My First Job Interview
Reading Time: 2 minutesIntroduction: This is the story of Meera, a young woman who faced her first-ever job interview with...
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Stories
Original English Short Stories set in India.
Every story is 2-3 minutes of reading. Some are folk tales retold, some are quiet moments from everyday Indian life, some are reflections on family, work, and city living. Written for readers of all ages — from teens to adults — who enjoy short, thoughtful stories in English.
Each story comes with a free printable worksheet if you’d like reading practice, discussion questions, or creative writing prompts. Every story is 2-3 minutes of reading. Some are folk tales retold, some are quiet moments from everyday Indian life, some are reflections on family, work, and city living. Written for readers of all ages — from teens to adults — who enjoy short, thoughtful stories in English.
Milo’s Very Long Tuesday
Reading Time: < 1 minuteMilo the mouse sat by his little door and watched the sky. He was waiting for...
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The Last Diwali Lamp
Reading Time: 3 minutesBy late afternoon, the old Kashyap house had stopped feeling old. Its courtyard had chappals scattered everywhere....
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The Last Cup of Tea
Reading Time: 2 minutesThe clock on the wall said 5:47 AM. Outside the kitchen window, Mumbai was still sleeping under...
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The Honest Shopkeeper: A Short Moral Story About Truthfulness
Reading Time: < 1 minuteRamesh owned a small shop in a quiet village. Every morning, he opened his shop early...
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Why We Fast on Janmasthami
Reading Time: 2 minutesStop eyeing those biscuits, beta. Not today. Today we wait. You’re making that face again, the one...
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The Thread That Saved The Tree
Reading Time: 2 minutesThe banyan had been standing behind the school since before anyone in the village could remember. Its...
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The Bedtime Train
Reading Time: < 1 minuteArjun could not sleep. His eyes were tired. His body was tired. But his mind kept...
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The Moon’s Silver Blanket
Reading Time: 2 minutesThe houseboat rocked. Just a little. The way a cradle rocks when someone who loves you is...
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What Is the Story Behind Lord Jagannath’s Appearance?
Reading Time: 2 minutesBhoomi had been standing with her arms stuck out stiffly for almost two minutes, trying not to...
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The Boy Who Thought He Had Nothing to Offer
Reading Time: 2 minutesAarav had always been the quiet one in his class. He sat at the back, spoke only...
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Second String
Reading Time: 2 minutesAt his old school, Rohan was always picked first. Best dribbler, fastest runner, the boy everyone wanted...
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The Butter Pot Yashoda Never Moved
Reading Time: < 1 minuteIn Yashoda’s kitchen, there was one pot kept on the highest shelf. It had been there...
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Bye, Bappa. Come Back Next Year.
Reading Time: 3 minutesMihika was six years old when she decided Ganpati Bappa couldn’t swim, and that this was a...
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The Firefly in Dadi’s Garden
Reading Time: < 1 minuteThe night Meera caught her first firefly, she was seven years old and wearing her grandfather’s...
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The Grasshopper Who Had No Time to Work
Reading Time: < 1 minuteIt was a fine winter morning in a small Indian field.The golden sunlight touched the grass,...
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The Little Feather and the Gentle Wind
Reading Time: < 1 minuteThe moon painted the quiet meadow with soft silver light. A tiny white feather named Lumi...
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The Snake and the Golden Idol: A Fable on the Cost of Greed
Reading Time: 4 minutesThe small temple of Maa Ganga stood high on a hill overlooking the village of Dhampur. Its...
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The Old Man’s Bench: A Story of Quiet Kindness
Reading Time: 2 minutesEvery evening, just before sunset, an old man sat alone on a wooden bench in the corner...
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The Squirrel and The Jasmine
Reading Time: < 1 minuteThe mango tree was enormous. It filled the whole backyard in Kerala. Its branches touched the...
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The Unseen Thread: Healing Hidden Family Bonds
Reading Time: 3 minutesThe morning sun filtered through the thin curtains, painting gold lines across the living room floor. Asha...
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What Would Krishna Say to Kids Today?
Reading Time: 2 minutesIt was a warm Sunday morning. Birds chirped, flowers bloomed, and children filled the park with laughter....
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The Four Friends
Reading Time: 2 minutesIn Nashik, a two-tier town where everyone knows everyone’s business, four friends had a ritual. Every Sunday...
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The Missing Football
Reading Time: 2 minutesDhruv’s football went missing on Wednesday. Not just any football — the new one his father had...
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The Strike He Never Took
Reading Time: 2 minutesNarayan had been a sculptor for thirty-one years. His hands knew stone the way a mother knows...
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The Importance of Dusshera: A Festival of Courage and Goodness
Reading Time: 2 minutesThe Importance of Dusshera 🌟 Every year, when the skies turn golden with autumn sunsets, the air...
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The Story of Krishna Stealing the Clothes of the Gopis
Reading Time: 2 minutesIt was a bright morning in Vrindavan, and the gentle breeze carried the sound of Krishna’s flute...
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The Girl Who Asked ‘Why?’: How Curiosity Changes Everything
Reading Time: 3 minutesHave you ever been told to stop asking so many questions? Meet Ananya, a girl whose favorite...
