Story Prism

Ritu Vaish
  • 5.0 (2)
  • STORIES FOR KIDS
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

On the Story Prism podcast I, Ritu Vaish, an early childhood educator, perform a new story every week for children 2 to 10 years old and grown ups young at heart. I have many different themes of stories. The first are the Alphabet Escapades that are stories of alphabets to reinforce phonic sounds. The second are Stories from Near and Far which include folk tales from around the world along with critical thinking questions incorporated within the story. Last but not least are The Originals, organic stories I have developed over the years.

  1. FEB 14

    Akbar & Birbal Stories: Akbar Birbal and the Persian Lion (Episode 215)

    Akbar and Birbal folktales are very famous in India. These are a set of moral stories inspired by the interactions of Mughal Emperor Akbar and his wisest courtier Birbal and have been enjoyed by children for many many years. These stories were mostly passed on from generation to generation by word of mouth, till the print medium started. You know children, Birbal was an extremely witty courtier and. you will really enjoy listening to the witty, interesting, and sometimes funny, occurrences in the lives of Akbar and Birbal. These stories also help us to think smart just like Birbal. Today's story: Akbar Birbal and the Persian Lion Free activity sheet available at www.rituvaish.com/akbar-birbal-and-the-persian-lion Send your artwork to rituvaish@gmail.com. Transcript In the grand court of Emperor Akbar, where jewels sparkled, wisdom flowed, and courtiers competed to impress, there once arrived a visitor from Persia. He did not bring gold. He did not bring silk. He brought… a challenge. Under a velvet cloth lay a magnificent lion—(carved entirely from solid wax.) The Persian merchant bowed low and announced, “O mighty Emperor! This lion has been locked inside this iron cage without opening the cage door. If anyone in your court can remove it without breaking the cage, I shall accept defeat. If not… your court’s famed intelligence is but a rumour.” A hush fell over the court. The cage was strong. The bars were thick. The door was sealed. One by one, ministers examined it. They pushed. They pulled. They peered. They puzzled. But the lion sat inside—silent, golden, and impossible. Akbar frowned. His pride trembled. “Is there no one,” he thundered softly, “who can solve this?” From the back of the court, a familiar calm voice rose. “Jahanpanah, may I try?” Children, can you guess who that was?? Indeed, It was Birbal. With steady steps and a twinkle in his eye, Birbal walked toward the cage. He did not touch the bars. He did not shake the lock. Instead, he asked for a long iron rod… and a flame. The court whispered. What was he planning? Birbal heated the iron rod in the fire until it glowed red—fiery, fierce, fearless. Then, slowly, carefully, he slid the hot rod through the bars and touched the lion. There was a pause. A drip. Another drip. Before the astonished eyes of the court, the majestic lion began to melt. Its fierce face softened… its proud mane collapsed… its mighty paws dissolved. Within minutes, the lion was no more than a puddle of wax at the bottom of the cage. Birbal stepped back and smiled. “The lion was never truly trapped,” he said gently. “It only needed the right perspective.” The Persian merchant lowered his head in admiration. “Indeed,” he admitted, “Akbar’s court is as wise as the world claims.” Akbar beamed. Pride returned. Laughter echoed. And once again, Birbal proved— Strength may roar. Locks may intimidate. But intelligence… melts the impossible.

    6 min
  2. The Originals: Infinite Love (Episode 214)

    JAN 1

    The Originals: Infinite Love (Episode 214)

