Who was the genius of the class, had the courage to face Rajam?
Answers
Answer:
RIVER SARAYU was the pride of Malgudi. It was some ten minutes
walk from Ellaman Street, the last street of the town, chiefly occupied by
oilmongers. Its sand-banks were the evening resort of all the people of the
town. The Municipal President took any distinguished visitor to the top of
the Town Hall and proudly pointed to him Sarayu in moonlight, glistening
like a silver belt across the North.
The usual evening crowd was on the sand. Swaminathan and Mani sat
aloof on a river-step, with their legs dangling in water. The peepul branches
overhanging the river rustled pleasantly. A light breeze played about the
boughs and scattered stray leaves on the gliding stream below. Birds filled
the air with their cries. Far away, near Nallappa’s Mango Grove, a little
downstream, a herd of cattle was crossing the river. And then a country cart
drawn by bullocks passed, the cart-man humming a low tune. It was some
fifteen minutes past sunset and there was a soft red in the West.
‘The water runs very deep here, doesn’t it?’ Mani asked.
‘Yes, why?’
‘I am going to bring Rajam here, bundle him up, and throw him into
the river.’
Rajam was a fresh arrival in the First A. He had sauntered into the
class on the reopening day of the Second Term, walked up to the last bench,
sat beside Mani, and felt very comfortable indeed till Mani gave him a jab in
the ribs, which he returned. He had impressed the whole class on the very
first day. He was a new-comer; he dressed very well—he was the only boy
in the class who wore socks and shoes, fur cap and tie, and a wonderful coat
and knickers.
He came to the school in a car. As well as all this, he proved to be a
very good student too. There were vague rumours that he had come from
some English boys’ school somewhere in Madras. He spoke very good
English, ‘Exactly like a “European”‘; which meant that few in the school
could make out what he said. Many of his class-mates could not trust
themselves to speak to him, their fund of broken English being small. Only
Sankar, the genius of the class, had the courage to face him, though his
English sounded halting and weak before that of Rajam.
This Rajam was a rival to Mani. In his manner to Mani he assumed a
certain nonchalance to which Mani was not accustomed. If Mani jabbed,
Rajam jabbed; if Mani clouted, he clouted; if Mani kicked, he kicked. If
Mani was the overlord of the class, Rajam seemed to be nothing less.
And add to all this the fact that Rajam was a regular seventy
percenter, second only to Sankar. There were sure indications that Rajam
was the new power in the class. Day by day as Mani looked on, it was
becoming increasingly clear that a new menace had appeared in his life.
All this lay behind his decision on the river-step to bundle up Rajam
and throw him into the river. Swaminathan expressed a slight fear: “You
forget that his father is the police superintendent.’ Mani remained silent for a
while and said, What do I care? Some night I am going to crack his
shoulders with my clubs.’
‘If I were you, I would keep out of the way of policemen. They are an
awful lot,’ said Swaminathan.
‘If you were me! Huh! But thank God I am not you, a milk-toothed
coward like you.’
Swaminathan bit his lips and sighed.
‘And that reminds me,’ said the other, ‘you are in need of a little
warning. I find you hanging about that Rajam a bit too much. Well, have a
care for your limbs. That is all I can say.’
Swaminathan broke into loud protestations. Did Mani think that
Swaminathan could respect anyone but him, Mani the dear old friend and
guide? What made him think so? As far as Swaminathan could remember,
he had never been within three yards of Rajam. Oh, how he hated him!
That vile upstart! When had Mani seen him with Rajam? Oh, yes, it
must have been during the Drawing period on Monday. It was Rajam who
had come and talked to him in spite of the cold face that Swaminathan had
turned to him.
Answer:
Only Sankar, the genius of the class, had the courage to face him, though his English sounded halting and weak before that of Rajam.