A Gift of Chappals Summary In English
Mridu goes to Rukku Manni’s House.
Mridu is a young girl living with her grandmother Tapi and grandfather Thatha in Chennai. Mridu goes alongwith Tapi to her aunt Rukku Manni’s place one afternoon. There she meets her cousins Lalli, Ravi and Meena. Everyone at Rukku Manni’s house was glad to see Mridu. There was a thick bitter-berry bush in their backyard, Ravi took her beside that. There was small little kitten inside a torn football. The small creature was busy drinking milk that was kept inside a half-shell of a coconut.
The Kitten
Meena informed Mridu that they have found the kitten outside their house in the morning of that day. But they must keep it as a secret otherwise the grandmother will leave their house immediately. Ravi was upset that they were being taught to be kind towards animals, but when he was trying to do so,elders were screaming at them calling the kitten a dirty creature. His grandmother was suspicious while he was taking out milk for the kitten from kitchen. He had to drink more than half of the milk to make her believe that it was for him.
He also told Mridu that they have named the kitten as Mahendran. Mridu loved the name because it sounded real unlike those cute ones you keep for the kittens. Ravi further added that its complete name was Mahendravarma Pallava Poonai and M P Poonai in short.
He informed her he could make it from its fur as it was a fine breed cat, a close relative of lion family like the one that Pallava kings used in their emblem. To this Mridu giggled which instigated Ravi to prove his knowledge about the history further. On his school trip to Mahabalipuram he had seen statue of a lion and he firmly believed that it was the ancestor of that kitten. He proudly announced that his small kitten was the descendant of Mahabalipuram Rishi-Cat. He reminded Mridu of cats being worshipped in ancient Egypt. He believed it to be a descendant of cat godess, Bastet.
The ‘Kreech’ Noise
Ravi was busy making all proud announcements about his kitten when a weird sound ‘Kreech…! came from the window. Mridu was shocked while Mahendran was frightened. Mahendran jumped with fear on a tray or red chillies kept under the Sun for drying. With the “kreeching noise continuing on the background, Mridu enquired what it was? Ravi informed her that it was Lalli learning to play the violin. Mridu peeped from the window and she found Lalli was holding the violin in an awkward position sitting a bit away from her music teacher who had his back towards the window.
The teacher was bald with a fringe of oiled black hair falling around his ears. There was gold chain round the neck and a ring on this hand. He had a big toe with which he was thumping the ground. He was playing the notes perfectly on the violin while Lalli was struggling hard. His tracks were filled with melody while Lalli continued missing the notes.
The Beggar
Children were having fun peeping from the window when Rukku Manni called Ravi to send the beggar away. She was fed up with the beggar coming to their place for a week now and wanted him to find another house. The beggar had made himself comfortable at the garden. He was leaning against the neem tree with his upper cloth spread under it. He was about to snooze when he heard Ravi asking him to leave. He was shocked to hear this and called for lady of the house. An irritated Rukku Manni told Ravi that there wasn’t anything left in the kitchen and asked the beggar not to come again.
Her voice was so loud that Ravi didn’t have to repeat her words to the beggar. The beggar told them that he would leave after taking rest for a while. It was too hot outside and there were blisters on his feet. The children were in pain after seeing this and started making plans to give him chappals.
The Gift
Mridu remembered seeing a pair of old grey chappal while she had entered Ravi’s house. She asked Ravi whom they belonged to. Ravi took the chappals and gave it to the beggar and asked him not to come again. The beggar went away wearing the chappals and blessing the children. It was the time for the music teacher to leave. He was looking for his chappals. He called Lalli and they looked everywhere, but didn’t find them. Lalli informed Rukku Manni about it. Rukku Manni questioned the children if they had seen anyone picking up the chappals.
Rukku Manni was really angry and Mridu couldn’t control anymore. She told her that they had given the music teacher’s chappals to the beggar. Rukku Manni went inside and brought Gopu mama’s new chappals and gave them to the music teacher. The teacher was happy getting the new chappals, but still pretended as though it was tough for him to accept them.
