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The Attic, In - text Questions, When did Aditya leave the local school?, Aditya left the local school, after he had passed the matriculation examination., Why did Aditya think that the school would not be recognisable?, Aditya thought that the school would not be recognisable because it would have undergone many changes during the passage of time., Who were Aditya's ancestors?, Aditya's ancestors were once the zamindars. His father was a landlord in Bramhapur., How was the landscape through which they travelled?, The landscape through which they travelled was beautiful with paddy fields on either side of the road. And the harvest was over., What did Aditya visit?, Aditya visited his school first. He saw beyond iron gates, the playing field and the two-storeyed school building. And then he visited Nagen uncle's shop., Where was Nagen uncle's shop?, Nagen uncle's shop was next to a grocery shop and opposite to a temple dedicated to lord Shiva., Besides tea, what did Nagen uncle have in his shop?, Besides tea, Nagen uncle had biscuits and savouries in his shop., What did Nagen uncle tell about Sanyal?, Nagen told them that Sanyal was short of sight and hearing. He had no money to buy spectacles., In what way was Mr. Sanyal’s behaviour strange?, Aditya began to wonder whether Mr Sanyal was not a little crazy as well, because suddenly he stood up, stretched himself and, raising his lean right arm, and with eyes dilated, began to recite a poem by Tagore – Panraksha (‘Keeping of a Promise’). Having recited the poem, he left the place, making the gesture of Namaste with his hands, to nobody in particular., What did Nagen uncle tell about Sanyal’s past life?, Nagen uncle told about Sanyal's past life that He leads a cursed life – gone crazy but has not forgotten any incident of the past. He sold his lands to get his only daughter married. He lost his wife and only son last year. Since then he has somewhat changed – not really normal.’, How did Sanyal show that he had a sense of self-respect?, Sasanka goes to Nagel uncle’s shop, has tea and biscuits and always remembers to pay – having an acute sense of self-respect., Why was the attic ‘a favourite place’ for the children?, The attic has always been a favourite with children. It is in the attic that the child seems to be in a world of its own., What did Aditya do on reaching the attic?, As soon as Aditya reached the attic, He got on top of the packing case and pushed his hand inside the ventilator, thus upsetting a sparrow’s nest, a part of which fell to the ground. However, he heaved a sigh of relief when he had got what he had been looking for., What did the jeweller say about the article?, The jeweller remarked that it was an antique., Was Sanyal happy about his visitors?, No, Sanyal wasn’t happy about his visitors., Why did Sanyal recite the poem in the tea shop earlier?, Sanyal recited the poem ‘Panraksha’ in the tea shop in order to make Aditya remember the incidents on the prize-giving day. He recited the same poem that he had recited on the prize-giving day, What was engraved on the medal?, “Sriman Sasanka Sanyal – Special Prize for Recitation – 1948” was engraved on the medal., A. Answer the following questions in two or three sentences., 1. Write a few lines about the owner of the shop., The owner of the tea shop was uncle Nagen. His age was over sixty. He was a little rustic in appearance, with his white neatly-combed hair and clean look. He was wearing a dhoti and a blue striped shirt under a green shawl., 2. What was the daily routine of Sanyal?, Sanyal comes to the tea shop, has tea and biscuits and always remembers to pay for it as he has an acute sense of self-respect., 3. Why was there a sudden change in Aditya’s expression?, While leaving the tea shop, Sanyal recited a poem ‘Panraksha’, written by Tagore. It was the same poem Aditya heard at his school, twenty-nine years ago, on the prize-giving day. So, there was a sudden change in Aditya’s expression., 4. Why did Aditya decide to visit his ancestral home?, Aditya decided to visit his ancestral house to take the medal from his attic., 5. What was the condition of the attic?, A portion of a wall of the attic had crumbled down. Through the created window, we could see the sky, the fields, a part of the rice mill, the tall structure of the old temple. In the whole house, the attic had probably been the worst hit by wind and weather. The floor was strewn with twigs, straw and pigeon droppings., 6. When did