[Raintree 8] The Mask

 Summary: The Mask

Rajen Babu, a respectable elderly gentleman, living in Darjeeling receives a

threatening letter. Feluda, a private detective, and his cousin, Topshe, who are

holidaying in Darjeeling, visit Rajen Babu to solve the mystery. After initial

investigations, they suspect one of three men to be responsible for sending the

letter. First, is Dr Phoni Mitra, who is Rajen Babu’s physician. Since he does

not have a flourishing practice and is in need of money, Feluda thinks that if

Rajen Babu falls ill after receiving such threatening letters, it will help Dr

Mitra make more money. Feluda also suspects Mr Ghoshal, who is an expert in

antiques. Rajen Babu has recently developed a keen interest regarding

antiques and has started collecting curios. Hence, he is a competitor of sorts

for Mr Ghoshal. If he falls ill, he will not be able to go out of the house to buy

the curios and thus Mr Ghoshal will be able to buy them.

Prabeer Majumdar, Rajen Babu’s son, whom Rajen Babu had thrown out of his

house many years ago, after he had been caught stealing money from his

father’s cupboard, has also been seen in Darjeeling. He can also send the

threatening letters to take revenge on his father.

One morning, Rajen Babu asks Feluda and Topshe to urgently visit him. When

they reach, they see that Rajen Babu is looking pale and exhausted; Dr Mitra is

examining him and Tinkori Babu, his tenant, standing there, looking worried.

Rajen Babu tells Feluda that he has received a scare the previous night when a

masked man had come in after midnight and bent over him. The man was a

horribly scary mask and Rajen Babu had been petrified.

After seeing off Dr Mitra, Tinkori Babu informs Feluda that he has to urgently

leave for Calcutta. He shows his concern for Rajen Babu by saying that he will

inform the police before he leaves, as Rajen Babu needed protection. With

Tinkori Babu leaving for Calcutta, Rajen Babu would be all alone at home.

Hence, Feluda offers to stay the night at his residence.

At night, Feluda and Topshe discuss the details of the case. Feluda tells Topshe

that all the three suspects, namely Dr Mitra, Mr Ghoshal and Prabeer, had

alibis for the other night when Rajen Babu had had a scare, as they were with

other people at the time of the incident. Suddenly, Feluda gets up and leaves

and Topshe lies down. He soon begins to feel sleepy and is startled when he

senses the presence of a masked man bending over him. He is about to scream

when Feluda reveals that he has put on the mask. Feluda asks Topshe to wear

the mask and to tell him if he finds anything odd about it. Topshe identifies the

smell of cheroot. Immediately, Topshe thinks of Tinkori Babu and Feluda

agrees with him.

However, they are confused about what could have been Tinkori Babu’s

motive. They get to know the motive only next morning, when Rajen Babu

receives a letter from Tinkori Babu. In the letter, Tinkori Babu says that he

had done it to avenge a wrong that Rajen Babu had done to him when they

had studied in school together. Rajen Babu’s act had scarred him deeply, both

physically and mentally. When he saw Rajen Babu’s picture at his house, he

recognised him and decided to avenge himself by causing him to be anxious

and lose his peace of mind.

The story creates an atmosphere of suspense and fear at the very outset with

the mention of the threatening letter, which promises to punish Rajen Babu

for past misdeeds. The reader is left wondering about what could have been

the misdeed, and how and what punishment Rajen Babu will receive. As all the 

characters are introduced, the culprit is introduced as the least suspicious

character but he is also shown to be intelligent. He tries to lead suspicion

away from him by directing it towards Mr Ghoshal and also by saying that he

will tell the police to take care of Rajen Babu, before leaving. This makes the

story interesting as he is capable of matching wits with Feluda. The reader’s

attention is drawn towards the different characters by revealing the motives

each of them could have. The reader focuses on these clues and may miss out

the obvious detail that it was easiest for the culprit because of his close

proximity to Rajen Babu, since he was staying at Rajen Babu’s house.

