Compare and contrast the characters of saheb and mukesh.
Answers
Saheb-e-Alam originally hails from Dhaka, Bangladesh where he was a rag picker like his other family members. However, when storms destroy all that they had, they migrate to India where he works in a tea stall to earn his living. He also has to run several errands for his owner. Although he has a fixed salary and free meals every month, Saheb is not happy as he feels that he is not his own master anymore compared to when he was a rag picker. He has no dreams of his own and resigns to his own fate.
Mukesh lives in Firozabad and works in a glass bangle making factory. Belonging to a family of bangle makers, he is engaged in the same profession. However, he is a boy with self-determination and wants to be his own master. Mukesh wants to come out of the family business and become a motor mechanic. Though the chances for this are bleak, he continues to dream about this for his family’s betterment.
Saheb
He accepted his fate and worked at a tea stall even though he was not happy about it. He had to do a number of odd jobs which included getting milk from the milk booth. He valued his independence more than money that is why he was not happy even though he earned Rs. 800 and got free meals.
Mukesh
He had the courage to dream big even though he lived in poverty. He belonged to a family of bangle sellers who had resigned to their fate and had suppressed their hopes and desires. He refused to take up the family profession of bangle making and wanted to be a motor mechanic when he grew up.