The story centers around a princess and her family following the death of their king. The daughter desires to participate in a festival but needs a saree, so she borrows her sister-in-law's. Unfortunately, while washing it, a crow stains the saree, leading to a series of tragic events involving jealousy and betrayal. The brother, under pressure from his wife, kills his sister, and her head is hidden in a jackfruit tree.

The princess's spirit ultimately resides in a bamboo shoot that grows from the jackfruit tree, and her parrot mourns her loss. A poor worker, or Dom, cuts down the bamboo, turning it into a flute that carries the princess's voice and allows interaction with her husband, the prince. However, the prince's mother discovers the secret, burns the flute, and prevents the princess from returning.

In the end, the princess marries her prince, and they live happily ever after, symbolizing hope and renewal. The story conveys themes of love, loss, and the eventual happiness that can emerge from tragic circumstances.

एगो राजा के एगो बेटी हले, आउ एगो बेटा। बेटा बिआहल हल । उनकर बाप मर गेलन हल आउ खाली मइया बच गेल हल। एक दिन करमा आयल तो सब लड़की करमा कयले हलन । से ओहू मइया से कहलक कि हमहूँ करमा करब । मइया कहकई कि ''अप्पन साड़ी तोरा न हउ ! का पेन्ह के करवे?'’ तो ऊ कहलक कि भउजी ओली सड़िया पेन्ह लेम । से करमा करे ला ऊ तइयार भेल, बाकि ई करार पर सड़िया मिललई कि साड़ी में कुछो दाग-ऊग न लगे के चाहीं ।

राजा के बेटी के साड़ी मिलल, आउ पोखरा पर सबसे नीचे साड़ी रखके नेहाय लगल । एतने में भउजइया एगो कउवा से कहलक कि ''जो तूं पोखरवा पर आउ सब से नीचे जे सड़िया रखल हे ओकरे पर हग दे गन। तोरा दूध-भात खिअबउ ।'' से कउवा उहाँ से उड़ गेल, आउ साड़ी उलट के सबसे निचला पर हग के चल आयल । भउजइया कउवा के दूध-भात खाय ला दे देलक ।

राजा के बेटी ओन्ने साड़ी केतनो धोवे बाकि दाग छुटवे न करे। से आन के साड़ी बकसा में सबसे नीचे रख देलक । भउजइया जब साड़ी देखलक, तो ननदी से कहलक कि तूं साड़ी में काहे दाग लगा देलऽ हे। से भउजइया उदास रहे, आउ कुछ खयवे न करे। लड़किया के भाई आयल तो अप्पन मउगी से पूछलक कि तूं काहे उदास हऽ । ऊ कहलक कि जब तक हम तोहर बहिनी के खून के रंगल चुनरी न पेहनव तब तक न जीअव । से राजा के बेटा कहलक कि कल्हे ओकरा हरवाही-पानी लेके भेजिहें। दोसर दिन भउजी ननदी के हरवाही पानी ले के भेजलक । बहिनी पानी ले के गेल, तो उहाँ भइवा छुरी से ओकर मूँड़ी काट के पीपर के खोड़र में ना देलक, आउ अप्पन मेहरारू के चुनरी ओकर खून में रंग के दे देलक ।

घरे अयला पर मइया पूछलक कि ''ए बाबूए छउँड़ी न अलउ हे?'’ से बेटवा ओकरा खोजे निकलल । एन्ने-ओने से घूम के आयल, आउ मइया से कह देलक कि न मिलइत हउ । राजा के बेटिया एगो सुग्गा पोसले हल । सुगवा ओकर वियोग में दिन-रात रोवे लगल । मइया आउ सुगवा खूब रोवे । एक दिन राजा के बेटिया के ससुर ओही रस्ता से जाइत हले, जहाँ भइवा पीपरा के खोड़र में अप्पन बहिनी के मार के ओकर मूँड़ी के डाल देलक हल । पीलवनवा राजा के हथिया के खाय ला पीपरा के पत्ता काटे लगल, तो पीपरा बोलल कि ''पतवा छूअवऽ, तो पतवे मउरायत, डढ़िया छूअवऽ तो डढ़िये मउरायत ।'' से ओहनी फिर के चल गेलन ।

