THE TIGER KING

-KALKI

Theme
Animals and birds are as much part of the nature as human beings. The destruction or
haphazard killing of one species may not only lead to its extinction, but it will adversely
affect the ecological balance. Those animals which serve as food for the wild animals will
increase in large number, if the beasts of prey are wiped out. Each species, howsoever
fierce, deadly, ferocious or poisonous has its role in maintaining ecological balance in
nature.

Moral/ Message of the lesson

Through this satirical story, the author has rightly portrayed how human beings have
subjected innocent animals to untold torture and death, merely to fulfil their own whims
and fancies. The Maharaja’s indiscriminate killing of tigers led to their extinction in some
states, but the Maharaja was oblivious of the grave consequences his action was leading to.
The author strikes home the message that the ruler’s primary duty should be the welfare of
the citizens.

Characters

1. The Tiger King: a hero of the story, the Maharaja of Pratibandhpuram, also known as His
Highness Jamedar, General Khiledar-Major, Sata-Vyaghra samhari, Maharajadhiraja Visva
Bhuvana samrat, Sir Jilani Jung Jung Bahadur, M.A.D., A.C.T.C., or C.R.C.K.
2. Crown prince: a ten day old baby who later became the Maharaja of Pratibandhpuram.
3. Chief astrologer: a royal foreteller of the state.
4. Durai: means “chief, leader” in Tamil.
5. A British high ranking officer & his secretary
6. Dewan: a chief administrative office of the Maharaja.
7. Duraisani: the wife of the high ranking British officer, a greedy woman who takes all the fifty
or so diamond rings for herself.
Gist of the lesson:
• The Maharaja Sir Jilani Jung Jung Bhadur was called “Tiger King” · When he was just ten days
old he asked intelligent questions to the astrologers and was told that he would be killed by
a tiger. He uttered “Let tigers beware!”
• No other miracle took place, the child grew like any other Royal child drinking white cow’s
milk, taught by an English tutor, looked after by an English nanny and watched English films.
• When he was twenty, he was crowned as king. It was then the prediction of his death by the
tiger reached the Maharaja’s ear and he in turn to safe guard himself killed a tiger and being
 thrilled he told the astrologer who replied that he can kill 99 tigers but should be careful
with the Hundredth.
• From then on he started killing tiger and none was allowed to hunt tigers. A high ranking
British officer visited the state that was fond of hunting tiger and his wish was declined.
• The officer requested for getting a photograph with a tiger killed by Maharaja and this
request was rejected.
• So to please the officer’s wife he sent fifty diamond rings expecting that she would take one
or two instead she kept all the rings costing three 3 lakh rupees and sent ‘thanks’ to the
Maharaja. But his state was secured.
• In ten years he killed seventy tigers and didn’t find any in Pratibandapuram so he decided to
marry a girl from royal state which had more tigers to complete his target whenever he
visited his in-laws he killed five or six tigers. So he killed ninety-nine tigers and was feverishly
anxious to kill the Hundredth but couldn’t find news about the presence of a tiger near a
village proved disappointing.
• Now the Dewan was warned of his danger so he visited ‘People’s Park in Madras’ and
brought an old tiger and placed it in the forest and informed the Maharaja.
• The Maharaja took great care and shot the tiger and left the place with great triumph the
bullet did not hit the tiger but out of fear the tiger had collapsed. Now the staff killed the
tiger and brought it in grand procession it was the third birthday of the Maharaja’s son and
he wanted to buy a present from the toyshop. He bought a wooden tiger which was poorly
carved.
• While the Maharaja was playing with the prince a tiny sliver of the wooden tiger pierced his
right hand which later on caused his death. Thus the hundredth tiger takes his final revenge
upon the “Tiger King”.

Short Answer Type Questions (3-4 Marks)

Question 1.
How did the tiger king acquire his name?
Answer:
The Maharaja of Pratibandapuram was known as the Tiger King. He got the name of Tiger
King as tigers dominated his life and his mission to live. He killed seventy tigers in ten years
and also married a girl from a State which had a large number of tigers in order to kill the
next 30 tigers.

