The Three Magic Pumpkins

An Indian Folktale
Act 1, Scene 1
Deep in the Indian jungles, YUVA and NANDA are returning home after a tiring day of
chopping trees. As they finish carrying firewood into the house, their FATHER, in his dying
bed, calls them in to have a talk about their future.
Characters: NANDA, YUVA, FATHER.
NARRATOR

Once, in a small village, there were two brothers in a well-to-do family.

Their names were Nanda and Yuva. Every day, they would go into the
jungle to chop wood and sell them for little money. Nanda, being the
elder brother, would always bully his younger brother, Yuva, by forcing
him to carry more firewood.
(NANDA & YUVA enters the stage left. NANDA bullies YUVA by
ordering him to carry more firewood. Suddenly, they hear FATHERs

FATHER

voice calling for them in the house.)

My sons, I am dying. I think that it is time for both of you to find a wife

NANDA & YUVA

and start a family.

(In unison)

FATHER

Yes, father.
(Beckons them closer)
I have found two suitable wives for both of you. One is a rich,
widowed lady and another is a poor, young orphan. I trust that you will

NANDA

choose wisely.
(Steps in front of YUVA aggressively)
Father, since I am the eldest son, I have the right to the first choice. I

FATHER
YUVA

choose to marry the rich, widowed lady.

Very well then. Yuva, will you marry the poor orphan girl?
(Holds FATHERs hand)

FATHER

Yes, father. I will marry her as it is your wish.

Then it is settled. You will both be married tomorrow.
(Fade out.)

Act 1, Scene 2
After the passing of their father, NANDA, along with his newly-wed, NEENA, takes full
control of the house. In the house, YUVA and MINU are forced to cook and clean for them.
Meanwhile, NANDA resolves to kick them out of the house.
Characters: NANDA, NEENA, YUVA, CHITRA, MINU.
NARRATOR

The following day, Nanda married a rich widowed lady named Neena
while Yuva married a poor orphan named Minu. Sadly, their father
passed away two days after the wedding. Being the eldest son and
the new owner of the house, Nanda began to openly mistreat his
brother, Yuva and his wife, Minu.
(NANDA & NEENA enter the stage as YUVA & MINU are cleaning

NANDA

the house.)
(Paces around in front of YUVA and MINU)
Now that Im the owner of the house, I have decided that I want both

YUVA
NANDA

of you to move out and never come back again!

But, brother, where are we to go if you kick us out?
Father left us a plot of barren land just a few miles from here. Its

YUVA

useless, you can have it.

(Gets on his knees)
Brother, I beg you. Please let us stay in your house. At least for a few
more days while I try to plant some crops on the land you told us to

NANDA

go.
No! I have had enough of waiting. Now that Father is dead, I am in

NEENA
MINU

control of this house. It is mine and mine only!

Obey my husbands wish, for he is your elder brother. Leave now!
(Speaks to YUVA)
Dear husband, let us go. We will work hard together to survive.
(YUVA & MINU exit the stage.)

Act 2, Scene 1
YUVA and MINU travel to the barren land that NANDA and NEENA banished them to. They
are sad that they cannot remain in their own house. Nevertheless, they are determined to
make the best of it. YUVA finds a wounded SPARROW in his land and helps it recover, not
knowing that it will bring him good luck in time to come.
Characters: YUVA, MINU, SPARROW, EAGLE, CHICKS.
NARRATOR

When Yuva & Minu arrived at the barren land, they were
disheartened.
(YUVA & MINU enter the stage. SPARROW is resting on a tree with

YUVA
MINU

its eggs.)
I could never plant anything here. This land is useless!
Cheer up, husband. I believe that we can at least clear up the dried
leaves around the land.

YUVA

(MINU exits the stage.)

(Sits down)

NARRATOR
NANDA

You go ahead, I cant do anything but grieve for our bad luck.
While Yuva was thinking, he saw a nest of sparrows on top of a tree.
(Talks to himself)
Lovely sparrows. These birds have enough food to eat. I dont even

NARRATOR

have that. Im not even able to support my family.

Suddenly, an eagle attacked the nest of the sparrows.
(EAGLE enters the stage. EAGLE & SPARROW engage in a fight.
EAGLE exits the stage as SPARROW breaks it wing during the

YUVA

combat and falls down hurt.)

(Runs towards the Sparrow)
Poor bird. You have the same bad luck as I have. Let me help you.
(YUVA takes the SPARROW home, applies medicine on its wound

NARRATOR

and fed it properly.)

After two days, the sparrow was nursed back to health. It flew back to
its nest and hatched its chicks. Soon enough, they flew away happily.
(YUVA bids goodbye to the healthy SPARROW & CHICKS as they
exit the stage.)
(Fade out.)