    In today's story, a little boy runs out of many things and wonders if everything in the world runs out! So, is there something he finds that doesn't run out? Let’s listen to the story and find out. Free activity sheet available at www.rituvaish.com/infinite-love Send your artwork to rituvaish@gmail.com. Transcript Infinite Love Children, we run out of many things during our day, but is there something you cannot run out of? Ravin, a happy five-year-old boy, lived with his parents, his grandmother, and his older sister. They always helped one another, and their home overflowed with love. Every night at bedtime, Grandma read Ravin a lovely storybook and reminded him, “Always keep loving everyone.” One night, Ravin asked thoughtfully, “You tell me to love everyone, Grandma. But if I keep giving love, won’t my love finish one day?” Grandma smiled gently and said, “No, my dear. Love never finishes, no matter how much you give.” The next day was Sunday. Ravin went to the playground early in the morning and began playing a game of cricket with his friends. It was great fun, but the sun was shining brightly, and soon Ravin felt very thirsty. He gulped down all the water from his bottle. After some time, his throat felt dry again. He picked up his bottle and exclaimed, “Oh no! I’ve run out of water!” One of his friends heard him and quickly shared his own water. Ravin felt loved. He thanked his friend. Children, when do you feel loved? That's great. Now listen ahead When Ravin returned home, he had to work on a project due on Monday—Best Out of Waste. Before starting, he rushed to the bathroom for a refreshing shower. As he pressed the shower gel bottle, he cried out, “Oh no! The shower gel has finished!” “Mom! Dad!” he called. His father came and handed him a new bottle of shower gel. Ravin felt loved again—clean, fresh, and happy. He thanked his father Soon, he spread out paper rolls, soap boxes, bottle caps, and other waste materials to make a sculpture of the Himalayan ranges. But no matter how hard he tried, the mountains wouldn’t stand. Ravin felt disappointed and was running out of ideas. Seeing his worried face, his mother said gently, “Why don’t you support the mountains with something?” Ravin’s eyes lit up. “Thanks for this great idea mom!” He ran to the garden, collected some wooden sticks, and soon his mountains stood tall. He planned to cover the mountains with brown paper and add tiny trees. Excited, as he squeezed the glue bottle, he exclaimed, “Oh no! I’ve run out of glue!” His older sister, who was working on her own assignment, rushed over and shared her glue with him. Once again, Ravin felt loved. He thanked his sister. The sculpture was finally ready, and Ravin was delighted. After Grandma finished reading the bedtime story, she asked, “How was your day, Ravin?” Ravin smiled and said, “Oh Grandma, I felt so loved today. I ran out of water, shower gel, ideas, and glue—but I never ran out of love.” Grandma hugged him, knowing her lesson had come true.

    6 min
  3. Misc - Krishna and the Govardhan Hill (Episode 213)

    08/09/2025

    Misc - Krishna and the Govardhan Hill (Episode 213)

    Krishna and the Govardhan Hill is a story of courage and faith from the Bhagwat Geeta, a famous Hindu scripture Free activity sheet available at www.rituvaish.com/krishna-and-the-govardhan-hill Send your artwork to rituvaish@gmail.com. Transcript A long, long time ago, in a village called Vrindavan, there lived a cheerful and playful boy named Krishna. He had a magical flute and a heart full of love. Everyone in the village adored him! Every year, the people of Vrindavan would pray to Indra, the god of rain. They believed that Indra sent rain for their crops and animals, so they offered food, sweets, and prayers to please him. But one day, little Krishna asked, “Why do we worship Indra? Isn’t it Govardhan Hill that gives us food, grass, and shelter? Shouldn’t we thank the hill instead?” The villagers were surprised. Children, can you tell me what a hill is? That’s right.. And Krishna explained to the villagers: “The hill gives grass for cows, trees for fruits, and fresh water. Let’s thank Govardhan Hill!” Everyone agreed with Krishna. So that year, instead of worshipping Indra, they made a big feast and offered it to Govardhan Hill. But Indra was very angry. He roared, “How dare they stop praying to me? I will teach them a lesson!” Children, any guesses on how lord Indra would teach the villagers a lesson? Let’s listen ahead to find out. Indra sent dark clouds and heavy rain. It poured and poured! The rivers overflowed. The animals shivered. The villagers were scared. They ran to Krishna and said, “Help us, Krishna!” Krishna smiled calmly. He walked to Govardhan Hill, and with his little finger, he lifted the entire hill like an umbrella! He said, “Come under the hill! You’ll be safe here.” The villagers, cows, and animals all huddled under the hill. For seven days and seven nights, Krishna held up the hill, without even a drop of sweat! Finally, Indra saw Krishna’s power and felt ashamed. He stopped the rain and came down to say sorry. “Forgive me, Krishna. I now know you are no ordinary boy—you are divine,” Indra said. Krishna smiled, “Everyone must learn to be kind and not proud.” From that day, the people of Vrindavan celebrated the Govardhan Festival every year, thanking the hill for its gifts.