Question 2.
What happened to the tiger provided by the Dewan Saheb?
Answer:
The tiger provided by the Dewan Saheb was old and agile. It was passive and exhausted. The
Tiger King did not take careful aim at the hundredth tiger. The tiger fainted due to the sound
of the bullet and fell in a crumpled heap. No one wanted the Maharaja to know this. It was a
hunter who actually shot the tiger late

Question 3.
What did the British officer’s secretary tell the Maharaja? Why did the Maharaja refuse
permission?
Answer:
When the British officer was denied permission for hunting a tiger his secretary sent a
message to the Maharaja that the Maharaja himself could kill the tiger and then allow his
officer to get photographed holding the gun over the dead tiger. But the Maharaja did not
agree to his request because he felt doing so would mean other officers would come with
similar demands.

Question 4.
Why, do you think, was the Maharaja in danger of losing his throne?
Answer:
A high ranking British officer wished to go tiger hunting but he was declined permission by
the Maharaja. The officer then requested to be photographed with a tiger killed by the
Maharaja. The Maharaja rejected that request also. Having turned down a senior British
officer’s request twice could have put the Maharaja in danger of losing his throne.

Question 5.
What led the Maharaja to start out on a tiger hunt?
Answer:
The chief astrologer had predicted that a tiger would be the cause of the Maharaja’s death
and he should be particularly wary of the hundredth tiger. So the Maharaja banned the
hunting of tigers in his State and those who violated this law had to hand over their wealth
and property to the kingdom, while the Maharaja himself started out on a tiger hunt.

Question 6.
How did the hundredth tiger take its revenge on the king?
Answer:
The Maharaja of Pratibandapuram, who was also known as the Tiger King tried to go against
what was destined in his fate. The result was tragic and ironical. The chief astrologer had
predicted that a tiger would be the cause of the king’s death and he should specially be
wary of the hundredth tiger. The vain king banned hunting of the tigers in the State by
everyone except himself and was able to kill ninety-nine tigers. He thought he had killed the
hundredth tiger also but somehow the bullet missed its mark and the hundredth tiger
survived. Then on his son’s birthday the king bought him a wooden tiger which he felt was a
perfect gift for his son. A splinter in it pierced the king’s hand and the infection spread all
over his arm causing his death. It was indeed ironical that despite killing all the tigers in his
kingdom the king did finally become the victim of the hundredth tiger and the astrologer’s
prediction did come true.
Question 7.
Why was the Maharaja so anxious to kill the hundredth tiger?
Answer:
The chief astrologer had predicted that a tiger would be the cause of the Maharaja’s death
and that he should be particularly wary of the hundredth tiger. So the Maharaja set out on a
tiger hunt and was rather anxious to kill the hundredth tiger who could be the cause of his
death.

Question 8.
When and why did the Maharaja decide to get married?
Answer:
The Maharaja had killed seventy tigers and thus the tiger population became extinct in the
forests of his kingdom. It was then that he decided to get married to a girl in a royal family
of a state which had a large tiger population.

Question 9.
What sort of hunts did the Maharaja offer to organize for the high-ranking British officer?
What trait of the officer does it reveal?
Answer:
The Maharaja offered to organize a boar hunt, a mouse hunt or a mosquito hunt for the
high- ranking British officer. He offered to organize any hunt other than a tiger hunt. This
reveals that the officer was a meek man who, the Maharaja felt, would be satisfied with any
sort of hunt.

Question 10.
Why did the Maharaja ban tiger hunting in the state?
Answer:
The Maharaja banned tiger hunting in the state by anyone else except himself because he
had to kill a hundred tigers so that he could prove the astrologer’s prediction wrong. He had
a limited population of tigers in his kingdom so he did not want anyone else to hunt or kill
tigers.

Question 11
Why did the Maharaja order the Dewan to double the land tax?
Answer:
Despite being in the forest for many days the Maharaja was unable to find the hundredth
tiger so his fury and obstinacy mounted alarmingly. Due to his frustration and rage many
officers lost their jobs and when his anger reached its height he ordered the Dewan to
double the land tax.

Question 2
How did the Maharaja please a high-ranking British official?
Answer:
The Maharaja had annoyed a high-ranking British official by refusing him permission to
hunt. Later, to make amends, he sent about fifty samples of expensive diamond rings to the
officer’s wife hoping she would keep one or two rings as a bribe. But she kept all the rings
which cost the Maharaja three lakhs rupees but the official was pleased with him.

Question 13.
What gave the astrologers the greatest surprise of their life while they were studying the
horoscope of the ten-day-old prince?
Answer:
While the astrologers were studying the horoscope of the ten-day-old prince, a great
miracle took place that gave the astrologers the greatest surprise of their life. An
astonishing phrase emerged from the lips of the ten-day-old prince and everyone stood
transfixed in stupefaction.

Question 14.
How did the Tiger King become the victim of the hundredth tiger?
Answer:
The Tiger King brings a wooden tiger as a gift for his son. The poorly carved toy tiger has a
rough surface, filled with slivers of wood. The Maharaja hurts himself when a tiny sliver
pierces his right hand. He neglects his injury, which becomes grievous when pus develops on
it and soon spreads all over his arm finally leading to his death. In this way the Tiger King
ultimately becomes a victim of the hundredth tiger.

Question 15.
The manner of his (The Tiger King’s) death is a matter of extraordinary interest. Comment.
Answer:
The manner of the tiger king’s death is indeed a matter of extraordinary interest. The Tiger
King vowed to kill a hundred tigers to ensure his longevity as when he was born; the chief
astrologer had predicted that a tiger would be the cause of his death. He later brings a
wooden tiger as a gift for his son and its tiny sliver of wood pierces his right hand. He
neglects his injury which becomes grievous and led to his death. Thus, he gets killed by the
hundredth tiger.

Question 16.
Who killed the 100th tiger? Why?
Answer:
Ironically, the hundredth tiger is not killed by the Tiger King. He does drop down after he is
shot by the Maharaja, but he only faints from the bullet shot. The hunters then wonder
what they should do. They realize if the Maharaja came to know this they could lose their
jobs. So one of the hunters takes aim and shoots the tiger.

Question 17
When he was only ten days old, a prediction was made about the future of the Tiger King.
What was ironic about it?
Answer:
When the king was a ten day old infant, the chief astrologer had predicted that a tiger
would be responsible for the King’s death. So the king went on a tiger-killing spree but it was
a wooden toy tiger that caused the Tiger King’s death. So despite getting rid of all the tigers
in and around his kingdom, it was most ironic that the hundredth tiger, a wooden one, took
its final revenge upon the King. A tiny sliver of wood from the wooden tiger pierces the
King’s right hand which ultimately leads to his death.

Question 18
How did the ten-day-old baby (the future Tiger King) react to the prediction about his future
made by the astrologers?
Answer:
No sooner had the astrologers made the prediction about the death of the ten-day-old
baby, a great miracle took place. An astonishing phrase emerged from the lips of the baby
and everyone stood transfixed in stupefaction. He said the astrologers should tell: him how
he would die and asked the reason for his predicted death.

Question 19
What kind of life was enjoyed by crown prince Jung Bahadur till he reached the age of
twenty?
Answer:
Till he reached the age of twenty the crown prince Jung Bahadur did exactly what the other
crown princes of all the other Indian states did. He drank the milk of an English cow, was
brought up by an English nanny, tutored in English by an Englishman and saw only English
films. He had an uneventful childhood just like any Indian prince during the British rule.

Question 20
How did the Tiger King save his kingdom from the British?
Answer:
The Maharaja (Tiger king) had annoyed a high- ranking British official by refusing him
permission to hunt and stood in danger of losing his kingdom. Later, to make amends, he
sent about fifty samples of expensive diamond rings to the officer’s wife hoping she would
keep one or two rings as a bribe. But she kept all the rings which cost the Maharaja three
lakh rupees and the official was pleased with him. In this way, the tiger king was able to save
his kingdom from the British.

Question 21.
How did the dewan and his wife help in getting the hundredth tiger for the king?
Answer:
An old tiger had been bought by the Dewan from the People’s Park in Madras. He had
hidden it in his backyard. At midnight, the Dewan and his wife dragged the tiger into the car
and then hauled him out of the car, near the Maharaja’s camp. It wandered into the
Maharaja’s presence and was shot at.

Question 22
How did the Maharaja deal with high ranking British officer who wanted to shoot a tiger?
Answer:
The Maharaja had annoyed a high-ranking British official by refusing him permission to
hunt. Later, to make amends, he sent about fifty samples of expensive diamond rings to the
officer’s wife hoping she would keep one or two rings as a bribe. But she kept all the rings
which cost the Maharaja three lakhs rupees but the official was pleased with him.

Question 23.
Why did the Maharaja have to pay a bill of three lakh rupees to the British jewellers?
Answer:
The Maharaja had annoyed a high-ranking British official by refusing him permission to
hunt. Later, to make amends, he sent about fifty samples of expensive diamond rings to the
officer’s wife hoping she would keep one or two rings as a bribe. But she kept all the rings
which cost the Maharaja three lakhs rupees but the official was pleased with him.

