The legend of Chalawan and Krai Thong
Bueng See Fai in Phichit
Krai Thong is a Thai folktalefrom the province Phichit. It tells the story of Chalawan, a crocodile king. who kidnaps a daughter of a wealthy Phichit man, and Krai Thong, a merchant from Nonthaburi who wants to kill Chalawan.
This is the story.
Magic cave
Once upon a time there was a magical cave, which was full of water, in which crocodiles lived. A magical crystal ball floated on the water, shining as brightly as the sunlight outside the cave. The king of the crocodiles was called Chalawan, but the special thing was that he, like other crocodiles that swam into the cave, changed into a human form.
King of the crocodiles
Chalawan owed his position as king of the crocodiles to his grandfather, because the rightful successor was actually his father, who had died in a fight with two other crocodiles. He had two crocodiles for a wife, who lived in the cave in a human form. With his aggressive nature and his need for power, he was not satisfied with his situation. Unlike his grandfather, who lived according to Buddhist principles, he wanted to eat human flesh
Kidnapping
Rumors abounded throughout Phichit province that crocodiles preyed on humans living near the water. One day, Tapao Kaew and Tapao Thong, the two daughters of a rich man from Phichit, wanted to swim in the river and ignored the crocodile warning. Chalawan came out of the cave as a crocodile to hunt human prey, saw the two young ladies and fell madly in love. He grabbed Tapao Thong and kidnapped her to his cave.
When Tapao Thong regained consciousness in the cave, she gazed at the beauty and splendor of the palace of Chalawan, who now as a handsome man tried to win over Tapao Thong, but without success. However, Chalawan demanded that she fall in love with him and agree to become his wife.
Crocodile Hunter
Meanwhile, the wealthy father discovered that one of his daughters had been attacked by a crocodile. He was deeply concerned and announced that whoever could defeat the crocodile and bring back his daughter's body could count on a great reward and be allowed to marry the other daughter Tapao Kaew. But alas, no one succeeded in defeating the crocodile.
Krai Thong, a merchant from Nonthaburi, had mastered the skills of fighting crocodiles and offered to defeat Chalawan and bring back Tapao Thong. He sailed from Nonthaburi to Phichit ready for a battle with Chalawan, where he could use the magical dagger his teacher Khong had given him.
Phaya Chalawan in Phichit
Threat
Chalawan became aware that he would be hunted again and he dreamed about his death. He related his dream to his grandfather, who thought the dream was a prophecy. Grandfather advised Chalawan to stay in the cave for seven days. If he did swim out of the cave like a crocodile, a fatal threat awaited him.
The next morning, Krai Thong began casting spells on a raft above Chalawan Cave. Krai Thong's spell reached Chalawan, who grew impatient and could not stay in his cave. Chalawan swam to the surface and confronted Krai Thong. The battle started immediately, Krai Thong attacked first by stabbing Chalawan in the back with his dagger.
The final battle
Chalawan was seriously wounded and retreated to his cave. His two wives asked the grandfather for help, but he said there was nothing he could do for Chalawan. Meanwhile, Krai Thong dived into the water to follow Chalawan to his shelter. When Krai Thong came near the cave, he met Vamila, one of Chalawan's wives. The hunter was crazy about women and he flirted with her who then fled into the cave.
Krai Thong followed Vamila and faced Chalawan again, this time as a man of flesh and blood. The fight started again, but due to the serious wound Chalawan had received as a crocodile, he was no match for Krai Thong. He killed Chalawan and resurfaced along with the kidnapped daughter. Tapao Thong returned to her father, who was happy to find that his daughter was still alive. Krai Thong was rewarded with wealth and got both daughters as his wife and lived happily ever after.
Postscript Gringo
As is not uncommon in folk tales, the story of Chalawan and Krai Thong is told in many different terms. I talked about it with Nik, the Thai girlfriend of a down-to-earth Rotterdammer, who was born in Phichit. She claimed that the people of Phichit are sure that it is not a legend, but a true story from the distant past
Finally
As mentioned, there are many variations on the story, which was first filmed in 1958. On Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krai_Thong you will find a list of the films and TV series about Chalawan. Below is a trailer of a Thai movie from 2001:
Source: Wikipedia