Rukku Manni-the Loving Mother
The teacher called Ravi a monkey, an incarnation of lord Hanuman, which seemed clear that Rukku Manni didn’t like. She wanted the teacher to leave immediately.
After he left, she called the children home and offered them some snacks. She thanked God for going itto office in chappals, but needed them after coming home immediately. She wondered what she would tell him giving a hint that she would take the blame on herself.
Page No 22:
Question 1:
What is the secret that Meena shares with Mridu in the backyard?
Answer:
A kitten inside a torn football filled with sand was hidden behind a thick bitter-berry bush in the backyard. This was the secret that Meena shared with Mridu.
Question 2:
How does Ravi get milk for the kitten?
Answer:
Ravi got milk for the kitten from the kitchen. When his grandmother saw him holding the glass of milk, he told her that he was hungry. In order to avoid suspicion, he had to even drink most of the milk. When she asked for the tumbler, he told her that he would wash it himself. Then, he ran and poured the milk into a coconut shell. Before his grandmother could get really suspicious, he ran back to the kitchen, washed the tumbler and put it back.
Question 3:
Who does he say the kitten’s ancestors are? Do you believe him?
Answer:
Ravi said that one of the descendants of the Egyptian cat-goddess was a stowaway in a Pallava ship. The descendant of this cat was the Mahabalipuram Rishi-Cat, and their kitten had descended from the Mahabalipuram Rishi-Cat. His narrative concerning the genealogy of the kitten is unbelievable.
Question 4:
Ravi has a lot to say about M.P. Poonai. This shows that
(i) he is merely trying to impress Mridu.
(ii) his knowledge of history is sound.
(iii) he has a rich imagination.
(iv) he is an intelligent child.
Which of these statements do you agree/disagree to?
Answer:
Ravi has a lot to say about M.P. Poonai. This shows that he has a rich imagination.
Question 5:
What was the noise that startled Mridu and frightened Mahendran?
Answer:
The noise that startled Mridu and frightened Mahendran was an unusual sound, a ‘kreech’. This ‘kreeching’ was actually Lalli’s attempt at learning to play the violin.
Page No 28:
Question 1:
The music master is making lovely music. Read aloud the sentence in the text that expresses this idea.
Answer:
‘The music-master’s notes seemed to float up and settle perfectly into the invisible tracks of the melody’. This sentence shows that the music-master was making lovely music.
Question 2:
Had the beggar come to Rukku Manni’s house for the first time? Give reasons for your answer.
Answer:
No, the beggar had not come to Rukku Manni’s house for the first time. When the beggar arrived, she asked Ravi to send him away. The beggar, she said, had been coming to their house daily the week before. She said it was time he found another house to beg from.
Question 3:
“A sharp V-shaped line had formed between her eyebrows.” What does it suggest to you about Rukku Manni’s mood?
Answer:
A sharp V-shaped line between the eyebrows refers to a frown. This suggests that Rukku Manni was in an angry mood.
Page No 29:
Question 1:
Complete the following sentences.
(i) Ravi compares Lalli’s playing the violin to _____________________________
________________________________________________________________
(ii) Trying to hide beneath the tray of chillies, Mahendran _____________________
_________________________________________________________________
(iii) The teacher played a few notes on his violin, and Lalli _____________________
_________________________________________________________________
(iv) The beggar said that the kind ladies of the household _____________________
_________________________________________________________________
(v) After the lesson was over, the music teacher asked Lalli if ___________________
__________________________________________________________________
Answer:
(i) Ravi compares Lalli’s playing the violin to derailing of a train of melody.
(ii) Trying to hide beneath the tray of chillies, Mahendran tipped a few chillies over himself.
(iii) The teacher played a few notes on his violin, and Lalli stumbled behind him on her violin, which looked helpless and unhappy in her hands.
(iv) The beggar said that the kind ladies of the household were very generous and because of this, he had been able to keep his body and soul toget
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