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Two extracts with 5 sub-questions each, followed by 8 longer analytical questions. Reproduced verbatim from Kaveri.
Extract 1: "Grandpa hated the noise and bustle of city life and when they were on their own, he often spoke longingly of his small brick house in town. ‘Such a wonderful place...! With that big mango tree in the garden! It is so quiet that at dusk you can even hear a leaf fall!’ But then Grandpa had slipped and fallen in the garden late one evening while he was pottering around and lain outside all night because there was no one at home to help him up." (NCERT Kaveri page 109)
I.1(i)
Choose the emotion displayed by the Grandfather.
View Answer
How to answer:
Start with the key word from the question. Support your answer with specific details from the story. Write in complete sentences.
Answer: C. nostalgic.
Grandpa speaks "longingly" of his old home - longing for a past that cannot be recovered is nostalgia. "Wistful" (D) is close but implies a milder, more resigned sadness; "nostalgic" is more precise because it specifically means longing for the past.
I.1(ii)
Grandpa hated the busy and noisy city life because
it was a sharp contrast to his quiet brick house in town, where he lived independently and could even hear a leaf fall at dusk.
View Answer
How to answer:
Start with the key word from the question. Support your answer with specific details from the story. Write in complete sentences.
The reason combines two elements: the sensory contrast (noise vs quiet) and the independence contrast (supervised city life vs self-managed town life).
I.1(iii)
Why did Grandpa come to the city despite his dislike for city life?
View Answer
How to answer:
Give the specific incident that forced the move.
Grandpa came to the city because he had slipped and fallen in the garden late one evening while pottering around and had lain outside all night with no one to help him up. This incident convinced his daughter Vidya that it was no longer safe for him to live alone, and she brought him to the city flat despite his protests.
I.1(iv)
Choose an expression similar in meaning to 'you can even hear a leaf fall'.
View Answer
How to answer:
Start with the key word from the question. Support your answer with specific details from the story. Write in complete sentences.
Answer: D. pin drop silence.
"You can even hear a leaf fall" describes a place so quiet that the softest sounds are audible - exactly what "pin drop silence" means.
I.1(v)
State one advantage and one disadvantage of the Grandfather living in the house in town.
View Answer
How to answer:
Balance one positive and one negative. Use evidence from the text.
Advantage:
Grandpa was happy and independent - he cooked, shopped, and kept house himself after his wife died, and felt at peace in the quiet environment he loved.
Disadvantage: There was no one to help him in an emergency. When he fell in the garden and lay there all night, the danger of living alone without a support system became clear.
Disadvantage: There was no one to help him in an emergency. When he fell in the garden and lay there all night, the danger of living alone without a support system became clear.
"I had a quiet morning, but I don't know about Ravi. He just disappeared instead of staying at home to look after me like you told him to," answered Grandpa coolly, while Ravi just looked confused and embarrassed.
Grandpa had another surprise for Ravi. A gift-wrapped parcel!
"But, Papa, Ravi's birthday was three months ago. Have you forgotten?" exclaimed Ravi's mother, impatiently. (NCERT Kaveri page 109)
I.2(i)
Choose the option that displays the tone of the Grandfather's response.
View Answer
How to answer:
Start with the key word from the question. Support your answer with specific details from the story. Write in complete sentences.
Answer: C. calm.
Grandpa speaks "coolly" - a word that means composed and unruffled. He is in complete control of the situation, not angry, hurt, or confused.
I.2(ii)
Why was Ravi confused and embarrassed?
View Answer
How to answer:
Think about what each word (confused, embarrassed) means in this context.
Ravi was embarrassed because Grandpa had just calmly revealed to his mother that Ravi had 'disappeared' - effectively reporting Ravi's absence, something Ravi was hoping to avoid. He was confused because he could not tell whether Grandpa was being genuinely matter-of-fact or cleverly implying that he knew about the chase.
I.2(iii)
Ravi's mother was impatient because
she mistakenly thought Grandpa had given a birthday gift on the wrong occasion, not realising it was actually Grandpa's own birthday and his custom to give gifts on it.
View Answer
How to answer:
Start with the key word from the question. Support your answer with specific details from the story. Write in complete sentences.
The mother's impatience is rooted in her assumption that Grandpa had forgotten the date of Ravi's birthday. The irony is that she is the one who has forgotten - it is Grandpa's birthday, and he has remembered to prepare gifts for everyone.
I.2(iv)
Grandfather forgot that Ravi's birthday was three months ago.
False.
View Answer
How to answer:
Start with the key word from the question. Support your answer with specific details from the story. Write in complete sentences.
False.
Grandpa had not forgotten. He knew perfectly well that it was not Ravi's birthday; he clarified that he gives gifts on his OWN birthday to every child in the house. He is not giving a belated birthday gift to Ravi - he is keeping his personal tradition.
I.2(v)
Why did Grandpa say he didn't know what kind of morning Ravi might have had?
View Answer
How to answer:
Think about what Grandpa is implying. Is this innocent or knowing?
Grandpa said this because Ravi had 'disappeared' for most of the morning - presumably following Grandpa around the city. By saying he 'doesn't know' about Ravi's morning, Grandpa creates deliberate ambiguity. He could be genuinely saying he did not see Ravi; or, more likely, he is quietly suggesting that Ravi had been busy doing something other than staying at home - a knowing hint that he had seen through the chase.
II.1
Grandpa is portrayed as a person with failing memory in the beginning of the story. Give two evidences to disprove the statement.
View Answer
How to answer:
Focus on what Grandpa does that shows a sharp, working memory. Use specific incidents.
