Chapter Atithi ( Guest)
Give Reasons ( Work Book)
1. Matilal Babu moored his boat near a riverside market because he was
returning home with his family by boat and the boat was moored
beside a riverside market so that their meal could be prepared. Motilal
Babu is the head of his family, a family oriented zamindar, a father
who has to look after his family and fulfill his familial duties. Having
their own boat is also a mark of his rich zamindar status in the bengali
society, he ensures that his family leads a very comfortable life.
1. Motilal Babu consented to Tarapada’s request of giving him lift in the
boat till Nandigram because he was intrigued by the charismatic
features of the boy, his youth, his graceful smile, his brahmin status
which made him look like a young devoted sage with pure intentions.
He was also impressed by his skills of cooking fish.
2. Tarapada ran away from his home because he was a young boy filled
with inquisitiveness to explore and learn. He was a quick learner and
didn’t like the rules set by the society. He did everything according to
his own wishes which also portrays his rash decision making nature as
a young lad who is curious and is highly intrigued by whatever he
observes in his environment. He also has the soul of a wanderer
exploring and praising the bounties of nature.
3. Tarapada left the yatra-troupe because he was treated like a son by the
master of the yatra troupe, young as well as old members of the troupe
fell for him and women also started making a special fuss about him.
Tarapada didn’t like ties of emotions and chose to be emotionally
detached from everyone even his own family. He didn’t like the worldly
ties, mundane existence and rules set by the society for manhood and
household.
5. Tarapada joined a group of panchali singers because of his passion for
music. He was like a deer in his love for music, Tarapada is not only
Intrigued by the harmony of formal music rather he can sense and
feel the resonance of harmony when the raindrops fall on the leaves
and when the clouds rattle. Moaning of the winds as they blow through
the woods, cry of birds breaking tranquility of the surrounding during the
lonely afternoons, call of wild foxes and croaking of frogs in the rainy
evenings make him throng with emotions. He exhibits a wonderful
capacity to appreciate the basic goods of life, with awe, with pleasure,
wonder and even ecstasy.
6. Tarapada's family gave up searching for him because he didn’t like any
ties of love, he chose to be emotionally detached with people and
family around him. He was a wanderer and he chose to be free and not
get used to the mundane means of existence.
7. Tarapada decided to give up gymnastics troupe and go to Nandigram
because he had heard about a Zamindar at Nandigram had found an
amateur yatra troupe on a lavish scale. Tarapada is fond of learning
and his quest for learning takes him to different places for acquiring
knowledge and skills. He is captivated by everything that comes along
his way.
8. Tarapada, despite having any connections with various groups
remained unbound and uncorrupted because he was a free spirited
soul who moved from one group to the other to imbibe knowledge as
he was curious to learn and master any skill that came along his way.
Staying in one group might make him stagnant and attach and he
didn’t prefer to attach to anything in this world.
9. In contrast to his previous experiences Tarapada stayed in Motilal
Babu’s house for almost two years because Motilal Babu's house was
an abode of learning and comfort for Tarapada. He was also fascinated
by Charusashi who acted as a good competitor for Tarapada.
10. After initial reluctance, Motilal Babu decided to marry his
daughter to Tarapada because Charusashi was hard to control, she had
her own whims and being the single child of her parents she was also
stubborn. Motilal Babu thought of marrying her to a well off family but
Charu's behaviour could be highly problematic for the in laws.
Therefore he decided that Tarapada was the perfect suitor for
Charusashi as Tarapada had all the good qualities, he was also
charming and since Motilal Babu had a son preference so he could
keep Tarapada in his own house without having to send her daughter
anywhere after her marriage.
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