The delectable genre of folktales is forever gratifying and pleasurable. The treasures of Indian folktales create the foundations of literature auxiliary to various forms of storytelling, art and performing arts accentuating cultural topographies of different regions of the country. The prevalent stories in each State, from times immemorial, convey outstanding features of culture of people, their characteristics wrapped in exclusive traditions of the region. Very often, the same story wears a different garb in other States, presenting a fresh appearance to always convey the absolute values in a new setting.
Folktales from Karnataka has delightful tales, hand-picked by author-historian Karanji, that have survived generations of storytelling. There is a crow plotting revenge, a prince passing through travails of life to outshine his father the king, the sly monkey tricking the crocodile, a girl transforming into a tree and the legendary creature of Karnataka, Ganda Bherunda. Throughout the stories there is good and evil where, inadvertently, the good prevails, ingenuity wins over might, honesty pays off and magic is interlaced with natural happenings. ‘The Kingdom of Fools’, ‘Mother-in-Law’s Bust’, ‘Adventures of a Disobedient Son’, ‘The Village of Deaf People’ ‘Pregnant and Ravana’ are scrumptious and enjoyable.
The reader observes colourful interludes in attractive illustrations as they turn the pages where the eye meets artistic ornamentation special to Karnataka. Beautiful borders and special stylistic decorations have been utilized abundantly to convey the cultural domains of the region and its people. One of the exceptional additions to the book is the familiarization of many icons of Karnataka in the form of instruments like Onake, exquisite crafts like Sandalwood inlay or Bidriware art, games of ‘sowing and reaping’ like Aligulimane, the Navalgund Durries, Ilkal Sarees, Kinnal toys, Channapatna Lacquerware, Mysore Peta turbans and more. The young reader journeys through the charming tales all along with the artistic and colourful pages of the book.