Aditya heave a sigh of relief? Why?, Aditya heaved a sigh of relief, when he had got what he had been looking for in the attic. It was a silver medal belonging to Sanyal. He took it from him twenty-nine years ago and lied that it was lost. Now he wanted to return it to him., 7. Why did Aditya and his friend go to the jeweller?, Aditya and his friend went to the jeweller to find out the weight of the article., 8. What did Aditya offer Sanyal?, Aditya offered Sanyal one hundred and fifty rupees. It was the price of the medal, which Sanyal received in school for recitation., 9. “Your grievances are absolutely justified.” Who says this to whom? Why?, Aditya said this to Sanyal, because Aditya was the cause for Sanyals grievances, B. Answer in detail the following questions in about 100-150 words., 1. Give a detailed account of all thoughts and questions in the narrator's mind while accompanying Aditya from the tea shop to Sanyal’s house?, The narrator had noticed the keen interest of Aditya in seeing the tea shop at Bramhapur if it still existed. They saw Sasanka Sanyal, another customer seated in one corner of the Nagen’s Tea Cabin. When that customer was asked to leave by Nagen the owner, he behaved strangely and reacted sharply. Before leaving the place, he stretched himself, raised his lean arm and with dilated eyes recited a poem by Tagore., On hearing this poem and seeing the customer’s strange gesture of Namaste, Aditya’s expression changed. The narrator noticed the eagerness in Aditya to know who the gentlemen were and what he was doing. The information he had received from Nagen uncle perturbed Aditya. He was distressed perhaps to know that the man lost his wife and only son last year., When he left, Aditya was bent on knowing where the gentleman stayed and drove straight to his ancestral house with firm determination. His nerves seemed overwrought for some reason and he felt a strong necessity to visit his house. Aditya was totally a different person now and he expressed keen interest to visit his house where he lived twenty-nine years ago., “Memories are sometimes pleasant yet disturbing.”, 2. ‘Man does change with time’-What were the various changes that came about in Aditya?, Man does change with time. According to Sanyal, Aditya was a boy who could never compete with him in scholastic or non-scholastic activities. He was a liar and an envious personality. But, years later Aditya no longer has the same personality. He is more matured and responsible. His childish nature makes him feel guilty for stealing the medal that belonged to Sanyal., Aditya now wanted to restore Sanyal, his lost happiness. Knowing about his financial constraints, he decides to give him the cost of the silver medal. He drives with a firm determination to his ancestral house. When he reaches, he rushes to the attic. Aditya gets on top of a packing case and pushes his hand inside the ventilator, upsetting a sparrow’s nest. However, he heaves a sigh of relief when he gets what he had been looking for. He goes straight to the Jeweller to determine the current rate of the medal in the market., All these surely show a remarkable change in him. Even when Sanyal behaves rudely, Aditya is courteous and friendly. His only intention is penitence. He is so mature that he even understands and justifies the grievances Sanyal had in his heart. When Sanyal prefers the medal, without second thoughts he restores it to Sanyal whole-heartedly., “Change is universal.”, 3. Give a brief character sketch of Sasanka Sanyal., Sasanka Sanyal was a wise and intelligent student. Perhaps luck never favoured him. He may have been a book-worm. However, he was overpowered by his friends because of his innocence. Hence, Aditya Narayan Chowdhury exploits him and takes away his Silver medal that he had received for Poetry Recitation. He had a wonderful memory power and could recall every single incident of his past., He remembered Aditya when he saw him in Nagen’s Tea Cabin and confirmed his memory seeing his mole on the right cheek. He was rude in his behavior towards Aditya as he did not want to suppress his feelings and vented out his anger on him. He was remorseful after the death of his family members., He whiled away his time at Nagen’s shop yet never gave up his self-respect and paid for the cup of coffee and biscuits if in case he had. Financially, he wasn’t comfortable since he couldn’t afford even a spectacle because of his partial deformity in his eye-sight., “Self-respect permeates every aspect of your life.”