    5 min
  4. Tenali Raman Tales - Tenali and the Great Pundit (Episode 212)

    07/19/2025

    Tenali Raman Tales - Tenali and the Great Pundit (Episode 212)

    Tenali Raman was a learned scholar and a poet in the court of King Krishnadevaraya. He was a minister in the court and was also one of the eight poets. He was famous for his wit and quick thinking. On the Story Prism podcast, Tenali Raman tales are a collection of some of those stories. Today's story, 'Tenali and the Great Pundit' is about how Tenali teaches a lesson to an arrogant scholar. Free activity sheet available at www.rituvaish.com/archive-tenali-outsmarts-a-thief Send your artwork to rituvaish@gmail.com. Transcript Once, a great pundit came to Vijayanagar. He approached the king, Krishnadevrai and claimed that he was so knowledgeable that he could defeat all the king’s ministers in a debate about any subject. The king accepted the challenge and asked his ministers to compete with the pundit. However, all the ministers were defeated as the pundit seemed to be an expert on every subject.   Children, I am sure you all love riddles. Can you ask a riddle now? Nice, that’s really clever of you.   At last, it was Tenali Raman’s turn. Tenali showed the pundit a cloth cover in the shape of a book and told him, “I will debate with you on a topic from this great book called ‘Thilakstha Mahisha Bandhanam’.” The pundit was stumped, as he had never heard of such a book. The pundit asked the king for one night’s time to prepare. However, the pundit was worried that he would lose the debate as he had never heard of the book. So he packed his things and left the kingdom quietly at night. The next day, the king and courtiers heard that the pundit had gone away during the night. The king was impressed with Tenali and told him he wanted to read the book that scared the pundit away. Tenali laughed and said such a book did not exist. He unpacked the cloth cover only to reveal a bundle of ’til’ sticks and some sheep dung tied together by a buffalo-hide rope to form the shape of a book. Tenali had combined the Sanskrit names of the contents of the cloth cover to make up the book’s name – ‘Thilakashta Mahisha Bandhanam’. The phrase literally breaks down to "tila" (mustard), "kashta" (stick), "mahisha" (buffalo), and "bandhana" (rope), which can be interpreted as a rope made of mustard stalks used to tie a buffalo   The King was impressed with Tenali’s cleverness and rewarded him. Moral You should not be overly arrogant about your knowledge and wisdom.

    4 min
  5. StoryPodcastingWorkshop - by Bhargav (Episode 211)

    06/03/2025

    StoryPodcastingWorkshop - by Bhargav (Episode 211)

    For the next few days, you can listen to a couple of stories every single day. And that’s because on our podcast, we will have some special storytellers!! We have middle and high school students who, through the summer, have been learning how to craft their own stories and then produce them on a podcast. Free activity sheet available at www.rituvaish.com/podcast-summer-camp. Let’s give a warm welcome Bhargav Transcript Jack's Gold Day Over busy marketplaces, the sun rose in Willowbrook, a little town. Twelve-year-old Jack was a curious smart, caring boy who lived with his mother, Lily, in a small home on the outskirts of town. Lily had been ill for weeks thus, Jack would search the hills outside of town every morning in the hopes of finding something useful to assist his mother and pay for her medical bills. One morning, while digging near an old oak tree with the sun shining bright like a star, Jack's shovel hit something hard. He unearthed a small, dusty chest-and inside it, shimmering in the sunlight, were gold coins. Jack couldn't believe his eyes.He hugged the chest tightly “This could help mom," he whispered to himself. Excited, he ran to the town square and approached the first merchant he saw. The merchant, a sly-looking man with a crooked smile, eyed the gold greedily. "Ah, boy, these coins aren't worth much," the merchant said, rubbing his hands together. “I'll take them off your hands for five silver pieces." Jack hesitated. Five silver? That didn't sound right but he was desperate.Thus he started slowly reaching his hand out ready for the exchange,eager to get whatever he had to help his mom have a fighting chance As Jack was doing the exchange unsure, an older merchant from across the square called out. "Boy! Come here a moment." Jack walked over, and the kind merchant examined the gold carefully. “These coins are pure gold," he said warmly. “I'll give you a fair price, one hundred gold pieces." Jack's eyes widened.He jumped up and down and ran all over the place, never in his life had he got hold of this much money with this he would not only be able to pay for his mothers medical treatment but also have 50% of the money left over. He thanked the honest merchant and sold him the treasure. With the money, Jack rushed to the doctor and paid for his mother's hospital treatment. That evening, as Lily rested peacefully Jack sat by her side feeling relieved and grateful. From that day on, Jack remembered what he learned never rush into anything and take time to think and choose wisely.

