Chapter 9 Bholi

By K.A. Abbas

About the Author

The author of Bholi is Khwaja Ahmed Abbas. He was born in Panama, Punjab on 7 June 1914. He is a
hindi, urdu and English writer. In addition to this, he is also an Indian film director, screenwriter, journalist
and an amazing novelist. His father was a student of Mirza Galib.
He did his schooling at Halli Muslim High School, followed by a Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Laws
degree from the reputed Aligarh Muslim University. His love and passion for writing made him a prolific
writer who has written 73 books in English, Hindi and Urdu. He was also considered a king of short Urdu
stories and is also famous for his fictional works. He has even written scripts for the most famous and
prominent actor, Raj Kapoor’s films.

Introduction to the lesson

Bholi is a story written by K.A. Abbas. The story revolves around a girl who due to accidental fall and
disease in her childhood faces the problem of being dull and ugly. She is always a target by everyone for not
being good looking and intelligent. Her life turns when she joins a nearby school where her teacher
encourages her and helps her to become a learned and confident person. Later in the story, circumstances
arise where Bholi has to give acceptance to the marriage with an unequal match but rejects it when she sees
her father pleading to the bridegroom when he demands dowry. The story shows the rise of a girl against
social injustice.

Theme 1: Impact of Family

The major theme of the story Bholi is the impact of family on children. Bholi is a little girl who fails to
develop self-confidence because of her parents’ attitude towards her. The story hints at why family support
and emotional security are essential for proper child development. Also, disabled children must be given
encouragement, love and, education like their normal counterparts.
Theme 2: Impact of Education
The novel revolves around the theme of education. When Bishamber demands dowry, Bholi reacts boldly
and refuses to marry. She gained this courage and confidence because of education. Without education she
would have been a dumb girl and also had suffered for rest of her life because Bishamber was very greedy.

TITLE JUSTIFICATION
The title of the story is ironic. The real name is Sulekha but everyone used to call her Bholi. It was so
because she was considered to be less than her siblings. She could not speak properly which made
everybody laughed at her. The title serves an ironic purpose at the end of the story. It is not the same Bholi
that we find fighting for the right thing. A small gesture of care and love from her teacher, helped her to
transform and there she stood as an intelligent and powerful girl who was no more dumb-driven

MESSAGE
‘Bholi is a story of a simple rustic girl. She was ignored because of pockmarks on her face. She was a slow
learner. She had to tie knot to a lame, old widower who asked for dowry. She refused to marry such a greedy
person, and decided to serve the village. She stood firm and determined. Her strength of character made her
lead an exemplary life. Her attributes might inspire society to make their girl self-confident and independent.
The lesson emphasizes on eradicating illiteracy and spreading awareness, as only education guarantees a
better future.

CHARACTER SKETCH
1. Bholi
She was the youngest child of Numberdar Ramlal and her real name was Sulekha. She had an attack. of
smallpox when she was two years old and was left pock-marks for her life. She was called Bholi because of
her stammering. She was a weight on the shoulders of her father as he thought that nobody would ever
marry her. She started going to school at the age of seven. A new hope emerged in her when she was softly
addressed by her teacher and she began to learn and get rid of her speech problems. She turned out to be a
respectful and intelligent girl. She understood that it was only the money because of which Bishamber was
marrying her and due to this she suddenly turned down the marriage. She wanted to be with her parents and
serve them in future. She learned to have faith in herself and became independent.
2. Bishamber
He was a middle-aged man who belonged to another village. His first wife had died and he even had grown
up kids. He sent a proposal to marry Bholi. He had never seen her and was critical of her looks when he saw
her just before putting the garland. It shows how hypocritical he was as he never considered his age to be of
any importance, despite of which Bholi accepted him. He asked for an amount of five thousand rupees to
marry her. Bholi suspected everything and refused to marry him. She said she didn’t want to marry a greedy
and contemptible man.
3. Ramlal
He was a Numberdar of the village. He was a father of three sons and four daughters of which Bholi was the
youngest. Though being from a patriarchal set-up, he had some consciousness of his actions. He sent his
daughter to the school even though the mother was not in the favour of it. When the proposal of Bishamber
came for Bholi, he was not joyful as he thought it to be an injustice for Bholi to marry a middle-aged man.
As a helpless father, when he was asked for five thousand rupees at the time of Bholi’s marriage because of
her ugliness, he did so. He was a canna father but due to society’s pressure had to succumb to its traditions.
4. Bholi’s mother
She can be seen as a female patriarch as she advocates all the social evils of the village. She never took care
of Bholi and it was only at the first day of school that she dressed her up. She was not even in favor of
sending her to school as she considered it to be useless for Bholi to have education but agreed as she knew
nobody would marry her and the teachers could take care of Bholi. She only persuaded Ramlal when he had
double thoughts about marrying Bholi to Bishamber According to her, Bholi could never get a better match
than him as he was not even asking for dowry She cannot be called a a good mother as she never tried to
make Bholi independent and her only concern was Bholi’s marriage.