UNIT 5: THE MASK

Warm Up

Suggested answers: suspect, detective, crime scene, culprit, victim

Embedded Questions

1. Rajen Babu had once helped Feluda’s father, so he willingly accepted Feluda’s offer.

2. The sender of the letter cut and pasted the letters from newspapers, so that no one would know

the sender by the handwriting.

3. Feluda was able to recognise Prabeer from the picture he had seen on the mantelpiece at Rajen

Babu’s house.

4. Free response

5. Suggested answers: Tinkori Babu felt very ashamed. Tinkori Babu was a coward and did not have

the courage to face Rajen Babu.

Comprehension

A. 1. The letter said that Rajen Babu should be prepared to suffer the punishment that he would receive

for his wrongdoings.

2. Feluda got to know that Tinkori Babu was Rajen Babu’s tenant and that he had a special liking for

cheroots.

3. Dr Phoni Mitra visited Rajen Babu occasionally, when Rajen Babu was unwell, and Mr Abanimohan

Ghoshal had started visiting Rajen Babu off late.

4. The three photographs on the mantelpiece were that of Rajen Babu, his wife, and his son, Prabeer.

5. Tinkori Babu decided to take revenge on Rajen Babu when he came to stay in Rajen Babu’s house

and saw Rajen Babu’s childhood photograph.

B. 1. a. The case that is referred to here is that of Rajen Babu receiving an anonymous threatening

letter that said that he should be prepared to suffer for his earlier misdeeds. Feluda had offered

to help him find out who had sent the letter.

66 b. The three suspects were Mr Ghoshal, Prabeer and Dr Mitra.

 c. Mr Ghoshal could have sent the letter to Rajen Babu as the curio shop was going to get

fresh supplies that evening and a threatening letter would naturally frighten Rajen Babu

into staying at home for a few days. This would give Mr Ghoshal the time to buy all the new

pieces. Prabeer could have sent the letter to take revenge on his father, as Rajen Babu had

asked Prabeer to leave the house sixteen years ago when he had caught Prabeer stealing

money from his cupboard. Also, Prabeer, who had not been seen since in Darjeeling, had

been seen at the mall that morning. Dr Mitra, who did not have a good practice and seemed

to be in need of money, could have sent the threatening letter in order to make Rajen Babu

fall ill. This would require Rajen Babu to go to Dr Mitra, which would help Dr Mitra earn

more money.

2. a. On the night that Feluda and Topshe were staying at Rajen Babu’s house, Feluda suddenly had

an idea and decided to check the masks in Rajen Babu’s living room. When he and Topshe wore

one of the masks, they got the smell of cheroot. Feluda immediately knew that Tinkori Babu

was the masked man who had scared Rajen Babu for Tinkori Babu liked to have cheroot and

could easily access the masks as well.

 b. We finally get to know Tinkori Babu’s motive when he writes a letter to Rajen Babu and

confesses and explains why he had done ‘something like this’.

C. 1. Topshe had accidently overheard Rajen Babu telling Tinkori Babu, his tenant, about a threatening

letter that he had received by post. Thinking that it could require investigation, Topshe told Feluda

about it and they decided to visit Rajen Babu.

2. According to Tinkori Babu, Mr Ghoshal only pretended to be interested in art and antiques; his

actual purpose was to buy them at very low prices in Darjeeling and sell them to foreigners at

higher prices. Tinkori Babu felt that Mr Ghoshal could have sent the threatening letter to frighten

Rajen Babu into staying home for a few days, which would give Mr Ghoshal the time to buy all the

new pieces that would come to the curio shop in the mall.

3. Tinkori Babu promised to inform the police before he left for Kolkata. He said that he thought that

Rajen Babu needed protection but he actually wanted to show Feluda that he was concerned and

worried about Rajen Babu, so that Feluda would not suspect him.

4. The night the masked man came to scare Rajen Babu, both Prabeer and Mr Ghoshal were at a

party from 9 p.m. to 3 a.m., while Dr Mitra was visiting a critical patient till quite late that night.

