"Dark is the nation and insane the king-Andheri Nagari Chaupat Raja

Andheri Nagari Chaupat Raja
SS Misri

"Andheri Nagari Chaupat Raja", means "Dark is the nation and insane the king".

A boy once seeks the advice of his guru about going to a certain country to seek his living. The guru tells him not to go there by saying one line about that country "Andheri nagri Chaupat raja; takeh ser bhaji, takeh ser khaja". He tells the boy that there is one fixed price for spinach and dates and everything. The citizens lack intelligence and it is an undesirable place to live. The young and unwise boy goes anyway.

In this strange land, one night four brothers plan a theft and try to breach the wall of the house of a rich family. The thieves bring the wall down, and in the process are killed by the falling bricks. The mother of the thieves is angry and files a lawsuit in the court. In arguing her case before the judge, she claims that her sons were merely following their profession and the wrongly constructed wall caused their death, for which the homeowner is liable. The judge following the strange code of justice asks the homeowner why he should not be sentenced to death for the loss of the thieves' lives. The frightened homeowner uses the defense that those who constructed the wall are the guilty party and thus frees him. The bricklayer is then summoned to the court and he says it is not his fault as he did his job well and the cement must have been of poor quality. The wrath of the judge and his distorted justice then descends on the cement mixer. He is accused of pouring too much water during mixing. The cement maker admits that it happened, but attributes it to his talks and greeting of the passing Mullah. While greeting the mullah he forgot the mixing ratio of the cement and thus diluted weak cement. The judge calls the Mullah in. The honest man has no excuse and the judge pronounces death by hanging for the convicted Mullah. The country’s legally fixed size noose is brought to string up the guilty offender. Whatever the fault of the Mullah, he is a god-fearing man who has not done any sin. He is quite thin and lean. His neck is thin and his head on the small side. The noose kept slipping off his head and neck. The irritated judge then gives a decision that since the circumference of the noose is unalterable by the national religious code, the only way for justice to be done, is to hang the first person whom the noose fits.

The fat newly arrived boy who is feasting on the cheap dates is watching the show. His stout neck fits the noose. He is to be hanged in the public square next morning. The desperate disciple boy sent an urgent message to his guru. The guru quickly arrives early morning at the public square and creates uproar by insisting that he be hanged instead of the disciple boy. The judge was taken aback at this strange demand, and, even the Mullah suspected some mystery. They kept asking the guru for the reason and he refused. The judge then threatened him that if he refused he would be beheaded. The guru pleaded that he must be hanged. The guru confessed that on this day of the new moon, anyone who is hanged goes straight to heaven and is guaranteed double his share of beautiful virgins. The judge (Qadi), then insisted since he is the judge, he has to decide who should be hanged. The judge decides ‘ he’ (judge) be hanged  himself. In the meantime the news reaches the king. He repairs the scene and uses his monkey to be hanged. The relieved guru and disciple promptly cross the borders of the strange kingdom, vowing never to return again.