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The New Car Next Door
Reading Time: 4 minutesNinad had been driving the Santro for eight months now — errands mostly, his mother’s saree emergencies,...
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The Flute At Midnight
Reading Time: 2 minutesStop fidgeting and come sit close, it’s getting cold. You know how some nights the moon is...
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The Poison of Words
Reading Time: 2 minutesThe war that lasted 18 days had aged Draupadi beyond her years. Physically and mentally, she felt...
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Milo Stopped Worrying
Reading Time: < 1 minuteMilo the mouse sat inside his cosy little hole in the skirting board, wrapped in a...
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The Lane Arjun Didn’t Take
Reading Time: 3 minutesThe Kalanagar signal had turned red for the fourth time that morning, and Vikram Deshmukh had stopped...
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The Pothole
Reading Time: 3 minutesThe rain had stopped an hour ago, but the road outside their house still remembered it —...
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Milo and Bappa’s Special Task
Reading Time: 3 minutesIn the skirting board of an old Indian home, in a hole no bigger than a coin,...
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The Friend Krishna Never Forgot — Story of Sudama
Reading Time: 2 minutesThere once lived a poor Brahmin woman who survived by begging from house to house. For five...
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Gate 18
Reading Time: 3 minutesYour phone buzzes at 5:47 am, and the moment you see your sister’s name on the screen,...
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The Miser and His Gold — A Short Moral Story on Greed
Reading Time: < 1 minuteDhaniram had never spent a single gold coin in his life. Then one night, someone spent...
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The Weight of One Seed
Reading Time: 2 minutesArjun had not been back to Wai in three years. The village sat tucked between two hills...
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Two Kisses Before Sleep
Reading Time: 5 minutesThe Night Bhoomi Almost Didn’t Kiss Papa Goodnight Every night was the same, and Bhoomi liked it...
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The Man Who Ran on Empty
Reading Time: 3 minutesKiran hadn’t left the office before ten at night in nineteen days, and he wore the number...
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The Price of the Dashboard
Reading Time: 2 minutesThe office smelled like old printer toner and someone’s reheated poha. It was 8:47 PM. Harsh had...
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The Last Message
Reading Time: 2 minutesIt was a quiet Sunday afternoon when Maya found herself sitting by the window, the soft drizzle...
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The Society Meeting Champion
Reading Time: 3 minutesRamesh Iyer adjusted his spectacles and cleared his throat—a sound that, in the Sharma household on the...
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The Midnight Celebration
Reading Time: 2 minutesAnanya was not allowed to sleep tonight. This was the rule, and she had been reminding everyone...
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The Night Krishna Was Born
Reading Time: 2 minutesThe night was dark and rainy. Inside a prison in Mathura, Queen Devaki sat quietly on the...
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The Small Gift: A Short English Story with a Moral Lesson on Gratitude
Reading Time: 2 minutesRiya was a young girl who lived with her mother in a small town. Her mother worked...
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The Wisdom of Lord Ganesha
Reading Time: 2 minutesOne morning in Kailash, the home of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati, two brothers — Kartikeya and...
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The Umbrella That Came Back
Reading Time: 3 minutesManoj Kadam had driven the same black-and-yellow auto-rickshaw through the streets of Nashik for eleven years. The...
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The Sleepy Owl’s Goodnight Song
Reading Time: < 1 minuteIn a tall tree by the quiet pond, lived a little owl named Hoo-Hoo. Every evening,...
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The Railway Station Reunion
Reading Time: 2 minutesBaburao Deshmukh reached platform two hours before the train was due. He always did. The station master,...
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The Battle Before the War: Arjuna’s Awakening
Reading Time: 2 minutesThe sun had just begun to rise over the battlefield of Kurukshetra, painting the sky with streaks...
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The Temple Bell at Dawn
Reading Time: 3 minutesArjun arrived in Varanasi on a Tuesday evening with two suitcases, a new comic book, and absolutely...
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The Boy Who Counted Stars Instead of Sheep
Reading Time: 2 minutesKabir hated Sunday nights the most, though he could never explain why to anyone. Monday meant a...
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At the Bus Stop: A Simple English Story for Daily Conversation
Reading Time: < 1 minuteRavi was standing at a bus stop early in the morning. He was going to his...
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The Man Who Sold the Sky
Reading Time: 2 minutesIn a village near the Gir forest, where the earth was red and the afternoons smelled of...
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The Teddy Bear Who Watched the Stars
Reading Time: < 1 minuteOn a soft little bed, by an open window, sat a teddy bear named Bunno. He...
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The Night The River Stepped Aside
Reading Time: 3 minutesThe prison cell had no window. Vasudeva knew this because he had counted the stones in the...
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Why the Peacock Dances for Krishna — Radha Krishna Story
Reading Time: 2 minutesIn the divine days of Lord Krishna’s time in Gokul, there lived a wise and beautiful peacock....
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Yashoda’s Pot with the Crack
Reading Time: 3 minutesThe crack in the butter pot ran from the rim to the middle, shaped like a small...
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