5. After Tinkori Babu left, Feluda and Topshe decided to stay the night at Rajen Babu’s house. Later

that night, when Feluda and Topshe were relaxing after dinner, they started discussing the case.

After doing his own investigation, Feluda knew that Prabeer, Mr Ghoshal and Dr Mitra had been

busy the night the masked man had come to scare Rajen Babu. Suddenly, Feluda went out of

the room. Topshe, who was lying on the bed, began to feel sleepy. Suddenly, Topshe sensed the

presence of someone else in the room. He was very scared as he felt someone leaning over him;

and then he saw that the man was wearing a hideous mask. He was about to scream when the

person pulled the mask away and he saw it was Feluda, who had been trying on the masks in the

living room. Feluda requested Topshe to wear the mask and tell him if he found anything unusual

about it. At first, Topshe thought that the only unusual thing about the mask was its large size

but then he realised that the mask had a faint smell of cheroot. It struck Topshe that Tinkori Babu

must have worn the mask to scare Rajen Babu. Thus, Feluda and Topshe knew who the culprit was

though they did not know his motive.

6. Tinkori Babu had sent Rajen Babu the threatening letters.

6 As children, Rajen Babu and Tinkori Babu used to study in the same school. On one sports day,

Rajen Babu had tripped Tinkori Babu in a hundred-metre race. Not only had Tinkori Babu lost the

race, but he had also been seriously injured. Presently, Tinkori Babu’s father had got transferred

and Tinkori Babu had had to move to a different town. So, he had never had a chance to settle the

score with Rajen Babu. However, he had never forgotten the incident as he had been deeply hurt,

both physically and mentally.

 When Tinkori Babu came to stay in Rajen Babu’s house and saw the latter’s childhood photograph,

he realised that Rajen Babu was the boy who had hurt him and his desire for revenge re-surfaced.

He decided to do something that would cause Rajen Babu anxiety and ruin his peace of mind for a

short time. This was how he punished Rajen Babu for his past misdeed.

D. 1. Tinkori Babu realised that Feluda would soon find out that he had sent the threatening letter to

Rajen Babu. So, he decided to flee to Calcutta to avoid the embarrassment and humiliation of

facing Rajen Babu.

2. It shows that Tinkori Babu was embarrassed about what he had done. It also shows that he was

cowardly and hence did not have the courage to face the consequences of his actions.

Grammar

A. 2. NF 3. NF 4. F 5. NF 6. F 7. NF 8. NF 9. NF 10. NF

B. 2. emptied, gave 3. had eaten, came 4. frightening 5. to visit 6. spoken

Writing

Are extra-curricular activities important?

 Children not only learn through their classroom experiences but also through their extra-curricular

activities. Both curricular and extra-curricular activities play important roles in the development of a

child. They are like two sides of a coin.

 So, it is important to ensure that the learning is holistic. Here are a few reasons as to why it is

essential to include extra-curricular activities in the school schedule. Participating in extra-curricular

activities, help children shed their inhibitions and make them confident. Also, these activities often

help children identify their areas of interest. Children also learn how to balance studies and extracurricular activities. This ensures that they get to know how to multi-task as well as manage time.

Thirdly, taking active part in extra-curricular activities helps children make friends and builds team

spirit in them.

 Many people think that with the heavy load of schoolwork, participation in extra-curricular activities

may exhaust children and that might adversely affect their performance, both in academics and in

extra-curricular activities. Also, if children are unable to strike a balance between the two and fail in

one or both, their self-esteem and confidence may be affected. Finally, forced participation of children

in extra-curricular activities, in case they are not interested in any activity, may have a negative impact

on them.

 Though it is important for children to participate in extra-curricular activities, it is also recommended

that they be guided well so that they are able to make the right choices and strike a balance between

the two.

Vocabulary

1. broken 2. smiling 3. fallen 4. translated 5. sleeping 6. fishing

Listening

Listening Text

Complete these sentences while you listen to this Sports Day announcement.

 Attention students. Please listen carefully to this announcement regarding Sports Day. We will be

holding our Annual Sports Day tomorrow, 7th January. All of you must report to school by 8.30 a.m.

