Kabuliwala (short story)


Kabuliwala is a Bengali short story written by Rabindranath Tagore in 1892. The story is of a merchant from Kabul, who comes to Calcutta, India each year for selling dry-fruits and while living in India he becomes friends with a five-year-old girl Mini from a middle-class aristocratic family.

Theme

The main theme of this story is filial love—the deep love that fathers have for their children.
In the story we encounter three examples of filial love—the author and his daughter Mini; the Kabuliwala and his own daughter in Afghanistan; and the Kabuliwala and Mini. In this story Kabuliwali comes to India every year to sell dry-fruits and to meet this girl named Mini.

Adaptations

The story has adapted a number of times as listed below: