How I Taught My Grandmother to Read Lesson Explanation

Passage: When I was a girl of about twelve, I used to stay in a village in north Karnataka with my grandparents. Those
days, the transport system was not very good, so we used to get the morning papers only in the afternoon. The
weekly magazine used to come one day late. All of us would wait eagerly for the bus, which used to come with the
papers, weekly magazines and the post.

Word Meaning :
weekly: something that occurs or arrives once a week
post: a piece of writing, image, or other item of content

Passage: At that time, Triveni was a very popular writer in the Kannada language. She was a wonderful writer. Her
style was easy to read and very convincing. Her stories usually dealt with complex psychological problems in the lives
of ordinary people and were always very interesting. Unfortunately, for Kannada literature, she died very young. Even
now, after forty years, people continue to appreciate her novels.

Word Meaning :
complex: complicated, difficult to understand
psychological: related to the emotional and mental state of the human mind
appreciate: praise

Passage: One of her novels, called Kashi Yatre, was appearing as a serial in the Kannada weekly Karmaveera then. It is
the story of an old lady and her ardent desire to go to Kashi or Varanasi. Most Hindus believe that going to Kashi and
worshipping Lord Vishweshwara is the ultimate punya. This old lady also believed in this, and her struggle to go there
was described in that novel. In the story, there was also a young orphan girl who falls in love but there is no money
for the wedding. In the end, the old lady gives away all her savings without going to Kashi. She says, ‘The happiness
of this orphan girl is more important than worshipping Lord Vishweshwara at Kashi.’

Word Meaning :
karmaveera: a Kannada weekly family interest magazine
ardent: very enthusiastic or passionate
punya: hindi word for ‘holy deed’

Passage: My grandmother, Krishtakka, never went to school. So, she could not read. Every Wednesday, the magazine
would come and I would read the next episode of the story to her. During that time, she would forget all her work
and listen with the greatest concentration. Later, she could repeat the entire text by heart. My grandmother too
never went to Kashi so she identified herself with the novel’s protagonist. More than anybody else, she was the one
most interested in knowing what happened next in the story and used to insist that I read the serial out to her.

Word Meaning :
identify: associate someone or something closely with; regard as having strong links with
protagonist: the main character or hero of the story
insist: request repeatedly

Passage: After hearing what happened next in Kashi Yatre, she would join her friends at the temple courtyard, where
we children would also gather to play hide and seek. She would discuss the latest episode with her [Link] that
time, I never understood why there was so much of debate about the story.

Word Meaning :
courtyard: an unroofed area that is completely or partially enclosed by walls or buildings
gather: come together

Passage: Once I went for a wedding with my cousins to the neighbouring village. In those days, a wedding was a great
event. We children enjoyed ourselves thoroughly. We would eat and play endlessly, savouring the freedom because
all the elders were busy. I went for a couple of days but ended up staying there for a week.

Word Meaning :
thoroughly: to a great extent
endlessly: in a manner that had no end
savouring: enjoying the taste or feel of something

Passage: When I came back to my village, I saw my grandmother in tears. I was surprised, for I had never seen her cry
even in the most difficult of situations. What had happened? I was worried.
‘Avva, is everything fine? Are you alright?’

Passage: I used to call her Avva, which means mother in the Kannada spoken in north Karnataka.
She nodded but did not reply. I did not understand and forgot about it. In the night, after dinner, we were sleeping in
the open terrace of the house. It was a summer night and there was a full moon. Avva came and sat next to me. Her
affectionate hands touched my forehead. I realised she wanted to speak. I asked her, ‘What is the matter?’

Word Meaning :
terrace: a flat and open area situated near the building or at the top of a building

Passage: ‘When I was a young girl I lost my mother. There was nobody to look after and guide me. My father was a
busy man. He got married again. In those days, people never considered education essential for girls, so I never went
to school. I got married very young and had children. I became very busy. Later I had grandchildren and always felt so
much happiness in cooking and feeding all of you. At times I used to regret not going to school, so I made sure that
my children and grandchildren studied well …’

Word Meaning :
regret: feel sad, repentant, or disappointed over something that one has done or failed to do
considered: paid attention to

Passage: I could not understand why my sixty-two-year-old grandmother was telling me, a twelve-year-old, the story
of her life in the middle of the night. One thing I knew, I loved her immensely and there had to be some reason why
she was talking to me. I looked at her face. It was unhappy and her eyes were filled with tears. She was a good-
looking lady who was almost always smiling. Even today, I cannot forget the worried expression on her face. I leaned
forward and held her hand.

Word Meaning : immensely: in a huge or immense amount

Passage: ‘Avva, don’t cry. What is the matter? Can I help you in any way?’
‘Yes, I need your help. You know when you were away, Karmaveera came as usual. I opened the magazine. I saw the
picture that accompanies the story of Kashi Yatre and I could not understand anything that was written. Many times, I
rubbed my hands over the pages wishing to understand what was written. But I knew it was not possible. If only I was
educated enough… I waited eagerly for you to return. I felt you would come early and read for me. I even thought of
going to the village and asking you to read for me. I could have asked somebody in this village but I was too
embarrassed to do so. I felt so very dependent and helpless. We are well-off, but what use is money when I cannot
be independent?’

Passage: I did not know what to answer. Avva continued.

Passage: I saw the determination on her face. Yet I laughed at her.

Passage: ‘For a good cause if you are determined, you can overcome any obstacle. I will work harder than anybody
but I will do it. For learning, there is no age bar.’
The next day onwards, I started my tuition. Avva was a wonderful student. The amount of homework she did was
amazing. She would read, repeat, write and recite. I was her only teacher and she was my first student. Little did I
know then that one day I would become a teacher in Computer Science and teach hundreds of students.
Passage: The Dassara festival came as usual. Secretly, I bought Kashi Yatre which had been published as a novel by
that time. My grandmother called me to the pooja place and made me sit down on a stool. She gifted me a frock.
Then she did something unusual. She bent down and touched my feet. I was surprised and taken aback. Elders never
touched the feet of youngsters. We have always touched the feet of God, elders and teachers. We considered that as
a mark of respect. It is a great tradition but today the reverse had happened. It was not correct.

Word Meaning : youngsters: young people

Passage: She said, “I am touching the feet of a teacher, not my granddaughter; a teacher who taught me so well, with
so much of affection that I can read any novel confidently in such a short period. Now I am independent. It is my duty
to respect a teacher. Is it not written in our scriptures that a teacher should be respected, irrespective of the gender
and age?’
Passage: I did return namaskara to her by touching her feet and gave my gift to my first student. She opened it and
read the title Kashi Yatre by Triveni and the publisher’s name immediately.
I knew, then, that my student had passed with flying colours.

Word Meaning :
namaskara: a traditional Indian greeting or gesture of respect
flying colours: achieve a great amount of success in something