Prefects, Games Captain and House Captains need to come in by 8 a.m. Students will not be allowed

to enter after 8.45 a.m. The event will start at 9 a.m. sharp. It will be opened with a welcome speech by

Ms Major, followed by a key note speech by our chief guest, Ms Sindhu.

 We will begin with the March Past. Then there will be drill display followed by the track and field

events. All students will be sitting in their respective house pavilions. Red and Green house will

be sitting on the right hand-side while Blue and Yellow will be sitting on the left hand-side. Prize

distribution will take place, after all the races are over. Students of Class III-V need to deposit their

drill items with their class teachers. Winners of the events that have already taken place need to meet

the Games Captain at 2 p.m. today. Scorekeepers from Class XII, tally the final score sheet and give

the final scores to the Games Teacher by afternoon. Please bring light, dry snacks for tiffin and your

water bottles. Students can avail of the bus service in the morning. There will be no bus service in the

afternoon, after the event.

 Answers: 1. 8.45 a.m. 2. Ms Sindhu 3. march past, drill display 4. right hand-side, left

hand-side 5. drill items 6. morning

SAVING CHILIKA

A. Answer in brief.

1. What was the narrator’s impression of Chilika when he saw it first?

 Ans: Lake Chilika did not seem very vast to the narrator when he saw that first. It was a small

bund that sliced the marshlands into two—on one side, he saw hundreds of open-billed storks

feeding in the shallow waters while on the other side streaked warblers were creating an endless

cacophony.

2. What makes one admire the Chilika lake?

 Ans: Chilika is the finest bird sanctuary in India and amongst the richest ecosystems in the world.

Being one of the largest wintering grounds for migratory birds in the Indian subcontinent, it is

Asia’s largest brackish water lake and is the habitat of a number of species of plants and animals.

B. Answer in detail.

How did various organisations and the others help develop the Chilika lake site?

 Ans: Several organisations came forward to make Nandakishore’s eco-tourism efforts more

successful. The Chilika Development Authority (CDA) gave them land to set up an office and an

interpretation centre. They also provided equipment like binoculars and tents. The poachers-turnedprotectors patrolled the waterways of Chilika; took nature lovers around in their boats, as they knew

the whereabouts of each species; provided food to visitors and the guides on boats; and the ones

with superior communication skills became guides. The CDA also opened up the mouth of the lake

and restored the delicate balance of the water body.

C. Read the lines and answer the questions.

1. Years later, when he came back to Chilika, he saw that there were only a few thousands of birds left.

 a. Who is ‘he’ in the above lines?

 b. Why were only a few thousand birds left?

 c. How did that affect him?

 Ans: a. ‘He’ in the above lines refers to Nandakishore Bhujbal.

 b. Heavy poaching had brought down the number of birds in the lake.

 c. He felt sad and guilty and wanted to take all efforts to protect the bird population in the

lake.

2. When one of them broke the pledge, he was expelled from the group and they handed him over to the

forest officials.

 a. Who had taken the oath?

 b. What was the pledge?

 c. Why did they hand over the person to the forest officials?

 Ans: a. The members of ‘Dirty Dozen’ had taken the oath.

 b. The pledge was to save Chilika and all its dwellers.

 c. The person was handed over to the forest officials because they had put the lake under

surveillance as it was on the red list.

D. Answer in brief. (Think and answer)

1. Why was Nandakishore filled with remorse?

 Ans: As a young boy Nandakishore had once shot an egret near the lake. Nandakishore probably

was unaware of the cruelty of his act at the time of shooting. But when he realised that the egret

he had shot was planning to build a nest, he was filled with remorse.

2. What brought in the transformation in the ‘Dirty Dozen’?

 Ans: Nandakishore’s relentless effort to stop the ‘Dirty Dozen’ from poaching, angered them so

much that Madhu Behera , the leader, threatened Nandakishore with dire consequences if he did

not stop troubling them. But Nandakishore was unmoved and said he was prepared to face death,

if they would spare the birds. That probably changed them.