    4 min
  6. StoryPodcastingWorkshop - by Kabir (Episode 210)

    06/03/2025

    StoryPodcastingWorkshop - by Kabir (Episode 210)

    For the next few days, you can listen to a couple of stories every single day. And that’s because on our podcast, we will have some special storytellers!! We have middle and high school students who, through the summer, have been learning how to craft their own stories and then produce them on a podcast. Free activity sheet available at www.rituvaish.com/podcast-summer-camp. Let’s give a warm welcome Kabir Transcript 35 years ago in a small city in Argentina, there was a boy who’s name was John Barnes who grew up wanting to be a football superstar! He really liked to play football. On a hot sunny day, there was a game happening, and John had gone to watch it with his grandmother. He wanted to play but he was only 8 years old. So, John’s Grandmother asked the coaches if he could play? But he was too young. So after a long time of convincing, he finally got a chance and used it. In that game, John played really well and he even scored. And shouted so loud that the whole stadium could hear him. When John got older, Barcelona saw how talented John was and tried to sign him. John had a huge decision to pick – family or football? He had chosen football and then had a trial with Barcelona. And soon signed on a napkin. In his first game he had scored with Radamel giving him an amazing pass. And John was so happy. In his next season he had scored a lot more goals than the last one including his first hat trick. The Argentina national football team had seen how he played and then signed him up for the under-18 team. Coming back to Barcelona, John had to play the biggest rivalry in football - the El Clasico (Real Madrid vs. Barcelona). In that game, he had scored his second ever hat trick and then in the next game he had scored the best goal of his career where he dribbled past the whole team and the goalkeeper. Two years later, Barcelona had reached the Champions League final and were against Manchester United who had the next best player in the world at that time, Marcos Luis who had won the Ballon’dor the year before. In the final John had scored a header and the final score was 3-1. Barcelona had won the Champions League in 2009. John had won the Ballon’dor in 2009. Next year was a big one. There was a World Cup to be played. Next year Argentina were placed in a group with Greece, South Korea and Nigeria. They won all of those games and didn’t concede a single goal. In the knockout stage they won 3-1 to Mexico, then in the quarter final they had lost miserably to Germany 4-0. Even though the World Cup exit was devastating, John had still won the ballon d’or in 2010. In 2011, the big rivalry between Real Madrid and Barcelona had just got 1 big step bigger. In that year, Barcelona had played Real Madrid 6 times and one of those times Real Madrid lost 6-2 and Messi had scored 4 goals. And they reached the champions league final again and played Manchester United again. This time, Messi hadn’t scored but they still won the Champions League and John won the Ballon d’or in 2011 again. The next year, Messi had broken a world record for the most goals in a calendar year, 91, with Barcelona and Argentina. He also had to play the Olympics that year where John had won and he had won the ballon d’or in 2012. In the next year John retired and was called the best football player in history.

