Bopolûchî: A Tale of Courage and Cunning
Bopolûchî: A Tale of Courage and Cunning
Adapted from Tales of India: Folktales from Bengal, Punjab, and Tamil Nadu
The Orphan’s Wish
In a small village in India, a group of young girls gathered at the community well to draw water. As they filled their clay jars, their conversation turned to upcoming weddings and betrothals.
“My uncle will soon arrive with the bridal presents,” one girl announced proudly. “He’s bringing the most exquisite clothes you can imagine.”
“And my uncle-in-law is coming,” added another, “with sweetmeats so delicious they’ll melt in your mouth.”
A third girl joined in, “My uncle will be here any day now, carrying the rarest jewels in the world.”
Among them stood Bopolûchî, the prettiest girl of all. Unlike her friends, she was an orphan with no relatives to arrange her marriage. Yet too proud to remain silent, she declared cheerfully, “My uncle is coming too, bringing me beautiful dresses, delicious food, and precious jewels.”
What Bopolûchî didn’t know was that a wandering pedlar sat nearby, selling scents and cosmetics to village women. Struck by her beauty and spirit, he listened carefully to her words. This man was no ordinary merchant but a wealthy robber in disguise, and he immediately decided he would marry the lovely Bopolûchî.
The False Uncle
The very next day, disguised as a prosperous farmer, the robber arrived at Bopolûchî’s modest home. He carried trays laden with fine dresses, delectable foods, and glittering jewels.
Bopolûchî could hardly believe her eyes. Everything had appeared just as she had predicted! The robber claimed to be her father’s long-lost brother, who had been traveling the world for years and had now returned to arrange her marriage to one of his sons—her cousin.
Delighted by this unexpected turn of fortune, Bopolûchî gathered her few possessions in a bundle and eagerly set off with the man she believed to be her uncle.
Nature’s Warnings
As they journeyed along the road, a crow perched on a branch began to croak:
“Bopolûchî, ’tis a pity!
You have lost your wits, my pretty!
‘Tis no uncle that relieves you,
But a robber who deceives you!”
“Uncle,” said Bopolûchî, puzzled, “that crow croaks strangely. What is it saying?”
“Nonsense,” replied the robber dismissively. “All the crows in this region croak like that.”
A little farther on their path, they encountered a peacock. Upon seeing the pretty maiden, it began to scream:
“Bopolûchî, ’tis a pity!
You have lost your wits, my pretty!
‘Tis no uncle that relieves you,
But a robber who deceives you!”
“Uncle,” Bopolûchî asked again, “that peacock screams oddly. What does it say?”
“Nonsense,” the robber repeated. “All peacocks in this region scream like that.”
Soon after, a jackal slunk across their path. The moment it spotted Bopolûchî, it began to howl:
“Bopolûchî, ’tis a pity!
You have lost your wits, my pretty!
‘Tis no uncle that relieves you,
But a robber who deceives you!”
“Uncle,” said the increasingly concerned maiden, “that jackal howls strangely. What is it saying?”
“Nonsense,” insisted the robber. “All jackals in this region howl like that.”
The Robber’s House
Eventually, they reached the robber’s house. There, he revealed his true identity and declared his intention to marry her himself. Bopolûchî wept bitterly, but the robber showed no mercy. He left her in the care of his mother—an incredibly elderly woman—while he went to make arrangements for the wedding feast.
Bopolûchî possessed hair so beautiful that it reached all the way to her ankles, while the old mother’s head was completely bald.
“Daughter,” asked the ancient woman while helping Bopolûchî into the bridal dress, “how did you manage to grow such beautiful hair?”
“Well,” replied Bopolûchî, thinking quickly, “my mother made it grow by pounding my head in the large mortar used for husking rice. With each stroke of the pestle, my hair grew longer. I assure you, this method never fails.”
“Perhaps it would make my hair grow too!” said the old woman eagerly.
“Perhaps it would!” agreed the clever Bopolûchî.
The elderly mother, desperate to regain her lost hair, placed her head in the mortar. Bopolûchî pounded with such force that the old woman died instantly.
A Clever Escape
Acting swiftly, Bopolûchî dressed the dead body in the scarlet bridal attire and seated it on the low bridal chair. She carefully drew the veil over the face and positioned the spinning wheel in front of the figure so that when the robber returned, he would mistake it for his bride. Then, donning the old mother’s clothes, Bopolûchî grabbed her bundle and slipped out of the house.
On her way home, she encountered the robber returning with a stolen millstone balanced on his head, intended for grinding corn for the wedding feast. Terrified, she hid behind a hedge to avoid being seen. The robber, not recognizing her in the old woman’s garments, assumed she was a stranger from a neighboring village and hid behind the opposite hedge to avoid detection himself. Thus, Bopolûchî managed to reach home safely.
Meanwhile, the robber arrived at his house and saw the figure in bridal scarlet seated at the spinning wheel. Believing it to be Bopolûchî, he called for help with the heavy millstone. When the figure didn’t respond to his repeated calls, he grew angry and hurled the millstone at her head. The figure toppled over, revealing not Bopolûchî but his own mother!
The robber wept and beat his chest, thinking he had killed her. But when he discovered that pretty Bopolûchî had escaped, his grief turned to rage, and he determined to recapture her.
The Final Confrontation
Bopolûchî, certain that the robber would try to abduct her, sought shelter each night in a different friend’s home, leaving her own bed empty. After about a month, however, she had exhausted her options and felt she couldn’t impose on her friends any longer. She decided to sleep in her own house but took the precaution of bringing a bill-hook to bed with her.
Her caution proved wise. In the middle of the night, four men crept into her house. Each seized a leg of her bed and lifted it, carrying her away while she pretended to remain asleep. The robber himself held the leg nearest her head.
Bopolûchî waited patiently until they reached a deserted area where the thieves lowered their guard. Then, in a lightning-quick movement, she whipped out her bill-hook and swiftly cut off the heads of the two thieves at the foot of the bed. Turning rapidly, she did the same to the thief at the head, but the robber himself fled in terror, scrambling up a nearby tree before she could reach him.
“Come down and fight!” challenged brave Bopolûchî, brandishing her bill-hook.
But the robber refused to descend. Undeterred, Bopolûchî gathered all the sticks she could find, piled them around the tree, and set them ablaze. As the fire spread to the tree itself, the robber, half-suffocated by smoke, attempted to jump down and was killed in the fall.
Afterward, Bopolûchî went to the robber’s house and collected all the gold, silver, jewels, and fine clothes hidden there. She returned to her village so wealthy that she could marry anyone she pleased.
And that was the end of Bopolûchî’s adventures—a tale of how courage, quick thinking, and resourcefulness can overcome even the most dangerous of circumstances.
This story from India celebrates the triumph of a clever and brave young woman who uses her wits to escape danger and create her own destiny, reminding us that true strength often comes from within.
