Tenali Rama, the famous jester in Krishnadevaraya’s court in the Vijayanagar Empire in the 13th Century, was not only funny but also had a keen business sense. Once his friend Raju, who owned a hotel called Deccan Queen, met him to tell him how his business was down despite doing everything he could – making guests comfortable and not charging them too much. And that he was considering closing the hotel and do something more profitable.

Tenali Rama, like Birbal in Akbar’s court, was famous for extreme contrarian thinking which would make no sense to the listener. Tenali told Raju to rename his hotel as Five Bells and instead of hanging five bells outside the entrance, hang six. Raju was puzzled but was in no position to argue. He blindly followed his friend’s advice.

The trick started working. Everyone who passed by the hotel were amused at the ‘stupidity’. Some would stop by to point out the mistake and while doing so took a good look at the well-laid out lobby and the courteous reception. In a few months the hotel started doing roaring business. Moral of the story – solutions to problems can come from most unexpected sources. Only those with an open mind can see it.