A large part of Indian culture is held in the folktales and stories passed down from generation to generation.

In Discover India: Folktales of India, Sonia Mehta explores some of these timeless tales from different parts of our vast land. Let us see how peacocks came to be in Assam!

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There was once a wealthy man who lived in the hills of Assam with his wife and a young daughter named Varya. One of their most precious possessions a magical shawl that the man's mother-in-law had been given by a goddess. Whenever anyone used the shawl, they had to utter the magic words, otherwise something terrible could happen.

Varya grew up to be a bright young woman. As tradition demanded, she was married to her own cousin, Tanka. When her parents died, Varya inherited all her father's wealth, which included the magical shawl.

One day, when Varya had finished all the cleaning and washing, she hung out the clothes and shawl to dry. In all the excitement of her wedding and then the sorrow of her parents' death, Varya had forgotten to tell Tanka the secret of the shawl.

Varya decided to go to the stream by the house and look for some prawns for their dinner.

Suddenly, there was a flash of lightning followed by loud thunder. Dark clouds covered the skies and it began to pour. Varya gathered up her things and rushed home. Just as she got there, she saw Tanka running about, collecting the clothes that had been left out to dry in the sun. He reached out for the shawl.

'Tanka! Stop!' Varya shrieked. 'Do not touch the shawl without uttering the magic words.'

But her voice was drowned out by the thunder. Tanka picked up the shawl and to Varya's shock, the colours of the shawl began to flow into Tanka's body. Tanka began to change shape. His nose grew longer and more pointed, while his skin burst into feathers that had the most stunning colours in nature.

'Wait, Tanka, wait,' Varya sobbed. She rushed forward and grabbed one end of the shawl. But all the wonderful colours had already flowed into her husband. All that was left were some of the duller shades, which now flowed into her.

And that is how, people believe, Tanka turned into a peacock with brilliant colours, while poor Varya

turned into a peahen with duller colours.

People from Assam still say that when it thunders and pours, peacocks spread their feathers and dance in the rain, remembering the day they came into existence.

And that's the folklore surrounding peacocks dancing in the rain!

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That's enough from us. Now it's your turn!

Share with us a story that you have heard from your parents or teachers, and help us keep the tradition alive!

Here's what you need to do:

1. Read this excerpt and write a folktale like this one!

2. At the end of the contest, three best stories will be featured on The Penguin Digest.

3. The winners will also win a copy each of the book.

4. The last date for submission is 18th February!

5. All entries must be tagged with #DiscoverIndia in the comments section below to be eligible for the prizes.

6. The contest is open to Indian participants only.