Question 24
Which problem did the Maharaja face when he had killed seventy tigers? How did he solve
it?
Answer:
The Maharaja had killed seventy tigers and thus the tiger population became extinct in the
forests of his kingdom. It was then that he decided to get married to a girl in a royal family
of a state which had a large tiger population.

The Tiger King Important Questions Long Answer Type Questions (5-6 Marks)

Question 1
How did the Tiger King meet his end? What is ironical about his fate?
Answer:
The Maharaja of Pratibandapuram, who was also known as the Tiger King tried to go against
what was destined in his fate. The result was tragic and ironical. The chief astrologer had
predicted that a tiger would be the cause of the king’s death and he should specially be
wary of the hundredth tiger. The vain king banned hunting of the tigers in the State by
everyone except himself and was able to kill ninety-nine tigers. He thought he had killed the
hundredth tiger also but somehow the bullet missed its mark and the hundredth tiger
survived. Then on his son’s birthday the king bought him a wooden tiger which he felt was a
perfect gift for his son. One of the sharp splinter in it pierced the king’s hand and the
infection spread all over his arm causing his death. It was indeed ironical that despite killing
all the tigers in his kingdom the king did finally become the victim of the hundredth tiger
and the astrologer’s prediction did come true.
Question 2
Describe the efforts made by the Tiger King to achieve his target of killing a hundred tigers.
Answer:
The chief astrologer had told the King that his death would come from a tiger and he should
be specially wary of the hundredth tiger. So to prove the astrologer wrong the King decided
to kill a hundred tigers. He vowed that he would attend to all other matters only after killing
one hundred tigers. Initially, the king seemed well set to realise his ambition. Then some
dangers and difficulties cropped up. There were times when the bullet missed its mark and
at other times the tiger would leap on him and he would have to fight the wild beast with
his bare hands. The Tiger King was able to kill ninety-nine tigers this way and if he could kill
just one more tiger all his fears would be over for good and he could give up tiger hunting.
But the hundredth tiger could not be found. The Dewan realized the disastrous results, if the
hundredth tiger was not found. So a tiger was brought in from the People’s Park in Madras
and taken directly to the forest where the Maharaja was hunting. The King took aim and the
tiger fell in a heap. The Maharaja was extremely happy to have finally killed the hundredth
tiger. After he left the hunters took a closer look at the tiger and realized the tiger was not
dead as the king had missed the aim. They decided not to tell the Maharaja and one of the
hunters killed the tiger. The king was left under the impression that he had achieved his
target of killing a hundred tigers.

Question 3
When did the Tiger King stand in danger of losing his kingdom? How was he able to avert
the danger?
Answer:
A high-ranking British officer, who was actually a coward, wanted to kill a tiger to flaunt
himself before his compatriots. When he was not allowed to hunt a tiger he sent a word to
the King that he would be happy if he was just allowed to be photographed with a dead
tiger killed by the King. But the King was adamant and did not agree to his request because
it would encourage the other officers to come with similar demands. The King thus seriously
angered the visiting senior British officer and now ‘stood in danger of losing his kingdom
itself’. So to pacify the annoyed official, the King and his Dewan sent bribes of fifty
expensive diamond rings to the official’s wife hoping she would select one or two and return
the rest. But the greedy lady kept all the rings. The King, no doubt, lost a few lakhs but
managed to save his throne and was thus able to avert the danger of losing his kingdom.

Question 4
Why was the king worried after having killed ninety-nine tigers? How did his worries come
to an end?
Answer:
At the birth of the King, an astrologer had predicted that a tiger would be responsible for his
death. At the age of twenty, the state astrologer had told him to be wary of the hundredth
tiger. The Tiger King had killed ninety nine tigers and now he just needed to kill one tiger to
reach his tally of killing a hundred tigers. Then he would have no fears left. So he is
feverishly anxious to kill the hundredth tiger at the earliest. But the tiger farms ran dry in his
father-in law’s kingdom also. Out of frustration, the King terminates the services of many
officers and thinks of punishing the villagers by doubling the land tax. He also orders his
Dewan either to resign or find a tiger. The Dewan gets worried and upset and recalls the old
tiger that has been brought from Madras and kept hidden in his house. He drags the old and
weak tiger and drives him to the forest where the King is hunting. The initially hesitant tiger
then wanders into the Maharaja’s presence and is finally shot by the King.

