10 short questions "The Home Coming -Ravindranath Tagore"

1.   What did Phatik and his friends decide to do?  (March 2007)

          Phatik Chakravati was a typical naughty village boy about fourteen years old. He was the ring leader of his gang. He never went to school but spent the whole day flying kites, swimming in the river and playing mischief. He was inventive and full of ideas. One day a new mischief got into his head. There was a heavy log lying on the mud flat of the river waiting to be shaped into to mast for a boat. Phatik and his friends decided that they should shift the log by force from its place and roll it away. The owner of the log would be angry and surprised and they would enjoy all the fun. Thus Phatik and his friends decided to perform a new mischief.

2.   How did Makhan spoil the fun?

          Phatik and his friends decided to perform a new mischief. They decided that they should shift the log by force from its place and roll it away. The owner of the log would be angry and surprised and they would enjoy all the fun. But the fun was spoiled before it started, as Phatik’s brother Makhan went against this plan. He decides not to allow them to roll the log way. So he quietly sat down on the log without uttering word. This made everybody puzzled for a moment.  Phatik asked him to get up. But Makhan sat more confidently and appeared like a young philosopher meditating. Now it was the question of Phatik’s dignity before his gang and so he ordered the gangs to roll the log along with Makhan. As the log moved, Makhan fell into mud. So he quarreled with Phatik and went home crying. All in this way Makhan spoiled the fun.

3.  Who arrived at Phatik’s house?

          Bishambar brother of Phatik’s mother or his maternal uncle came to Phatik house. Bishambar had gone away soon after the marriage of Phatik’s mother and his sister and he also started business at Bombay. Bishambar now come back to Calcutta and was visiting his sister after a long period.

4.   Why did Phatik go to Calcutta?  (October-07)

          Phatik Chakravati was a typical naughty village boy about fourteen years old. He never went to school but spent the whole day flying kites and making mischief.  He was a perpetual nuisance and his widow mother did not know how to manage him.  He was lazy, disobedient and wild, so not studying properly. Once his maternal uncle Bishambar visited his sister after a long. He volunteered to take Phatik to Calcutta where he would be educated. Phatik’s mother readily agreed and Phatik also was excited to go. So he readily went to Calcutta expecting a new exiting life there.

5.  Why was Phatik unwelcome to his aunt?

          When Phatik and his uncle reached Calcutta, Phatik made the acquaintance of his aunt for the first time. His aunt was not all happy to see him. For her, Phatik was an unnecessary addition of her family because she had already three children who were quite unmanageable. To bring a village boy of 14 was very much upsetting to her. So Phatik was unwelcome to his aunt.

6. Why was Phatik unhappy in Calcutta?  (March 2006)

          Phatik was sent to Calcutta by his mother. She hoped that the boy would get good education and be happy there. Phatik too expected to have an exciting life but his aunt did not show him any love. She was rude with and found fault with him. He was despised and insulted every now and then his cousins also made fun of him. He was the most backward boy in the whole school. He was beaten unmercifully by the teacher day after day. He could not make any friends. He longed for his village where he was a ring leader and where he had enjoyed life. The house became a prison for him. He wanted to run away to his village. The whole his life was miserable and unhappy in Calcutta.

7.   What happened to Phatik at school?

          Phatik was the most backward and the dullest boys in his school. He remained silent when the teacher asked him a question, and like an ass patiently suffered all the blows that came down on his back. One day, he lost his lesson book. It was impossible to prepare lesson without it. Day by day he was beaten unmercifully by the teacher. His conditions became so miserable that even his cousins were ashamed of him. He was insulted by his classmates. These all the troubled faced by Phatik when he was at school.

8.   Why did Phatik run away?

          Phatik was sent to Calcutta by his mother. She hoped that the boy would get good education and be happy there. Phatik too expected to have an exciting life but his aunt did not show him any love. She was rude with and found fault with him. He was despised and insulted every now and then his cousins also made fun of him. His life at school was no better. He was the most backward boy in the whole school. The house became a prison for him. The whole his life was miserable and unhappy in Calcutta. Now He longed for his village where he was a ring leader and where he had enjoyed life. He also remembered his mother. One day he fell sick and he feared that in such condition, he would be nuisance to his aunt. So he ran away from home. 

9.   Who come to see Phatik?

          Phatik was very unhappy at his uncle’s house in Calcutta. He received no love and affection. His aunt found fault with him and insulted him. Once in the state of malarial fever, He ran away from home. He was brought back in serious condition.  The boy told his uncle that he wanted to go home to his mother. His uncle assured him that he would send him when holidays would come. In his delirium he kept on asking his uncle if holidays had come. Finally his mother was sent for she arrived just in times to see her son die. His mother came to see her son dying.

10. What do you think happened to Phatik?

          ‘The Home Coming’ is a touching story of a boy of fourteen years. Back in village he was happy and free. He played his boyish pranks and has the fun common to his age but life last all its charms when he was sent to Calcutta. Instead of love he received contraption, insult and beating. This made the boy unhappy and adversely affected his progress in school; the unloved boy fell sick and died.

          According to me Phatik was transplanted from village life which was full of mischief and pleasure to a life to city where he had no one to love and give affection to him. He realized the values of home and love because of neglect from his uncle’s family and separation from his mother. During his illness this wild boy turned mature and understands what is home.