The Storyteller on Hotstar: Is there a real Indian writer accused of copying Rabindranath Tagore's stories?

Directed by Ananth Narayan Mahadevan, The Storyteller revolves around an elderly storyteller named Tarini Bandyopadhyay who accepts a job in Ahmedabad to narrate stories and help a Gujarati businessman sleep.

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The Storyteller was released on Disney Plus Hotstar on January 28, 2025, and slowly the movie has started to create a buzz among fans. Fans, as well as critics, are lavishing praise on the makers as well as the actors for bringing a simple but interesting story. Directed by Ananth Narayan Mahadevan, The Storyteller is the story of an elderly storyteller named Tarini Bandyopadhyay who accepts a job in Ahmedabad to narrate stories and help a Gujarati businessman sleep. Yes! you heard it right. Tarini Bandyopadhyay who is based in Kolkata is against capitalism and has continuously switched jobs as a storyteller. One day, he applies for a job after seeing an advertisement that a Gujarati man is seeking a storyteller in Ahmedabad. Since, the references in the movie mentioned various award-winning writers including Rabindranath Tagore, fans may become curious to know whether The Storyteller is a true story or not. Continue reading below to learn about The Storyteller Real Story or The Storyteller True Story- 

Is The Storyteller based on a true story?

The answer is no. Despite there are real-life references in the movie, The Storyteller is not based on a true story. The Storyteller is inspired by a short story named Golpo Boliye Tarini Khuro written by Satyajit Ray. 

The Storyteller Storyline

The Storyteller revolves around a storyteller Tarini Bandyopadhyay played by veteran actor Paresh Rawal and Ratan Garodia aka Gujju Garodia played by Adil Hussain. Tarini Bandhopadhyaya who is in his 60s went to Ahmedabad for a job interview he applied that required a storyteller. During his interview, Garodia informed that he needs a storyteller for himself as he is suffering from chronic insomnia i.e. sleeplessness. 

After Tarini's surprising experience, Garodia informs him that he has tried all medications, including sleeping peels, but he is still unable to sleep. Therefore, he has resorted to listening to a storyteller's tales to see if he can sleep at night. Tarini accepts the new job as a new challenge but he later finds out that the Gujarati businessman was just using and duping him in the name of insomnia. 

Tarini Bandhopadhyaya finds out that Garodia who is only 8th Pass has become a famous writer in Gujarat. The catch is that Garodia writes those stories that Tarini narrates to him in the night. In a way, Garodia steals Tarini's original stories and sells them under his own name. As a result, Tarini Bandhopadhyaya comes up with a plan and starts narrating stories that were actually written by Rabindranath Tagore. Ultimately, Garodia was exposed in front of the entire India when officials from Tagore Foundation slapped him with copyright infringement and a Rs 10 lakh fine. 

The Storyteller Real Story

Since, it has already been mentioned that the movie is based on a book, it is not a real-life story. True Scoop also tried to determine whether any similar case is available in India or not. There are no such cases like Garodia available in the public domain. 


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