First: Grandpa remembers specific chess matches in precise detail - Karpov's opening against a computer, and Bobby Fischer's historic match against Spassky. He can recall moves, strategies, and names from thousands of games. Second: Grandpa remembers his own birthday and has prepared individual gifts for every member of the family - Ravi, Vidya, and Ravi's father - while Vidya, who had marked the date in red on a calendar, had forgotten it. Both incidents prove his memory is intact where it matters to him.
II.2
Give two characteristic traits of each: (i) Grandfather, (ii) Ravi, (iii) Ravi's mother.
View Answer
How to answer:
Name the trait, then give one textual example for each.
(i) Grandfather:
Witty: Turns the Vitamin-M joke back on his forgetful daughter; gives Ravi the detective book as an ironic hint.
Generous: Gives his yellow cap to a stranger on a hot day; gives birthday gifts to the entire family from his own birthday.
(ii) Ravi:
Loyal: Tells Grandpa that his mother would "never treat you like a baby or a prisoner" even while wincing at her manner.
Caring: Follows Grandpa secretly to keep him safe; is overcome with affection when he finds Grandpa safe at home.
(iii) Ravi's mother (Vidya):
Overprotective: Uses an over-loud tone when speaking to Grandpa; instructs Ravi not to let him out alone at all.
Forgetful: Had circled Grandpa's birthday in red on the calendar but still forgot it - the very quality she feared in Grandpa.
Witty: Turns the Vitamin-M joke back on his forgetful daughter; gives Ravi the detective book as an ironic hint.
Generous: Gives his yellow cap to a stranger on a hot day; gives birthday gifts to the entire family from his own birthday.
(ii) Ravi:
Loyal: Tells Grandpa that his mother would "never treat you like a baby or a prisoner" even while wincing at her manner.
Caring: Follows Grandpa secretly to keep him safe; is overcome with affection when he finds Grandpa safe at home.
(iii) Ravi's mother (Vidya):
Overprotective: Uses an over-loud tone when speaking to Grandpa; instructs Ravi not to let him out alone at all.
Forgetful: Had circled Grandpa's birthday in red on the calendar but still forgot it - the very quality she feared in Grandpa.
II.3
Why was Ravi worried about what Grandfather had at the tea stall?
View Answer
How to answer:
Think about medicines and diet restrictions for an elderly person.
Ravi was worried because Grandpa was supposed to be on a specific medicine schedule - his mother had just given him tablets and left instructions. Taking tea or eating snacks outside, without the proper medicines or at the wrong time, could affect Grandpa's health. Ravi also could not intervene without revealing that he had been following Grandpa, so he could only watch anxiously from behind the banyan tree.
II.4
Do you think it was easy for Ravi to follow his Grandfather? If yes, why? If no, why not?
View Answer
How to answer:
List the specific comic difficulties. Use 'no' for better marks.
No, it was far from easy. Ravi faced a series of comic humiliations: in the park, he had to crawl out on all fours to avoid being caught by an angry mother; at the tea stall, he was mistaken for a rival vendor and argued with by several street sellers; on the bus, he discovered he had been chasing a stranger wearing a similar yellow cap. The city, full of strangers and activity, was much harder to navigate as a secret follower than as an open pedestrian.
II.5
'Ravi is a good detective.' Give one argument in favour of and against the given statement.
View Answer
How to answer:
Give one point FOR (he succeeded in something) and one AGAINST (he failed at something specific).
In favour:
Ravi is persistent and resourceful - he kept following Grandpa despite multiple setbacks, improvised hiding spots (bush, banyan tree), and caught the bus at the last moment. His intention and effort are those of a determined detective.
Against: He followed the wrong person for a significant part of the chase, mistaking a stranger's yellow cap for Grandpa's. A good detective must verify before acting; Ravi acted on a single surface clue and was thoroughly fooled.
Against: He followed the wrong person for a significant part of the chase, mistaking a stranger's yellow cap for Grandpa's. A good detective must verify before acting; Ravi acted on a single surface clue and was thoroughly fooled.
II.6
Was Grandfather aware that Ravi was following him? How do you know?
View Answer
How to answer:
Use the detective book gift and the twinkle as your main evidence.
Almost certainly yes. The strongest evidence is the detective book Grandpa gives Ravi at the end, with the pointed remark about learning 'how to avoid getting fooled when one is trailing a suspect'. The word 'trailing' is a direct reference to what Ravi had been doing. The 'twinkle' in Grandpa's eye at the end reinforces this - it could be innocent, but in context it reads as the smile of a man who was several steps ahead all day.
II.7
In your opinion, who needs Vitamin-M? And why?
View Answer
How to answer:
This is an opinion + evidence question. State your view clearly and back it with 2-3 examples.
In the story's logic, Ravi's mother Vidya needs Vitamin-M most urgently. She invented the idea of Vitamin-M for Grandpa because she assumed his memory was failing; yet it is she who forgets Grandpa's birthday (despite marking it on the calendar), she who underestimates his capabilities, and she whose tone is condescending. Grandpa, by contrast, remembers chess moves, birthdays, and even Ravi's detective activities. The story uses the Vitamin-M bookend to make exactly this point: the person who worried about another's memory was the most forgetful one in the room.
II.8
Some people believe society shows bias based on age. Give an example where you might have experienced or observed such discrimination, when opinions were disregarded because of age.
View Answer
How to answer:
Share a personal example or a general observation. Frame it as a social issue.
This is a personal/reflective question - students should draw on their own experience. Sample answer: In many Indian households, elderly people's opinions on technology - such as smartphone use, digital payments, or streaming services - are dismissed with a laugh, as though being old automatically means being unable to learn. Grandpa's story directly challenges this: he may not be digitally fluent, but his intelligence, navigation skills, and emotional awareness are sharper than those of the people who dismiss him. Age-based bias prevents us from benefiting from the experience and insight of those who have lived through more than we have.
