Why did Abbu Khan's goats want to run away? What happened to them in the hills?
Abbu Khan lived in the hilly region and the goats of the region didn’t like being tied to trees or poles and loved freedom. This made them run away but only to get killed by an old wolf which lived in the hills.
Abbu Khan said, "No more goats in my house ever again." Then he changed his mind. Why?
When all the goats left Abbu Khan, he decided not to keep any more goats in his house ever again. The old man, however, felt lonely and couldn’t do without talking to anyone so he changed his mind and bought a young goat.
Why did he buy a young goat?
After feeling terribly lonely, he bought a young goat because he thought that a young goat would stay with him much longer and would love him as he would feed her good food and take good care of her since her childhood.
Why did Chandni hate the rope round her neck?
Chandni wanted to run across the green fields every morning. She watched the hill tops covered in sunlight and felt the refreshing breeze passing by. However when she would run towards the hills, she was stopped with a jerk by the rope around her neck.
"Now Abbu Khan understood Chandni's problem..." What was Chandni's problem?
Chandni had stopped eating and grew thin. One day when Abbu Khan asked her what was wrong she told him that she wanted to go to the hills and that if she stayed with him in his compound she would soon die.
Abbu Khan pushed Chandni into a small hut. This shows that he
(i) was cruel.
(ii) loved her and wanted to save her life.
(iii) was selfish.
Abbu Khan’s life revolved around his pets and he loved them very much. All his goats which ran away were killed and eaten by the wolf. He pushed Chandni into a small hut because he didn’t want her to have the same fate as his other goats.
Why did Chandni refuse to join the group of wild goats?
Chandni had longed for freedom since long and now when she had finally managed to escape she wanted to enjoy her freedom all by herself. This is why she politely refused to join the group of wild goats.
Chandni fought the wolf because she
(i) was stronger than the wolf.
(ii) hated the wolf.
(iii) had to retain her freedom at all costs.
Chandni fought the wolf because she had to retain her freedom at all costs.
Why did the wise old bird say, “Chandni is the winner”?
The wise old bird said that Chandni was the winner because she bravely fought the wolf. She had chosen death in an open field over life in a compound. Despite being smaller and weaker than the wolf, she fought for her freedom as long as she could and did not give in easily. She struggled all through the night but was killed in the morning.
“Death in an open field is better than life in a small hut,” Chandni said to herself. Was it the right decision? Give reason for your answer.
Every creature has been given the right to life by God and we are no one to keep someone caged going against the laws of life. Yes, Chandni took the right decision. Imprisonment is worse than death. Chandni was brave and fought the wolf all night long and did not give up easily.
Freedom is life. Discuss this with reference to ‘Chandni’ and ‘I want Something in a Cage.’
All creatures have been given the right to life by God. No one likes being caged and ruled upon. Chandni preferred death in an open field than life in a compound because she wanted to be free. She wanted to see the world. She fought the wolf all night long courageously.
In the previous chapter, “I want Something in a Cage”, the man spent all the money he had to buy the doves in a cage. He didn’t buy them to care for or feed them but bought them to free them from the life of imprisonment. He had himself been in jail for ten long years and knew the pain of a caged life. After reading both these plots, we can say that freedom is life.