A Gift of Chappals by Vasantha Surya

Vocabulary

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Character Traits

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Figurative Language

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Essential Questions for A Gift of Chappals

1. Do you think the children did the right thing by giving the music teacher’s chappals to the beggar?
2. What did Rukku Manni realize at the end of the story?
3. What are some things that we, as a society, can do for people in need?

A Gift of Chappals Summary

One day, a little girl, Mridu, visits her aunt Rukku Manni’s house to meet her three cousins. While taking off her slippers, Mridu notices a pair of large black slippers with toe prints. Before she could figure out who owned those slippers, her cousin, Ravi drags her to the backyard to show her a kitten they had secretly hidden there.

While Ravi was in full swing telling Mridu how he concluded that this kitten is a descendant of the Mahabalipuram Rishi cat, they were startled by a strange noise coming from the window. Ravi soon realizes that Lalli, his sister, is trying to follow her music teacher, but without any success. While Mridu looks into Lalli's room through the window, the kids hear the wail of a beggar coming from the gate.

Rukku Manni asks Ravi to send the beggar away. When Ravi asks him to find another house to beg at, the beggar shows an inability to walk on the hot road due to blisters on his feet. Out of kindness, Mridu, Meena and Ravi search the house for a pair of chappals in the beggar's size. In her search, Mridu finds the same black slippers she had seen when she arrived and asks Ravi about the chappals. Ravi gives those slippers to the beggar without a second thought. The beggar leaves quickly after blessing the children.

A little while later, the music teacher comes out to leave but starts shouting when he does not find his chappals in the verandah. Rukku Manni confronts Ravi, Meena, and Mridu regarding the chappals. Mridu then breaks down, saying the beggar had boils on his feet, so they gave him the chappals. Upon learning this, Rukku Manni questions Ravi, who immediately mentions Karna from the Mahabharata for being generous. But Rukku Manni reprimands him angrily, stating that Karna would share only his own things, not others’. To make up for Ravi's act, Rukku Manni gave Gopu Mama's new chappals to the music teacher. But soon, Rukku Manni begins to wonder amusingly what Gopu Mama would say upon knowing that she had given his chappals to the music master.

A Gift of Chappals is an illuminating story that helps the reader understand children's spontaneity and imagination, and appreciate how they integrate observations and learnings from their surroundings into their actions.