By R.K.

LAXMAN
 OBJECTIVES
 To enable the cadets to comprehend the gist of the story- Ishwaran the story Teller.
 To provide a platform to the cadets where they can differentiate between natural and
unnatural world.
 To make the cadets able to understand difficult words.
 To make the cadets able to answer all objective question and short notes on the basis of
the story.
 To make the cadets able to imagine another ending of the story. 
 To improve the reading, listening, speaking and writing skills of the cadets with help of
this story.
About the writer
R.K.Laxman
 R.K LAXMAN
Born Rasipuram Krishnaswami Iyer Laxman

24 October 1921
Mysore, Kingdom of Mysore, British India

Died 26 January 2015 (aged 93)

Pune, Maharashtra, India

Nationality Indian
Occupation Cartoonist, illustrator
Known for Common Man cartoon
Spouse(s) •Kumari Kamala
•Kamala Laxman

Relatives R. K. Narayan (Brother)
Awards Padma Bhushan, Padma
Vibhushan, Ramon Magsaysay Award
R.K.Laxman as A cartoonist
The well-known political cartoonist for the ‘Times of India’ Shri R.K. Laxman receives the Padma
Vibhushan award from the President Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam in New Delhi on March 28, 2005
"The Common Man" by R K Laxman at Symbiosis Institute,
Pune
 The lost art of storytelling
Humans have been telling stories since 15,000 B.C. as a way to connect, entertain and pass along
important information. In fact, we've been telling stories for so many years that it has become
ingrained in our DNA... evolution has literally wired our brains for storytelling. Thousands of
years of sharing and listening to stories has given the art of storytelling some unfathomable
power. When we tell a story, the person listening can actually synchronize with us. Uri Hasson,
professor of psychology at Princeton, gave an exceptional TED Talk where he explained the
magical effects of storytelling..

"When the woman spoke English, the volunteers understood her story, and their brains
synchronized. When she had activity in her insula, an emotional brain region, the listeners did
too. When her frontal cortex lit up, so did theirs. By simply telling a story, the woman could plant
ideas, thoughts and emotions into the listeners' brains."
 INTRODUCTION TO THE LESSON
The title of this chapter- “Iswaran the storyteller” tells us that this story is about Iswaran

who is a skilled storyteller. He uses special effects, does voice modulation, uses his body

language to make the story realistic so that the listener, i.e. Mahendra gets attracted and

captivated in his story. The writer wants to highlight this quality of Iswaran - that he was

so good at telling stories that they appeared to be real. His stories were a source of

entertainment for Mahendra.

 THEME-I
The theme of the story is ‘the art of storytelling’. A good story becomes interesting only

when the narrator twists and turns the action to make the narrative surprising yet

plausible. Iswaran, a master of this art told gripping stories in a graphic and dramatic

manner such that his listeners listened to him in rapt attention and bewilderment. Once

the story of a female ghost that he recounted so terrified his master that he quit his job

and left the haunted place.

 Theme-2
Another theme is that, one must not let oneself be influenced by superstitions like ghosts

or spirits. Mahendra believed that he had seen the female ghost because his

subconscious seemed to have already accepted the presence of ghosts and spirits.
 TITLE
“Iswaran the Storyteller” is a perfect title for a story that deals with the character ‘

Iswaran’ and his mastery of the art of storytelling. The whole story deals with the

dramatic manner in which Iswaran made-up and recounted stories which were

admirable more for the style in which elements of suspense, horror , and adventure

were added to them than for their content . Hence, this title stands justified.
 Message
The story gives the message that the unnatural world of ghosts and spirits is merely

figment of our imagination. If we allow our hidden fears to take concrete shape and

start believing in ghosts and spirits , our life would get disturbed . Mahendra was good

at his job as a supervisor but had to quit because he allowed his fears to overpower his

rational self.
A good story-teller should be an epitome of the qualities
below mentioned:

should have vivid imagination.

should have good oratorical skills.

should be able to act during narration.

should use punctuation properly during narration.

should have the ability to vary the tone according to the situation.

should have amusing personality.

should be capable of creating and maintaining interest of the listeners.