एक दिन राजा के बेटिया के सामी जी ओही रस्ता से जाइत हलन, तो हथिया पर से पीपरा के पतवा छुआ गेल । ऊ बोलल कि ''हमरा छूअवऽए तो पतवे मउरायत, आउ डढ़िया छूअवऽ तो डढ़िये मउरायत।'' से ओहू ओहिजे से घूम के चल गेल । ओहनी घरे जा के एगो डोम के भेजलन कि जा के पीपरा के काट दे । डोम उहाँ काटे आयल तो फिनो पीपरा बोलल कि ''पतवा छूबें तो पतवा मउरायत, डढ़िया छूबें तो डढ़िये मउरायत''। से डोम ई बात सुन के ओयसहीं लौट के चल गेल । राजा के बेटिया के सुगवा ओकरे विजोग में पीपरे पर जा के बइठल रहऽ हले, आउ रोवइत रहऽ हले । ऊ हरमेसा ''दीदी-दीदी'' कहके रोवऽ हल।

कुछ दिना के बाद ऊ पीपरा में एगो बाँस जम गेल । राजा के बेटिया ओही बँसवा में रहे लगल । सुगवा भी ओकरे पर बइठल रहे। एक दिन डोमवा ऊ बसवा के देख के लोभा गेल । सोचलक कि एकरा काट लेवे के चाहीं । जब ऊ बाँस काटे लगल तो सुगवा रोवे लगल, बाकि डोमवा न छोड़लक । ऊ बँसवा पर लाती दे के ओकरा काटे लगल । बँसवा कटवे न करे, आउ डोमवा छोड़वे न करे। आखिर में बँसवा कहलक कि हम तहिए कटबउ, जब एकर बँसुरी बनयवें, आउ जहाँ कहबउ तहाँ ले चलवें ! डोमवाँ ओही करार पर बाँस काटलक आउ ओकर एगो खूब बढ़ियाँ बँसुरी बनौलक ।

बँसुरिया कहलक कि हम्मर मामू हीं ले चलऽ! डोमवा बँसुरिया के कहे पर चलल आउ जइसे-जइसे कहे ओइसहीं ले गेल । ओकर अवाज सुन के सब कोई मोहा जाय । फिनो बँसुरिया कहलक कि हमर ससुर हीं ले चलऽ। बँसुरिया के बतौला पर डोमवा ओकर ससुर के गाँव में ले गेल। उहाँ जा के बजौलक तो बँसुरिया बोलल कि- ''हमर सामी जुआ खेलइत हथन, से ले चलथ मोरा छुड़ाई के ना ।'' ओकर सामी सुनलन, तो डोमवा से आनके कहलन कि एकर का दाम हउ? डोमवा कहलक कि एकर दाम बँसुरिये कहत। बँसुरिया से पूछल गेल, तो ऊ अप्पन दाम चार सौ रुपेया बतौलक । राजा के बेटा चार सौ रुपया दे के बँसुरी खरीद लेलक ।

दिन में बँसुरी बजे, आउ रात में ओकरा में से राजा के बेटी निकल जाय, आउ राजा के बेटा के साथ विलास करे। से एक दिन राजा के बेटा के मइया रतिया में दूनों के फुसफुसाइत सुनलक । चुप्पे अन्हारे खानी देखलक, तो राजा के बेटी बँसुरी में घुस गेल । दोसर दिन राजा के बेटी रात में जब बँसुरी से निकलल तो राजकुमार '’ओकर दूलहा'' के मतारी बँसुरी के आग में जरा देलन । ऊ दिन से फिनो लड़की बँसुरी में कइसे घुसे । ओकरा साथे राजकुमार के फिनो बिआह हो गेल आउ दूनो परानी बढ़िया से मिल-जुल के रहे लगलन। कथा गेलवऽ वन में, समझऽ अप्पन मन में ! सबके दिनवाँ वइसेहीं फिरे, जइसे राजा के बेटी के दिन फिरल। एक दिन तोरो कनेया आत, मिल-जुल के रहिहँऽ घर में, चुनरी रंगइहँऽ लाल रंग में !

