(This is my rehash of a well known classic old tale. I bave worked out the underlying maths on Excel; same will be gladly made available to whosoever wants to have a deko.

One such person who showed a lot of interest and curiosity was fellow blogger and my good friend, Uma R. She not only took pains to study the excel sheet, but made vital corrections. This revised version includes the corrections made necessary by Uma's uncanny sight. Her great help is acknowleged with thanks and reverence))

Akbar was a master chess player, more of a Vishwanathan Anand of his times. He accepted challenges from his subjects, with liberal prizes to the winner and grateful smiles to the losers, who could still retain their honour and lives.

One day a commoner, Lilavati, a beautiful young girl barely out of her teens (no relation to the celebrated Mathematician’s daughter) came to Diwan Ae Aam where the emperor was holding court, and she told the mighty Akbar that she wanted to challenge him in an encounter on the chessboard. They played a game and Akbar having lost (we will not go into a debate whether it was due to the charms, or genuine skills of Lilavati, as that is not relevant to the story) asked what reward she now expected having won the challenge, to which Lilavati replied, “Oh King! I am just happy winning a good game of chess against one as accomplished as you, and have no use for riches as these are of little use to me; coming as I do from very modest family with no need for worldly objects”.  But the King persisted, to which Lilavati proposed, “On this chessboard where I have defeated you, give me grains of rice every day till the number of squares are over; just one grain on the first day, 2 on the second, 4 on the third, doubling it every day till all the days are completed”. Akbar was amused at this lowly request, and instantly agreed, much to the chagrin of his star Navratna, Birbal.

And so it started. Lilavati came on the first day and with the court laughing loud, but Birbal visibly upset and nervous; Akbar gave Lilavati a grain of rice. The ‘farce’ was repeated the next day when she got 2 grains, and soon became a normal feature of the court, with the courtiers amused but Birbal visibly upset and squirming.

By the 30^th day Lilavati had taken a hundred tons of rice.Lilawati proposed that as this rice would last her complete village for more than 2 months, she would now return to collect the balance till completion only when the total period of 64 days gets over. By the 40th day she was entitled to a total of more than 10,000 tonnes, and by the 52nd day the King's granaries were to get depleted, as the tab had exceeded the world's rice production for one full year. And by the 59th day had outgrown world's production for a full 100 years. Near panic prevailed, as Birbal told the court that at this rate, as per the terms of the bet, Lilavati was entitled to rice, which the entire world would need the next Four Thousand  year to produce.

There was total commotion, various measures including imposing an emergency, knocking Lilavati off, imprisoning her for high treason and deviously stealing from the State, everything was discussed. Finally and inevitably, the matter was again referred to Birbal- the Man for all Seasons, who alone could be trusted to find a way out.

Birbal advised patience, as nothing else was possible, and said that before Lilavati would come claiming the Kingdom and everything in it as hers he would. work a way out of the mess in which Akbar had jeopardised all the good work and the large treasury which was till then a proud possession in the eyes of the world.

Lilavati came on the 64^th day, smiling and cool as ever. Akbar looked at Birbal, who smiled back and said to The Lady, “Oh fair Lilavati, here is the chessboard on which the challenge was made. Jahapanah Akbar is known to be more noble that his words, and so, without calculating how much rice she was entitled to; she was permitted to fill the chessboard with whatever quantity of rice it could hold, as that was the term of the challenge that she had herself stated, “On this chessboard where I have defeated you, give me grains of rice every day till all the days are completed; just one grain on the first square, 2 on the second, 4 on the third, doubling it every day...

Lilavati smiled, appeared in her true self as Devi Annapoorna, and addressed Akbar, “Noble King, this was just a lesson to you never to go overboard, but to run the affairs of the State with calculation and deliberation. As for the challenge, we shall not argue with Birbal and call it quits, only, you should now onwards rule with compassion and take a wow that whatever you do will be for the good of those you are privileged to rule”. With this, Annapoorna vanished, leaving behind a shocked Durbar and a chastised Emperor.