The Two Magicians (Question-Answers)

B. Read these lines from the text and answer the questions.

1. “Will you agree to my proposal?”

a. Who is the speaker? What was his proposal?
Ans- The speaker is Tripura Babu. His proposal was to perform in Surapati’s Lucknow show in place of him.

b. Why had the listener not agreed to the proposal initially?
Ans- The listener (Surapati) did not agree to the proposal initially because it was the first time he was going to perform outside Bengal. He did not want to begin his new career with a lie that he was ill and his guru will perform in place of him.

c. Did the listener change his mind?
Ans- Yes, the listener changed his mind when Tripura Babu’s stare caused numbness and trembling in his whole body.

2. “Anil,” Surapati called, “Come here. Now watch this.”

a. What did Surapati show Anil?
Ans- Surapati showed Anil the trick of the coin and the ring.

b. What was Anil’s reaction?
Ans- Anil was so terrified that he would have dropped the cup of tea which he had brought for Surapati.

c. Pick out the sentence from the text which tells us about Anil’s reaction.
Ans- The sentence from the text which tells us about Anil’s reaction is- ‘Anil would have dropped the cup and broken it if Surapati had not stretched out a hand at the last moment and caught it mid-air.’

C. Answer in detail.

1. How did Tripura Babu get Surapati to agree to his request?
Ans- Tripura Babu took a pack of cards from his pocket and asked Surapati “Can you take this knave from the back and bring it forward to rest on this three of clubs, in just one movement of your hand?”
Surapati took the pack of cards and realised that his fingers were turning numb. Soon, his whole arm felt paralysed. In a daze, he looked at Tripura Babu, as he was smiling at him. Surapati’s whole body began to tremble.
Then Surapati realised the power of his guru and agreed to his request.