Mr. Moti
by Rahad Abir
Main Story
Ameen is seventeen when the war breaks out. One Monday, after supper, he announces he will go to war. Sonabhan shrieks in surprise, “You want to leave me alone?”
“It won’t take long,” Ma, he assures her. “I’ll be back soon after the training.”
That night Sonabhan cannot sleep.
After sun-up, she opens the duck coop. The flock streams out, stretches and quacks around her for their morning meal. She takes longer than usual. She mixes water with rice husks in an earthen bowl and puts it down. They gobble it up in five minutes and head for the pond.
Ameen has let out the chickens by then. He lifts his 12-week-old cockerel, Moti, and sits on the veranda. During his breakfast he doesn’t strike up any conversation. Having noticed Sonabhan’s puffy eyes, he knows not to mention last night’s subject. He casts his glance to the side, down at the cockerel eating rice in silence.
Today is haat bar, market day. Sonabhan has arranged the things Ameen will take to the bazaar to sell. Two dozen eggs, a sheaf of areca nuts, a bottle gourd. The bazaar is about a mile away.
Ameen wears his short-sleeved floral shirt over his lungi. He whistles as he looks into the cloudy mirror to comb his hair. Placing the rattan basket on his head before setting off, he hollers: “I’m off, Ma.”
Sonabhan watches him go along the bank of the little river. For the first time it occurs to her that Ameen has grown up. He has reached the height of his dead father, has his long neck and straight shoulders.
In that moment, Sonabhan realizes it’s not the war, it’s the fighting that Ameen is fascinated with. Like his dead father, he is crazy about bullfighting, cockfighting and boat racing. The same stubbornness flows in his blood. Once he decides on something, nothing can stop him.
Her little son! Now a man. Even up to his fifteenth birthday barely a day passed without neighbours appearing with a slew of complaints. Sometimes one or two turned up from other villages. They peeked into the house and asked, “Does Ameen live here?”
Sonabhan would sigh, “What did he do?”
“Your son stole my date juice! Emptied the juice pots hanging on the date trees!” Sonabhan would sigh again. Then ask the visitor to pardon him. She hated saying that she’d raised her son alone. If she could spare them, she would bring half a dozen eggs and hand them to the visitor: “Please take these for your children.”
At night, Sonabhan climbs out of her bed, clutches the hurricane lamp and tiptoes into Ameen’s room. She stands by his bed, looks at her sleeping son. He snores like his father. He has her light skin and button nose. She touches his cheek. His broad forehead. She suppresses a desire to lie beside him. Like the old days, when she slept cuddling her baby.
A warning comes from old Chowkidar’s young wife. “Watch your rooster,” she threatens. “I don’t want him in my house again.”
If someone touches my boy, Sonabhan responds, “They’ll see the consequences.” She grounds Moti for an entire day. It makes him sad. His forlorn captivity crucifies her. She sets him loose the following morning.
Some boys come and ask Sonabhan to lend them Moti for cockfighting at a fair. They are happy to pay.
“Never,” she tells them. “He is my son.”
Monday dawns without Moti’s crowing. His cold body is resting on its right side. Lying against the basket. Eyes closed. His kingly head down.
With Moti’s basket in her lap, Sonabhan is motionless.
She puts Moti to rest beside her husband’s grave. She sighs, plods across the empty yard, steps onto an empty veranda, crawls into an empty home and sits on the edge of an empty bed.
Another morning breaks…. Noon and afternoon come and go…. The birds in the coops quack and crow…. No one lets them out. For the first time, Sonabhan’s doors do not open.
Summary
Ameen is a seventeen-year-old boy who wants to join the war. He tells his mother, Sonabhan, about his decision. She becomes very worried because she has already lost her husband and Ameen is her only son. She knows that Ameen is stubborn and cannot easily change his decision.
Ameen is also fond of fighting, just like his father. He loves bullfighting, cockfighting and boat racing. His favourite cockerel is named Moti. Sonabhan loves Moti like her own son. She never allows others to use Moti for cockfighting, even when they offer her money.
Sonabhan remembers Ameen’s childhood. He often caused trouble for the neighbours, but she always protected him and apologized for his mistakes. She raised him alone after her husband’s death and loved him deeply.
One morning, Moti is found dead. Sonabhan becomes completely heartbroken. She buries Moti beside her husband’s grave. After that, she returns to her empty house and sits alone.
The story ends with Sonabhan becoming completely lonely. The empty house and the birds left inside their coops show her deep sadness and loneliness. The story mainly presents a mother’s love, loneliness, loss and fear of losing her son.
Previous Year Questions with Answers
- Why is the rooster called Mr. Moti?
Answer: The rooster is called Mr. Moti because his owner, Sonabhan, loves him deeply and treats him like her own human son. He also has a grand appearance with a "kingly head".
- Why do some boys want to borrow Moti? What do they want to do to get Moti?
Answer: Some village boys want to borrow Moti to use him for cockfighting at a fair. They are happy to pay money to Sonabhan to get the rooster.
- Do you think Sonabhan's attempt to deter her son from going to war will be a failure? Why?
Answer: Yes, her attempt will fail because her son Ameen is extremely stubborn and has his mind completely made up. Once Ameen decides on something, nothing can stop him from doing it.
- How does Sonabhan react to Moti's death in the story "Mr. Moti"?
Answer: Sonabhan is struck with silent grief and sits completely still with Moti’s basket in her lap. She buries him next to her husband's grave and feels deeply lonely in her empty house.
- What marks a significant change in Sonabhan's routine after Moti's death in the story "Mr. Moti"?
Answer: For the first time, Sonabhan does not open her doors in the morning to let her poultry out. She remains shut inside her home all day in deep sadness.
- Describe Ameen's character as mentioned in Rahad Abir's story 'Mr. Moti'.
Answer: Ameen is a seventeen-year-old boy who is very stubborn and loves physical fighting. However, he is also considerate, as he stays quiet during breakfast to avoid upsetting his crying mother.
- What challenges does Sonabhan face in the story "Mr. Moti"?
Answer: Sonabhan faces the challenge of raising a headstrong son alone while dealing with complaints from neighbors. She also faces the fear of her only son leaving for war and the sudden loss of her beloved rooster.
- How does the story "Mr. Moti" portray rural life in Bangladesh?
Answer: The story shows rural life through daily chores like feeding ducks from an earthen bowl. It also shows villagers carrying market goods in rattan baskets on their heads to the local bazaar.
- When does Sonabhan realise that Ameen has grown up?
Answer: She realizes he has grown up when she watches him walk to the market with a basket on his head. She notices he has reached the same tall height, long neck, and straight shoulders as his late father.
- Why did Sonabhan sigh?
Answer: Sonabhan sighs because she feels tired and embarrassed when neighbors complain about her son stealing date juice. Later, she sighs out of deep loneliness after burying her beloved rooster.
- What does Ameen announce one Monday after supper in "Mr. Moti"?
Answer: One Monday night after finishing supper, Ameen announces to his mother that he will go to war.
- Why didn't Ameen make any conversation during his breakfast?
Answer: Ameen stays silent because he notices his mother's puffy eyes from crying all night. He wants to avoid starting a conversation about his painful decision to go to war.
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