Act 2, Scene 2
YUVA thinks of moving on to another town after failing to grow crops on his barren land.
However, MINU disagrees and wants to live on the land that his father owned. The
SPARROW returns and give them three magical pumpkins seeds. YUVA and MINU plant
the seeds, only to find out that they would grow into magical pumpkins filled with all kinds of
good surprises.
Characters: YUVA, MINU, SPARROW.
NARRATOR

One day, Yuva had an idea. He called his wife over to share what he
had thought of.
(YUVA enters the stage. He thinks for a moment then calls for his

YUVA
MINU
YUVA
MINU

wife. MINU then enters the stage.)

Dear, let us leave this town and move on to another town.
But what would we do with this land, husband?
Cant you see? This land is of no use to us.
Maybe But I dont want to leave this place It is still your fathers
land.

NARRATOR

(MINU exits the stage. YUVA sits down, with a worried face.)
Suddenly, Yuva heard the sound of birds chirping. He came out to
look.
(YUVA comes out of the house. SPARROW enters the stage. YUVA

YUVA

sees the SPARROW.)

Minu! Come and see the sparrow, it has returned!
(MINU enters the stage. SPARROW flies in front of YUVA & MINU.
SPARROW drops three seeds from its mouth. SPARROW exits the

MINU

stage.)
(Points at the ground in front of them)

YUVA

Look, Yuva! The sparrow dropped something for you.

(Picks up the pumpkin seeds)

MINU

These are pumpkin seeds. What shall we do with them?

This must be a gift from the sparrow. Why dont we plant these seeds

YUVA

and see what happens?

(Takes the hoe)
Alright then, go and get some water so that I can plant them.

NARRATOR

(MINU takes a pot full of water and passes it to YUVA.)

Both Yuva and his wife planted the seeds and watered the,.

(YUVA digs a hole and puts the seeds in. MINU waters the seeds.)
Night came, and they went to bed.
(YUVA & MINU sleep on the stage.)
(Fade out.)

Act 2, Scene 3
YUVA and MINU awaken the next day to reap the rewards of their kindness. Their lives are
changed forever.
Characters: YUVA, MINU.
NARRATOR

The next morning, Yuva woke up and shouted in wonderment.

(YUVA wakes up and sees three big, ripe pumpkins. YUVA shouts for

MINU
YUVA

MINU. MINU wakes up and join YUVA in amazement.)

Is it magic? How can it be? We just planted these seeds yesterday.
(Walks towards the pumpkins)
Isnt it clear by now? The sparrow has brought blessings of God to us.

MINU

Lets sell these pumpkins.

(Holds up one of the pumpkins)

YUVA

Husband, I think we should eat one and sell the other two.
(Takes the pumpkin from MINU)
Then I will bring in this pumpkin to cook.

NARRATOR

(YUVA brings the pumpkin into the house. MINU follows behind.)
As Yuva cut the pumpkin into half, his eyes widened in astonishment.

MINU
YUVA

(YUVA cuts the pumpkin, all kinds of food spill out of it. MINU gasps.)
This is incredible! There are so many food in the pumpkin!
What are you waiting for, dear? Lets feast!

MINU

(YUVA & MINU eats the food in front of them.)

Husband, let us bring the other two pumpkins and cut it too. Who

NARRATOR

knows what other things might be inside?

Yuva brought the other two pumpkins. He cut the second pumpkin.
From the pumpkin came all sorts of clothes and jewellery.
(YUVA cuts open the second pumpkin. MINU almost fainted. YUVA
quickly restores her consciousness.)
Yuva then cut the third pumpkin. From that came loads of gold and
silver coins.
(YUVA gathers the coins in a sack.)
From the money, Yuva built a beautiful palace. He gave food and
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clothes to the needy.

(Fade out.)

Act 3, Scene 1
NANDA and NEENA hear of YUVA and MINUs sudden streak of good luck. They are
envious and desire to find out the cause of this turn of good events.
Characters: NANDA, NEENA.
NARRATOR

Soon, the news of Yuvas newfound fortune reached Nanda. He was

jealous and wanted to know more on how his brother became rich.

NANDA
NEENA

(NANDA & NEENA enter the stage.)

Neena, did you hear about Yuva? He is the talk of the town.
Yes, dear. I heard from Aunty Priya next door that he owns a beautiful

NANDA

palace now.
Not just that, when I was at the market, Uncle Gopal told me Yuva

NEENA

always feeds and clothes the needy in this town.

(Scratches head)

NANDA

So where does he get all the food, clothes and money?

(Twisting moustache)
Thats whats been troubling me too. When we kicked them out of this
house, they were poor and only had that useless piece of land that
my father owned.
There must be something behind it, Im absolutely, positively sure of
that!

NEENA

(Pummels fist into hand)

I agree, dear. There is something fishy about this. I plan to visit their
house tomorrow to find out more.
(NANDA & NEENA exit the stage.)
(Fade out.)

Act 3, Scene 2
NEENA visits MINU to unearth the secrets behind their newfound wealth. MINU tells NEENA
everything, from the discovery of the wounded SPARROW to the three magical pumpkins.
Characters: NEENA, MINU.
NARRATOR

The next day, Neena paid a visit to Yuvas house. She was greeted
warmly by Minu.

