and Other Sketches
Four of Stephen Leacock's best comic sketches: the nervous man trying to open a bank account, the boarding-house explained by geometry, the guest too polite to leave,…
Neither in Sun Nor in Shade
After a quarrel, Birbal leaves the court and hides. The Emperor wants him back, so he sets a riddle that only Birbal could ever solve.
One Hard Question
A proud scholar offers Birbal a choice: answer a hundred easy questions, or one hard one.
Tenali Paints a Picture
Tenali Raman takes up painting, and presents the king with a picture of a cow eating grass.
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Can I listen to these funny short stories?
Yes. Any story on Pagehush can be read aloud in a natural voice, for free.