See translation

Once upon a time, there was a king who had a daughter and a son. The son got married. Their father passed away, leaving only their mother behind. One day, during the festival of Karma, all the girls were performing, and the daughter expressed her wish to participate as well. The mother said, "But you don’t have your own saree! What will you wear to perform?" She replied, "Sister-in-law, I can wear my sister's saree." So she got ready to perform Karma, but as per the agreement, the saree had to be free of any stains.

The princess managed to get a saree and went to the pond to wash it. Just then, a sister-in-law asked a crow, "If you come to the pond and drop your droppings on the saree laid there at the bottom, I will feed you rice and milk." The crow flew away and did exactly that, so the sister-in-law fed the crow rice and milk.

Despite washing the saree multiple times, the stains wouldn't come out. So she put the saree at the bottom of the box. When the sister-in-law saw the saree, she asked her sister-in-law why she had stained it. The sister-in-law became sad and wouldn't eat anything. When the brother came home, he asked his wife why she looked so sad. She said, "I won’t live until I can wear my sister’s blood-stained scarf." The prince then assured her that he would send for water for her sister the next day. The following day, the sister-in-law sent her to fetch the water. When the sister went for the water, her brother cut off her head with a knife and threw it into the jackfruit tree, and gave the scarf of his wife to dye in her blood.

When she returned home, the mother asked, "Where is my daughter, dear?" The son went out searching for her. After looking here and there, he told his mother he couldn't find her. The princess had kept a parrot. The parrot wept day and night, mourning her separation. The mother and the parrot cried a lot. One day, the father-in-law happened to pass by the same path where the brother had disposed of his sister’s head in the jackfruit tree. The jackfruit tree, wanting to eat leaves, began to speak: "If you touch the leaves, they will become soft; if you touch the branches, they will break." They turned back.

One day, the prince's husband was passing by the same way, and he touched the jackfruit tree's leaves. It spoke again, "If you touch me, I will become soft; and if you touch the branches, they will break." So he too turned back. They then sent a Dom (a low-caste worker) to go and cut the jackfruit tree. When the Dom came to cut it, the jackfruit tree said, "If you touch my leaves, they will become soft; if you touch my branches, they will break." Hearing this, the Dom returned without cutting the tree. The princess's parrot remained sitting on the jackfruit tree, continuing to weep.

After some days, a bamboo shoot began to grow from the jackfruit tree. The princess started living in that bamboo. The parrot also perched on it. One day, seeing that bamboo shoot, the Dom became greedy and thought he should cut it. As he began to cut it, the parrot cried out, but the Dom did not stop. He kept trying to cut and eventually the bamboo said, "I will only be cut when a flute is made from me, and wherever you say, I will go with you!" The Dom then cut the bamboo on that condition and made a beautiful flute from it.

The flute said, "Take me to my uncle!" The Dom followed the flute's instructions and took it there. Hearing its voice, everyone became enchanted. Then the flute said, "Take me to my father-in-law!" The Dom took the flute to the village of its father-in-law. When he played there, the flute said, "My husband plays dice, take me away to free me!" When her husband heard this, he asked the Dom what the price was. The Dom replied that the price would be said by the flute. When asked, the flute stated its price as four hundred rupees. The prince then paid four hundred rupees and bought the flute.

By day, the flute would play music, and at night, the princess would emerge from it to enjoy with the prince. One night, the prince's mother overheard their whispers. She quietly looked into the dark and saw the princess slipping back into the flute. The next day, when the princess emerged from the flute at night, the prince's mother burned the flute in the fire. From that day on, the princess couldn’t get back into the flute. She and the prince ended up getting married and lived happily together.

Thus the story unfolded in the forest; understand it within your heart! Everyone's days turned well, just as the princess’s days had turned around. One day, your daughter will come home and live together with you, dyeing her scarf in bright red!