The Invention of Shoe by Rabindranath Tagore 
Retold from Bengali by Nirmal Kanti Bhattacharjee
Illustrated by Sekhar Mukherjee
Niyogi Books Rs. 250

This tiny book, designed for children in primary school, tells a simple but deep story of Rabindranath Tagore retold from Bengali by Nirmal Kanti Bhattacharjee. Every page is visualized and illustrated by Shekar Mukherjee.  This is the story of Habu, a foolish king, who is incessantly bothered by the dust sticking to his feet. He calls his ministers and scholars in his kingdom to find solutions, warning them of grave consequences if they do not find one. 

He feels flattered when Gabu, the minister, suggests that if the dust did not touch his feet, ordinary mortals would not get any dust from his feet to worship. The king was obviously flattered but wanted to get the dust off his feet. 

Seventeen lakh brooms were put to use, but it clouded the atmosphere with the dust swept away, and all the citizens started coughing. 

Now, the king’s face and body were covered with dust. Twenty-one lakh water hosepipes were then employed to make the dust settle, but it ended up with all the ponds and rivers empty. Aquatic life perished. 

The kingdom was now a scene of chaos with slime and mud. An epidemic ensued. 

The scholars voted that the whole earth should be covered with mats and carpets.

Others foolishly suggested that the king should be confined to one room so that his feet would stay clean. 

The king did not like the suggestion as it would be impossible to carry out his royal duties from one room. 

Then came a unanimous suggestion: Let us cover the entire earth with a sheet of leather. The search for tanners started. 

Then, out of the blue, the chief of cobblers suggested to the king that he cover his feet with leather rather than try to do that with the whole world. 

Gabu wanted the cobbler imprisoned and sentenced to death. When the cobbler finally covered the feet of the king with a shoe, the same minister said that he had also thought of this solution, and the cobbler had just read his mind.

It may be a book for tiny tots, but it holds lessons for all of us. 

All over the world, we today have politicians like the King and ministers like Gabu. And we have people like the cobbler who have some sanity when everything is crumbling around with foolish moves by unthinking people who do not have the sense to think of simple logic or the courage to tell the king he is wrong. 

What begins as a child’s tale of a king’s dusty feet ends as a gentle parable on human vanity and excess. Retold and beautifully illustrated, it carries Tagore’s signature blend of humor, wisdom, and humanity.

The story is simple, but teachers can help even older children find deeper meanings with some critical thinking in just a few pages, Tagore turns royal foolishness into a laugh-out-loud lesson in practicality. Children will giggle at King Habu’s antics, but adults will smile knowingly as some problems never change, and neither do people who overcomplicate them.