When the Fish Laughed (Adapted from an old Kashmiri folk tale)

About the passage

A.  Read to understand

1.   Rewrite the following paragraph by arranging the ten sentences to show the order in which the incidents occurred in the story.

The queen asked whether it was a male or Afemale fish. The fisherwoman said that it was a male fish. The queen’s servant was buying fish. The fish laughed. The vazir’s son set out to find a solution. The king ordered all the women of the queen’s palace to jump over a pit. The queen got angry, so the king asked the vazir to solve the matter. The queen said she did not want it as males were not permitted in her palace. No one but the man in disguise was able to jump across the pit, so he was caught. He met a girl who told him that there was a man in woman’s clothes hiding inside the palace.

The queen’s servant was buying fish. The queen asked whether it was a male or female fish. The fisherwoman said that it was a male fish. The queen said she did not want it as males were not permitted in her palace. The fish laughed. The queen got angry, so the king asked the vazir to solve the matter. The vazir’s son set out to find a solution. He met a girl who told him that there was a man in woman’s clothes hiding inside the palace. The king ordered all the women of the queen’s palace to jump over a pit. No one but the man in disguise was able to jump across the pit, so he was caught.

2.   Choose the correct options.

      a.   ‘No, but soon you will be taking my dead body for burial.’

                     i.        Who said this to whom?

Vazir said this to his son Amir.

                    ii.        Why did the speaker believe that death was close at hand?

The speaker believed that death was close at hand because king will have him killed if he cannot get to the bottom of the strange incident occurred at the Queen’s palace and he felt almost certain of failure.

     b.   ‘Why did the Bhaskara call Amir a ‘strange’ man?

     Ans. Bhaskara called Amir a ‘strange’ man because when he invited him home, he asked him if the beams of their house were strong enough.

     c.   What gift did Shivani send over to Amir?

      Ans. Shivani sent him a bowl of porridge, twelve chapattis, and a jar full of milk.

     d.   ‘Impossible! He would have been caught immediately and put to death for such an offence.’

                     i.        Who said this and to whom?

Amir said this to Shivani.

                    ii.        What was this ‘impossible’ event that the speaker talks of?

Presence of a man inside the Queen’s palace at that time was impossible. 

B.  Read to infer

1.   Why did the queen ask the maids to draw the curtains?

    Ans. Queen asked the maids to draw the curtains because she was annoyed at the strange behavior of a fish and she did not want to see anyone.

2.   Do you think that the king was disturbed by the queen’s threat to leave the kingdom? Give reasons for your answer.

    Ans. Yes, the king was disturbed by the queen’s threat to leave the kingdom because after listening to her, he went out of his mind and could not decide what to do so he asked the vazir to solve the matter in a week’s time else he will be killed.

3.   How did Shivani realize that the servant had been unfaithful?

    Ans. The man told the servant to tell Shivani this: The moon is new, there are ten months, and the sea is not full at all. Not understanding the meaning of these words, the servant repeated them word for word, as he had heard them, to his mistress; and thus his theft was discovered. This is how she realized that the servant had been unfaithful.

4.   The king’s character turns out to be both impulsive and generous. Support this statement with examples from the play.

Ans. Impulsive behavior – Without thinking logically about the incident that had occurred at Queen’s palace, king asked the Vazir to solve the matter in a week’s time else he will face death penalty.

Generous behavior – King rewarded the Vazir and his son with lands, gold, and jewels.

5.   Why does Amir believe that Shivani might be able to help him solve the problem of the fish?

Ans. Amir believes that Shivani might be able to help him solve the problem of the fish because he found her very intelligent as she understood the deep and wise meaning of each of his sentences.

6.   Do you find Amir to be intelligent? Justify your answer with examples from the play.

Ans. When Bhaskar invited him home, he asked him if the beams of the house were strong enough and further in the story he told the servant to tell Shivani this: The moon is new, there are ten months, and the sea is not full at all. From this it is clear that Amir was very intelligent as there was a deep and wise meaning in each of his sentences.

C.  Discuss

1.   Why do you think the man was hiding in the queen’s palace as a woman? Could he have been the spy of a rival kingdom? Discuss in class.

    Ans. The man may be hiding in the queen’s palace as a woman with intent to harm queen. Yes, he could have been the spy of a rival kingdom. (Answer will vary)

2.   Was Amir’s method of finding the man hidden in the queen’s palace a good one? Why or why not? Discuss and find another possible way to solve this problem.

    Ans. Amir advised a game for her Majesty’s maids. The winner will be rewarded with thousand mohurs who can jump over the pit. Amir’s method of finding the man hidden in the queen’s palace was a good one because the male disguised as one of the queen’s maids could only do this. Another method could be horse riding.