Question 5
The astrologer’s prediction about the death of the Tiger King came to be true. Do you agree
with this statement? Explain why or why not.
Answer:
The chief-astrologer had forewarned the king that a tiger would be responsible for his death
and he should be particularly beware of the hundredth tiger. After killing the hundredth
tiger the king was relaxed and became careless. He did not know that the hundredth tiger
had actually survived because the bullet had missed its mark. Finally it was a tiger who was
responsible for the king’s death though it was a toy-tiger which he had bought as a birthday
gift for his son. The carved toy tiger had a rough surface with sharp wooden splinters. One
of these sharp splinters pierced the king’s right hand and caused a deadly infection that
spread all over his arm. Three surgeons tried their level best but they could not save the
king and so the astrologer’s prediction did indeed come true. Despite the fact that the king
took every measure to avoid the circumstance of his death the hundredth tiger took its final
revenge upon the king as predicted by the astrologer.

Question 6
Why did the Tiger King wish to hunt hundred tigers? How far was he able to fulfill his wish?
Answer:
At the Tiger King’s birth the astrologer had predicted that the death of the new born future
king would come through a tiger and he must specially beware of the hundredth tiger.
Amaz¬ingly the new-born prince growled “Let tigers beware!” He meant that he would not
be afraid of tigers, instead tigers would be afraid of him and he would wipe them out to
disprove the astrologer’s prediction. So when he came of age he wreaked havoc on the tiger
population in an attempt to hunt a hundred tigers as soon as it was possible. The tiger king
was able to kill ninety nine tigers successfully and he was under the impression that he had
also killed the hundredth tiger. But the hundredth tiger had survived his bullet shot.
Ironically the death of the Tiger King was brought about by a toy, a wooden tiger which he
had bought as a special birthday gift for his son.

Question 7.
What sort of hunts did the Maharaja offer to organize for the high-ranking British officer?
What trait of the officer does it reveal?
Answer:
The Maharaja offered to organize a boar hunt, a mouse hunt or a mosquito hunt for the
high- ranking British officer. He offered to organise any hunt other than a tiger hunt. This
reveals that the officer was a man who was a meek man who, the Maharaja felt, would be
satisfied with any sort of hunt. It also reveals that he was very fond of hunting tigers and
being photographed.

Question 8
Giving a bribe is an evil practice. How did the Tiger King bribe the British officer to save his
kingdom? How do you view this act of his?
Answer:
The Maharaja had annoyed a British officer by refusing him permission to hunt a tiger in
Pratibandapuram, and as a result he was in danger of losing his throne. Later to make
amends he bribed the officer by sending about fifty samples of expensive diamond rings to
the officer’s wife in the hope that she would keep one or two rings as a bribe. But the
greedy lady kept all the rings. So the Maharaja lost three lakh rupees but was still happy
because he had managed to retain his kingdom. The Maharaja was absolutely certain of one
thing, that he would not let anyone else shoot a tiger in his kingdom. He annoyed the British
officer and later paid a heavy bribe to appease the official. Even after losing a large amount
of money the Maharaja was happy because he had not only managed to retain his throne
but also dissuaded the British officer from shooting a tiger.
Question 9
Even today so many among us believe in superstitions. An astrologer predicted about ‘The
Tiger King’ that he would be killed by a tiger. He ‘killed’ one hundred tigers yet was himself
‘killed’ by a tiger. How did the superstitious belief ‘prevail’?
Answer:
The chief-astrologer had forewarned the king that a tiger would be responsible for his death
and he should be particularly beware of the hundredth tiger. After killing the hundredth
tiger the king was relaxed and became careless. He did not know that the hundredth tiger
had actually survived because the bullet had missed its mark. Finally it was a tiger that was
responsible for the king’s death even though it was a toy-tiger which he had bought as a
birthday gift for his son. The carved toy tiger had a rough surface with sharp wooden
splinters. One of these sharp splinters pierced the king’s right hand and caused a deadly
infection that spread all over his arm. Three surgeons tried their level best but they could
not save the king and so the astrologer’s prediction did indeed come true. Despite the fact
that the king took every measure to avoid the circumstance of his death the hundredth tiger
took its final revenge upon the king as predicted by the astrologer.