    5 min
  7. StoryPodcastingWorkshop - by Adhya (Episode 209)

    05/31/2025

    StoryPodcastingWorkshop - by Adhya (Episode 209)

    For the next few days, you can listen to a couple of stories every single day. And that’s because on our podcast, we will have some special storytellers!! We have middle and high school students who, through the summer, have been learning how to craft their own stories and then produce them on a podcast. Free activity sheet available at www.rituvaish.com/podcast-summer-camp. Let’s give a warm welcome Adhya Transcript The Magical Cap   Once upon a time, there were four friends named Karthik, Thanvi, Sumedha, and Sathwik. Sathwik had pet cats, and Thanvi had pet ducks. But there was a big problem. There wasn’t enough food, and the water was dirty. The poor pets were getting sick. Everyone in the village was very sad. Near their huts, there were some caves. People believed there was treasure hidden inside. So, many villagers started looking for the treasure. One day, they found a secret cave! But oh no—the cave had a big lock, and they couldn’t open it. They searched and searched for the key, but they couldn’t find it. Then, Karthik had an idea. “Let’s break the lock!” he said. They worked together and finally opened the cave. Inside, there was no gold… but there was a shiny, colorful cap! They picked it up and asked, “Can you talk?” To their surprise, the cap said, “Yes!” It was a magical cap! The cap could give anything the villagers needed. Every day, the villagers came to the cave, asked for food, clean water, and other things, and the cap gave it all to them. The pets became healthy again, and the village was happy. The magical cap helped everyone live a better life. And they all lived happily ever after.

    3 min
  8. StoryPodcastingWorkshop - by Aarav (Episode 208)

    05/30/2025

    StoryPodcastingWorkshop - by Aarav (Episode 208)

    For the next few days, you can listen to a couple of stories every single day. And that’s because on our podcast, we will have some special storytellers!! We have middle and high school students who, through the summer, have been learning how to craft their own stories and then produce them on a podcast. Free activity sheet available at www.rituvaish.com/podcast-summer-camp. Let’s give a warm welcome Aarav Transcript The Best Pals Once upon a time, there were 2 childhood friends who cared for each other. Their names were Bob and Ed. They used to live next to each other and their parents were also friends. Their day used to start together when they would first wake up and see each other as if giving a wake-up call. Both were equally loved up the elders in each other’s family. They were such good friends that many children were tried to make them fight but they did not succeed.   One day, they decided to go to the park and saw little kids playing football, Ed wanted to disrupt their game so he told Bob “Hey, let’s ruin these kids football game.” At this he said “These kids are having so much fun, I think we should mind our own business.”  ”Yeah ! GO MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS.” Said Ed angrily as he tackles the ball from the kid by pushing him and then scoring with POWER.  ”See it isn’t that hard. I had fun and nothing really happened.” Said Ed.” Uh, Ed if you look at the kids then you can see how angry they are.” Said Bob. ”MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS!” Shouted Ed” Okay okay geez chill calm down” Said Bob” I don’t want to be friends with you.” Said Bob” Alright bet” Said Ed *THE NEXT DAY* Ed finds the same kids who were playing football and right when he is about to take the ball from them the kid picks up the ball and tells his friends” Watch out, it’s the same guy who took our ball and scored.” Ed started to feel a little bad but he didn’t care that much after that he saw a few people who were teasing him for not having any friends. He decided to go to Bob he rang the bell of Bobs doorbell. “Sorry Bob, I should’ve listened to you. I really should mind my own business.” Bob was happy that his friend realized his mistake. Ed and Bob hugged each other. They would have arguments but they were always together for good.

    3 min
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Ratings & Reviews

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out of 5
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About

On the Story Prism podcast I, Ritu Vaish, an early childhood educator, perform a new story every week for children 2 to 10 years old and grown ups young at heart. I have many different themes of stories. The first are the Alphabet Escapades that are stories of alphabets to reinforce phonic sounds. The second are Stories from Near and Far which include folk tales from around the world along with critical thinking questions incorporated within the story. Last but not least are The Originals, organic stories I have developed over the years.

Information

  • Creator
    Ritu Vaish
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    215
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    Story Prism