NEENA

(NEENA enters the stage. MINU waits inside the house.)

(Hugs MINU)
Minu! I havent seen you for so long. Youre so pretty now! Wow, this
is such a beautiful palace that you are living in. Must be expensive.

MINU
NEENA

How did you get the money to build this?

Ah, Neena. Its been a long time, yes. How is Nanda?
Nanda? Oh, never mind him. Tell me, tell me, how did you and Yuva
manage to build this wonderful palace? Did you strike gold in that

MINU

useless land?
Oh, we didnt. Yuva nursed a sparrow that got hurt from an eagle
attack. It came back after a while and gave us three magical pumpkin

NEENA
MINU

seeds.
Magical pumpkin seeds? And what did you do with it?
Yes, we planted and watered them. The next day, Yuva woke me up
and there they were three big, ripe pumpkins! Yuva and I couldnt

NEENA
MINU

believe our eyes! He cut one of them and out came all kinds of food!
Wow! Then what about the other two?
The second contained all sorts of clothes and jewellery. The third had
loads of gold and silver coins. We used them to build this beautiful

NEENA

palace and take care of the needy in our town.

Thank you so, so much for telling me about this. Oh, look at the time,

MINU

I got to go back to cook lunch for my husband! See you soon!

Bye Neena, it was nice seeing you.
(NEENA exits the stage.)
(Fade out.)

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Act 3, Scene 3
NEENA tells NANDA everything MINU told her. NANDA & NEENA orders the SERVANTS
to find a SPARROW, break its leg and give it to them so that they can apply medicine on it,
as YUVA did before. After some time, SPARROW reciprocates with a single seed. They
quickly plant the seed and wait peevishly for it to grow into a pumpkin.
Characters: NANDA, NEENA, SERVANT 1, SERVANT 2, SPARROW.
NARRATOR

When Neena returned home, she immediately called her husband

and told him everything she found out from Minu.
(NANDA sits and waits for NEENA. NEENA enters the stage. NEENA

NANDA

tells him everything she learnt.)

Quickly, Neena! Get a sparrow from anywhere and place it in our

NEENA

garden!
Yes, dear. I will order the servants to get us a sparrow right now.
(SERVANTS enter the stage.)
(Turns to the SERVANTS)

SERVANTS

Servants, go find a sparrow, break its leg and bring it to us, now!
(In unison)
Yes, mistress.
(SERVANTS exit the stage and re-enter carrying a wounded

SERVANT 1

SPARROW.)
(Hands SPARROW over to NANDA)

SERVANT 2

Sir, here is the sparrow that you wanted.

We broke its leg just as you told us, mistress.

NANDA

(NEENA nods head in approval. SERVANTS exit the stage.)

(Rubbing hands in glee)
Good, good. Now let me apply this medicinal balm to wounds of the
sparrow.
(NANDA applies medicine on SPARROW. SPARROW exits the stage

NARRATOR

after a while.)
Soon, the sparrow returned, carrying a single seed in its mouth.
(SPARROW enters the stage, drops seed in NANDAs hand and exits

NANDA

stage.)
(Laughs in an evil manner)

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NEENA
NANDA

What a good little sparrow. Neena, come here and see our luck.
What a surprise, but we have only got one seed.
I think we will be getting everything from this single seed. Neena, go
plant and water this seed.

NARRATOR

(NEENA plants and waters the seed.)

Both husband and wife did not have a wink of sleep that night. They
waited for the day to dawn.
(NANDA & NEENA pace impatiently around the house.)
(Fade out.)

Act 3, Scene 4
NANDA finds a huge pumpkin in the garden the next day. NANDA & NEENA cut the
pumpkin together. Smokes blows from inside the pumpkin. The pumpkin explodes and
causes the house to collapse. Both of them are reduced to beggars in the aftermath of the
incident.
Characters: NANDA, NEENA.
NARRATOR

In the morning, Nanda ran to the garden. He saw a huge pumpkin.

NANDA

(NANDA enters the stage. NEENA follows.)

(Brings pumpkin into the house)
Hurray, Neena! We will drive Yuva out of the town with all the money

NEENA

that we are going to receive!

(Gives a knife to NANDA)
Take this knife and cut this huge pumpkin with me, husband. We are
going to be very, very rich!
(NANDA & NEENA cut the pumpkin. Huge swirls of smoke came

NANDA
NEENA

out.)
Whats going on, Neena? Why is there smoke?
(Runs behind NANDA)
I dont know, husband. Im scared! I dont think its supposed to be this

NARRATOR

way!
Suddenly, there was a big blast and the house collapsed.
(NANDA & NEENA run out of the house. House explodes along with
the pumpkin.)

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Both Nanda and Neena were reduced to the plight of beggars. They
lost everything because of their greed.
(NANDA & NEENA kneel on the ground crying.)
Love is natural, nothing can be achieved by force and greed.
(Fade out.)

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