 SUMMARY
Mahendra was a junior supervisor in a firm which offered on hire supervisors at various
types of construction sites. His job made him move every now and then from a coal mining
area to a railway bridge construction site to some chemical plant after some months.
He was a bachelor. He had a cook named Iswaran. Iswaran accompanied Mahendra
wherever he went and was therefore greatly attached to him. He not only cooked for
Mahendra, and washed his clothes but also used to tell him stories in a very interesting
manner. Iswaran loved to read popular Tamil thrillers in his leisure time. As a result, he
innovated his own thrillers and would tell about it to Mahendra. Mahendra enjoyed
listening to them because of the inimitable way in which they were told. Once he told his
master a story about how he controlled a wild elephant that had gone berserk.
 SUMMARY Contd..
He told that he came from a place famous for timber. The logs there were carried on to the
lorries by elephants. They were huge well-fed beats. But when they turned wild, not even
the most experienced mahout could control them. One day the elephant entered the
school ground where children were playing, breaking through the brick wall. Children and
teachers got terrified and rushed to the safe place.
But Iswaran was not scared. He moved towards the mad tusker with a cane in his hand and
whacked its third toenail on the quick. The beast shivered from head to foot and then
collapsed.
One day, while talking about the spirits of ancestors, he began to talk of ghosts. He said
that the place where they were staying was once a burial ground and that he had
sometimes seen ghosts at night. Being a brave man, he was not scared of them.
 SUMMARY Contd..
Then he told his master about a horrible ghost woman seen only on a full moon night. She
moaned and carried a foetus in her arms. Mahendra shivered at the description and told
Iswaran that there were no such things as ghosts or spirits. He left the room and retired for
the night. But he could not sleep. The story of the ghost woman began to hover in his
mind.
One night, Mahendra was woken up from his sleep by a low moan close to his window. He
looked out at the white sheet of moonlight outside, and found a dark cloudy form
clutching a bundle. Mahendra was sure that it was none but the ghost woman.
He broke into a cold sweat and fell back on the pillow, panting. In the morning Iswaran
asked him about the ghost woman and the sound of moaning that was coming from his
room. But Mahendra was very upset. He decided to leave the place immediately.
 Key Points
 The story was narrated to Ganesh by Mahendra. 

 Mahendra was bachelor, junior supervisor in a construction firm.

 His job was to keep an eye on different construction sites.

 Mahendra always had his asset, his cook, Ishwaran with him.

Ishwaran had amazing capacity to produce vegetable and cookingingredients any where.

 Ishwaran would read popular Tamil thriller stories.

 His own description was greatly influenced by the Tamil author.

He weaved endless stories and played a roll of TV in Mahendra's  living quarters.

He weaved a tale of a tusker, which destroyed everything on the way and how he made him
collapsed in the end with help of a small cane and karate .
 Key Points
Ishwaran linked the auspicious full moon night to a story of female ghost holding a foetus.

Mahendra rebuked him for explaining such baseless stories.    

 He thought that was only a figment of imagination and nothing else.

One night Mahendra heard a low moan near his window. He put it as a cat but sound became
louder and louder.

 Mahendra saw a cloudy figure holding a bundle.

It affected him very much that he could not sleep properly.     

Next morning Ishwaran greeted him and told about the last night's experience.
 At last Mahendra resolved to leave the place the very next day, handed in his paper.
 WORD MEANING
Desolate: uninhabited, empty
Conjure up: to gather or create with magic
Zinc sheet shelter:  a temporary place to live with the roof made of metallic sheets
Bachelor: a person who is unmarried
Makeshift: temporary
Quarry: mine
Asset: advantage
Anecdote: A short amusing or interesting story about a real incident or person
Muttering: speaking in a low voice
Dozing off: falling asleep
Narrative flourishes: detailed descriptions
In thrall: The state of being in someone's power
Arched: curved
Gesture: A movement of hands for head to indicate something
Deserted: empty
Enormous:  huge
 WORD MEANING
rapt attention: completely fascinated or absorbed by what one is seeing or hearing
pick up the thread of the story: would not restart the story from where he left in order to
arouse curiosity
veterinary doctor: a doctor who specializes in treating animals
Summoned: called
Shrug: to raise one's shoulders slightly and momentarily to express doubt, ignorance, or
indifference
Auspicious: good
Delicacies: tasty food
Spirits: souls of the dead
Ancestors: elders of the family
culinary skills: related to cooking
Garish: something which is too colourful and fancy that it is disliked
Supernatural: related to ghosts and spirits
Reverie: a state of being pleasantly lost in one's thoughts; a daydream
Shrivelled: wrinkled and shrunken
Foetus: unborn baby
 WORD MEANING
Timber:  wood that has been processed for commercial purposes
Hauled:  transported
Prologue:  an introductory speech
Elaborate:  detailed
Tusker:  an elephant
roam  about: move around
Stamping:  hitting with force
Emulation: Effort to match or surpass a person by imitation or copying
Outskirts:  outer area
helter skelter: here and there
Panic:  sudden fear causing unthinkable behaviour
Grunted:  Made a loud sound
Depredations: Attacks which are made to destroy something
Hypnotize: to influence, control or direct completely as by personal charm, words or
domination
Mastering: putting together
whacked:  hit noisily
Collapsed: fell
 Check Your Understanding
1. In what way is Iswaran an asset to Mahendra?
2. How does Iswaran describe the uprooted tree on the highway? What effect does he
want to create in his listeners?
3. How does he narrate the story of the tusker? Does it appear to be plausible?
4. Why does the author say that Iswaran seemed to more than make up for the absence
of a TV in Mahendra’s living quarters?
5. Mahendra calls ghosts or spirits a figment of the imagination. What happens to him on
a full-moon night?
6. Can you think of some other ending for the story?
7. Is Iswaran a fascinating storyteller? Discuss with your friends the qualities of a good
storyteller. Try to use these qualities and tell a story.
8. What impact did Iswaran’s story of a female ghost have on Mahendra ? 
9. Why did Mahendra become fond of Iswaran ?
10. Iswaran was a fascinating storyteller. What other skills he had ? How was he an asset to
•Thank
You!