Malgudi Days is a collection of short stories by R. K. Narayan published in 1943 by Indian Thought Publications.

[2] The book includes 32 stories, all set in the fictional town of Malgudi,[3] located in South India.

"[5] In 1986, a few of the stories in the book were included in the Malgudi Days television series and directed by actor and director, Shankar Nag.

In 2004, the project was revived with film-maker Kavitha Lankesh replacing the late Shankar Nag as director.

The impressed customer pays up (although not the promised sum) and the astrologer warns him not to travel to this part of the country again.

That night, the astrologer's wife asks where he had been so late, and he confesses he had tried to kill the man years ago.

Suddenly his best friend, Gopal, falls terribly ill. After treating him, the doctor privately thinks he has 1:1000 odds of surviving, but his chances are worse the more he exerts himself.

Each time his pension comes, he delivers his clay work to his old company, always asking what the GM thought of his last one.

One day, a registered letter from the GM comes, and Singh is too afraid to open it, thinking it is something horrible.

When the old woman who cares for the blind man dies, he leashes the dog and begs while walking the streets.

When the market sellers learn he is so rich he's lending money, they cut the leash with scissors and the dog runs away.

Rajam gets involved and the bully complains that Brahmins are secretly eating meat and driving prices up.

Rajam stops short of the first blow and explains that he will rearrange the bully's face so his mouth is under his left ear, bluffing.

Some hunters bring a dead tiger into town, and The Talkative Man tells a story to some children.

Back in the town, the children ask to see the tiger's paw; sure enough, three toes are missing.

The hunters say some tribesmen like to take tiger cubs and cut off three toes as good luck charms.

A story about a man named Iswaran who failed his intermediate college exams nine years in a row.

When other boys come in to the theater celebrating their own success, Iswaran becomes self-loathing and is sure he failed again.

His father insists he still go to school with a "headache," so Swami lies and says his teacher Samuel beats children severely for lateness or any small offense.

A group of men leave a concert hall having enjoyed the performance, but the Talkative Man looked tortured.

The swami asks for a road engine for his assistant to run over his chest, but the city magistrate refuses to allow it.

After a massive earthquake, the road engine lodges in a well owned by the same man whose wall was destroyed.

Venkat Rao gets home after his daughter falls asleep and tells his wife he can't take Shanta out at all since he got a raise.

A story about Rama Rao, a man who had just lost his gramophone business as the only factory in the region closed down.

With no more job prospects, Rama Rao enters a magazine crossword contest, where everyone who gets every answer right wins 4000 rupees.

After waiting too long, he finds a crowd at the station and hears that a derailment has delayed all trains three more hours.

Recognizing his good fortune, he goes home and his wife tells him the renters want to buy their house.

The plot of land was large and they built a three-story mansion on it, but Velan lived in his hut on the grounds.

After being awed by the mansion's construction, he grips a margosa's stem in his fingers and tells it to grow up big and worthy of the house or he will pluck it out.

When the city failed to find anyone to remove it within budget, the Talkative Man is offered the chance to take it for himself.