Sarojini Naidu (née Chattopadhyay; 13 February 1879 – 2 March 1949)[1] was an Indian political

activist and poet. A proponent of civil rights, women's emancipation, and anti-imperialistic ideas, she was an
important figure in India's struggle for independence from colonial rule. Naidu's work as a poet earned her
the sobriquet 'the Nightingale of India', or 'Bharat Kokila' by Mahatma Gandhi because of colour, imagery
and lyrical quality of her poetry.[2]

Born in a Bengali family in Hyderabad, Naidu was educated in Madras, London and Cambridge.
Following her time in England, where she worked as a suffragist, she was drawn to Indian National
Congress' movement for India's independence from British rule. She became a part of the Indian nationalist
movement and became a follower of Mahatma Gandhi and his idea of swaraj. She was appointed the
President of the Indian National Congress in 1925 and later became the Governor of the United Provinces in
1947, becoming the first woman to hold the office of Governor in the Dominion of India.

Naidu's poetry includes both children's poems and others written on more serious themes including
patriotism, romance, and tragedy. Published in 1912, "In the Bazaars of Hyderabad" remains one of her most
popular poems. She was married to Govindarajulu Naidu, a general physician, and had five children with
him. She died of a cardiac arrest on 2 March 1949.

Story 1: Raman the detective

Tenali Raman was once walking along a forest path when he was stopped by a merchant. “I’m looking for my
camel which has strayed away. Did you see it passing by?” asked the merchant.
“Had the camel hurt its leg?” asked Raman.

“Oh yes! That means you have seen my camel!” said the merchant.

“Only its footprints. See, you can see footprints of an animal with three legs,” said Raman, pointing out the
footprints on the ground. “It was dragging the other leg because it was hurt in that leg.”

“Was it blind in one eye?” Raman asked the merchant.

“Yes, yes,” said the merchant eagerly.

“Was it loaded it with wheat on one side and sugar on the other side?” asked Raman.

“Yes, you are right,” said the merchant.

“So you have seen my camel!” exclaimed the merchant.

Raman looked upset. “Did I say I saw your camel?”

“You have given the exact description of my camel,” said the merchant.

“I saw no camel,” said Raman.

“Do you see those plants lined up on both sides of this path? You can clearly see, some animal has eaten leaves of
plants on the left, but the plants on the other side remain untouched. So the animal could see with only one eye.

“Look down. You can see ants lined up on this side which means, the animal was loaded with sugar bag on this side.
The bag had a hole, which allowed the sugar to fall off.”
“You can see grains of wheat fallen on the other side. The bag on this side also must have holes in it,” said Raman.

“I can see everything you showed me,” protested the merchant,”but I still don’t see my camel.”

“You follow this trail and soon you will catch up with your animal. After all it is hurt in one leg and you seem to be
hale and hearty,” said Raman.

The merchant took his advice and followed the trail left by the camel.

Soon he caught up with the poor animal, limping along.

“Rani!” the merchant shouted in happiness, as he ran to his camel.

Story 2: 1 – The Biggest Fool In The Kingdom!

King Krishnadevaraya loved horses and had the best collection of horse breeds in the Kingdom. Well, one day, a
trader came to the King and told him that he had brought with him a horse of the best breed in Arabia.

He invited the King to inspect the horse. King Krishnadevaraya loved the horse; so the trader said that the King could
buy this one and that he had two more like this one, back in Arabia that he would go back to get. The King loved the
horse so much that he had to have the other two as well. He paid the trader 5000 gold coins in advance. The trader
promised that he would return within two days with the other horses.

Two days turned into two weeks, and still, there was no sign of the trader and the two horses. One evening, to ease
his mind, the King went on a stroll in his garden. There he spotted Tenali Raman writing down something on a piece
of paper. Curious, the King asked Tenali what he was jotting down.

Tenali Raman was hesitant, but after further questioning, he showed the King the paper. On the paper was a list of
names, the King’s being at the top of the list. Tenali said these were the names of the biggest fools in the
Vijayanagara Kingdom!

As expected, the King was furious that his name was at the top and asked Tenali Raman for an explanation. Tenali
referred to the horse story, saying the King was a fool to believe that the trader, a stranger, would return after
receiving 5000 gold coins.

Countering his argument, the King then asked, what happens if/when the trader does come back? In true Tenali
humour, he replied saying, in that case, the trader would be a bigger fool, and his name would replace the King’s on
the list!