From Nagaland To Andhra: 5 Forgotten Folk Stories From Across India

The lesser-known folk tales of India remind us that storytelling is not confined to grand heroes and divine battles alone. Instead, it thrives in simple fireside conversations, in cautionary whispers, and in songs and dances during harvests and festivals. Deeply rooted in regional traditions and landscapes, these stories carry moral lessons, ecological knowledge, and social values shaped by centuries of lived experience.

Exploring these overlooked stories not only enriches our understanding of India’s cultural diversity but also preserves voices that have long existed outside the written canon. Here are five hidden folk tales from across India:

1. Mahadev Bishta: The Robinhood of Kashmir (Kashmir)

Mahadev Bishta is a famous Kashmiri folk figure often featured in bedtime stories told by mothers to their children.

Known as a clever and silent thief during the reign of Maharaja Partap Singh, Mahadev earned his nickname by stealing as quietly as a “bishti” (cat in Kashmiri), often mimicking a cat’s meow to avoid suspicion.

Despite being a thief, he was admired by the people because he stole from the rich and helped the poor. A popular tale describes how fellow thieves tested his skills by challenging him to steal the Maharaja’s trousers without the ruler noticing.

After carefully observing the palace, Mahadev devised a clever plan: he released red ants near the sleeping Maharaja’s legs, causing such discomfort that the Maharaja unknowingly removed and discarded his trousers.

Mahadev successfully escaped with them, proving his intelligence and reaffirming his leadership among the thieves.

2. The Tekhumiavi Myth (Nagaland)

Tekhumiavi is a sacred and closely guarded mythic ritual among several Naga tribes, rooted in their animist worldview. According to this belief, certain individuals possess the ability to transform their spirits into tigers. 

A person’s soul leaves the human body and inhabits the body of a tiger or leopard, while the human body remains behind in a semi-conscious or soulless state.

The human and animal forms are deeply connected; any injury sustained by the animal manifests as a corresponding wound on the person’s body. 

A distinctive marker of a Tekhumiavi is the animal’s pugmark, which bears five claws instead of the usual four. These tiger-spirits are not ordinary animals; they are believed to hold immense power and have privileged access to the spirit world.

Through this transformation, the boundary between the human, animal, and spiritual realms dissolves as the practice emphasises that humans are not superior to nature but are part of a shared ecological and spiritual continuum.

Easterine Kire, author of novels such as When the River Sleeps (2014), Sky is My Father: A Naga Village Remembered (2018), Bitter Wormwood (2011), and Spirit Nights (2022), revives this myth in her writings to highlight the relationship Nagas maintain with both the natural and supernatural worlds. 

3. Lalkamal and Neelkamal (Bengal)

This Bengali folk tale tells of two brothers, Kusum and Ajit, born to a king’s human queen and his secretly demonic queen. Though deeply bonded, their love provokes the demon queen’s jealousy, leading her to kill and devour both boys.

From their deaths emerge two magical eggs, golden and iron, from which they are reborn as Lalkamal and Neelkamal.

As reincarnated princes, the brothers return to defeat demons, destroy the demon queen, and restore peace to the kingdom.

The tale is beloved in Bengali folklore for its portrayal of unwavering brotherhood, reincarnation, and the triumph of moral courage over evil.

Despite their youth, the heroes’ bravery and loyalty stand in contrast to the demon queen’s cruelty, reinforcing the folk belief that righteousness ultimately prevails over destructive power.

4. Bala Nagamma (Telugu folk tale)

This tale narrates the story of Bala Nagamma, born to Queen Bhulakshmi after she disobeys a sacred condition set by the snake god Nagendra, leading to her death.

Bala Nagamma grows up, marries Karyavardhi Raju, and later gives birth to a son, Balavardhi. Her beauty attracts the evil magician Mayala Marati, who abducts her by transforming her into a dog and imprisoning her, while turning her husband into stone.

Years later, Balavardhi learns of his parents’ fate and sets out on a heroic quest. With divine guidance from Nagendra and the help of an old woman, he discovers the secret of the magician’s life, destroys it, and defeats Marati.

The story ends with the reunion of Bala Nagamma with her husband and son, celebrating devotion, perseverance, and the victory of good over evil.

5. Lajjagauri (Maharashtra)

The tale explains the origins of the headless goddess known today as Lajja Gauri or the “Shameless Goddess,” whose erotic, headless idols have been found across parts of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Maharashtra.

Though not mentioned in the Devi Mahatmya, an etiological myth links her to Goddess Parvati. According to the story, Shiva tests Parvati by damaging his blanket in disguise and later appears as a tailor who demands intimacy as payment for repairing it.

When Shiva reveals his true form during the act, Parvati is overwhelmed with shame, causing her head to fall off while her body remains in an erotic posture.

This headless form, symbolised with a lotus in place of the head, comes to represent Lajja Gauri, a goddess associated with fertility, creation, and the raw generative power of the female body.