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Tales of Akbar and Birbal have been wildly popular for many years now. These folktales have been narrated, printed or made into television serials and movies a number of times. Yet, when we read them or listen to them, they seem magical. The wise and witty Birbal, who is the hero in most of the stories, was one of the nine advisers in Akbar's court. Birbal's original name was Mahesh Das. He was a talented poet and singer. It is said that Birbal always outwitted his opponents with his sharp responses and presence of mind. Here is one such story where Birbal outsmarts a Persian minister.

People all around the world had heard about the 'Nine Jewels' in emperor Akbar's court. The Emperor, in far away Persia, too had heard these stories of their talent and wisdom. The Persian Emperor wanted to see for himself if this true. So he sent his wisest minister to India to test Birbal and all the other ministers in the Indian Emperors court. In Akbar's court the minister said, "Your Majesty, I have one request. We in Persia, have heard a lot about the wisdom of your ministers. I would like to test their intelligence." Akbar readily agreed. The Persian Emperor continued, "I want to ask you all just one question. How many turns are there in the roads of Agra? You must give me the answer by tomorrow morning." All the ministers were puzzled. "Agra is such a big city! How can we count the number of turns in each road and each street here?" thought all of them. Akbar was worried. He didn't want to look like a fool before the famous emperor of Persia! He called some soldiers and ordered, "Gather some men and start counting the number of turns at once! "But where was Birbal? Well, Birbal had gone to the neighboring city on business and was to return only late in the evening. "Maybe he'll be able to help us, " hoped all the courtiers. When Birbal returned that evening, Akbar immediately told him about their problem. Birbal listened carefully and was deep in thought. Finally he smiled and said, "Don't worry, I will have the answer ready by tomorrow morning. Please tell our soldiers to stop counting the turns now." The next day, their guest returned. "So can anybody tell me how many turns there are on the roads of Agra?" he asked. Birbal stood up and replied _________________. The whole court, including Akbar and the Persian minister burst out laughing at this clever answer!

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Do you know what Birbal replied and how he outsmarted the Persian minister?

If you have the answer, reply to us at quiz@storytruck. com and win a free one month subscription. Hint: You may also listen to the entire story by going to www.storytruck.com/browse/sample_books You'll find more such tales, not only from Akbar and Birbal but Tenali Raman, Panchatantra, Jataka Tales just to mention a few. As an added bonus you'll also be able to listen to these stories, narrated by a professional artist. But wait, that's not all. All of these books are bilingual and you can read or listen to them in many Indian languages too. If your child is learning any Indian language, then this is a must have because the more they listen to, read or speak a particular language, the sooner they'll pick up that language. IPM readers can use the promo code IPM to get a great deal! Head over to www.storytruck.com and see what we have!

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