Once there were three brothers. One season, they did not have any rain so their crops failed. They decided to move outside the village in search of a job.
When they were leaving, their mother said, “Be careful and keep me informed about your well being.”They nodded and went away. They walked for many days, crossed many mountains, rivers and dense forests. Then they reached a beautiful place. There they got the job under a contractor and a little hut to live in. There was a small goat in the hut.
One day, the brothers thought that they should send a message of their well being to their mother. But when the younger brother went out of the house to send the message, the goat gulped him up. It was a witch in a goat’s guise. When he didn’t returned for long time the other brothers became worried. The second brother came out of the hut and the goat gulped him too.
But this time the elder brother saw this. He got so afraid that he ran out of the house and climbed a nearby tree. The witch saw him. She changed into an extremely beautiful maiden and started circling around the tree. At the same time the King happened to pass through that place.
He said, “You fool, just come down. Can’t you see such a beautiful maiden is urging you to get down of this tree?”
The elder brother said, “Your majesty, I don’t want this beautiful maiden. If you want her you can take her along.”
The King liked the idea and took the witch along. The King had a very kind Queen and a son in the palace. The witch started living with them. After some days she started carving for flesh and blood. But there were guards all over the palace. It was very difficult for her to eat someone without being caught. But there were only one or two guards around the King’s cattle. To quench the thirst of flesh and blood, she started eating cattle and to avoid any suspicion, she but some blood and bones in the bed of the Queen.
After a few days, when the guards told the King about decreasing number of cattle and the servants told him about the bones and blood in the Queen’s bed. The King put two and two together and came to the wrong conclusion. He sent the Queen to the forest as a punishment. When she reached the forest the witch made her blind by her magic. It made her more vulnerable to the dangers of forest. She started living in a dry well to survive. The King was too charmed by the witch’s beauty to see the Queen’s plight.
There in the palace, King’s son was the only hurdle in the witch’s way to become a Queen. One day she told the King, “I am missing my mother. Please send your son to her. She will be very happy. It will be a change for him also. The King called his son and asked him to go to the witch’s mother. When he was about to leave the witch gave him a sealed envelope and said, “Give it to my mother. She will give you whatever you want.”
This made him happy and he set off for the magic village, where witch’s mother lived. He rode the whole day. At night he came across an inn. The inn’s caretaker was a kind man. He made the boy comfortable and asked him the purpose of his journey to the magic village.
The boy said, “I am going to meet my step grand-maa. My step mother wants me to deliver a letter to her”. His innocence made the caretaker more suspicious. When the boy was asleep he opened the envelope and read-
“This is your step grandson.
Kill him.”
He took a pen and an eraser and did a few corrections. In the morning, the boy continued his journey. Magic village was a pleasant surprise for him. There was a huge gate at the entrance of the village. A witch was sitting at the gate. She asked, “Oh! Tasty boy, whom do you want to meet” and licked her lips. The boy told her his step grandmother’s name and address. She gave him a carpet and asked him to fly on it. As the boy got on the carpet, it flew away inside the village. The village was as colorful and happening as a carnival. The carpet landed near a shop full of magical items. It was his step grandmothers shop. When she came out, the boy gave her the envelope. She opened and read-
“ He is your grandson.
Give him whatever he wants.”
The old witch became very happy and gave him some delicious food to eat. Then she said, “Take whatever you like from my shop.”
The boy asked for a carpet, just like one he came on the village. Then he saw a little box of kazal .
He asked ´ “Grandmaa, what is this?”
“It’s a magical eye liner, it enables even blind to see.” she replied.
“Can I take this.” The boy asked.
“Sure, my love.”The old witch replied gladly.
Then the boy saw a big, fat rod. When he asked about it, the old witch said, “It is used to hit your enemy. Just you have to say, “Hit rod hit”.
The boy took the rod too. The boy waved good bye to the old witch and came back on the carpet.
On his way back he went to the forest where his mother was spending her days of exile in a dry well. He applied the kazal (eye-liner) in her eyes and she started seeing again. Then he went to the palace. The witch was shocked to see him alive. The King was very happy. He asked , “ What your grandma sent for your new mother.
The boy took out the rod and said, “This”.“Hit rod hit” were his next words.
Suddenly, the rod started hitting the witch. She shouted for help but no one came forward to help her. The boy said, “First confess all your sins, then only it will stop.” She confessed to the king that she is a witch and ate his animals. The queen is innocent.” The King became furious. He sent the witch to jail.
He then sent his men to bring back the queen but she refused to came back as she was annoyed with the King. Then the King came with a huge procession to the dry well. He knelt down on his knees and said sorry to the Queen and brought her back. Then they lived happily ever after.