Summary
The story opens up with the introduction of a little girl named Sulekha. She was called ‘Bholi’ for being a
simpleton. This was so because some part of her brain had got damaged due to an injury during her
childhood. She stammered and had pockmarks on her face which she got when she had contracted smallpox
at the age of two. She was a laughing stock for everyone. Her father Ramlal was a Numberdar. He had three
sons and four daughters, Bholi being the youngest of all. Ramlal was always worried about her as it seemed
impossible to marry her with her having an ugly face and a dumb mind. One day, the Tehsildar visited their
village to inagurate a girl’s primary school. He persuaded Ramlal to send his daughters to school. Ramlal’s
wife suggested to send Bholi to school, although she was against sending girls to school because no boy
would marry such a girl. She reasoned that as Bholi had no chance of getting married, so she could go to
school. In the beginning, Bholi was frightened to leave her house but when for the first time in her life, she
was dressed up and her hair was washed and oiled, she felt that she was to visit a better place. In the school,
she met a teacher who was very kind and polite to her. She encouraged her to study and speak with
confidence. This filled hope in Bholi and she began to go to school every day. Years passed and her village
upgraded into a small town with some facilities like a cotton mill, a cinema and the primary school being
converted into a secondary school. One day Bholi’s parents decided to marry her to a lame old man who was
a widower but was rich and had not demanded any dowry. They thought it to be the best marriage proposal
for their dumb daughter and fixed up her marriage. On the wedding day, the bridegroom arrived with great
pomp and show which filled Ramlal with joy. The groom discovered that Bholi had pock marks and
demanded dowry in return for marrying her. He demanded a sum of five thousand rupees. Ramlal begged
for mercy and even placed his turban in Bishamber’s feet but BishamberNath did not agree. Ramlal had to
give the money in order to save both his family’s honour and his daughter’s marriage. Bholi could not bear
all this and refused to marry a greedy old man. People accused her of being shameless. The wedding party
returned. The marriage ceremony ended without Bholi getting married. Her father was surrounded by grief
and said that now no one would marry her and what would she do in future. To this, she replied that she
would take care of her parents when they grew old and would teach in her school. Her teacher who was
quietly watching all this felt proud of her decision.

Question and Answers

Question 1.
Little Sulekha could not speak till she was five, and when at last she learnt to speak, she stammered. The
other children often made fun of her and mimicked her.

(a) What did Sulekha later on come to be known as?

(b) Why did children make fun of her?
(c) What does the word ‘mimicked1 mean?
(d) What part of speech is ‘often’?

Question 4.
He said to Ramlal, “As a revenue official you are the representative of the government in the village and
so you must set an example to the villagers. You must send your daughters to school.”
Short Answer Type Questions [2 Marks each]

Question 1.
Why is Sulekha called ‘Bholi’?
Question 3.
How did Bholi react when the teacher asked her name?
Question 7.
In what way did the village change over time?
Question 12.
Why was Ramlal thunderstruck?
Long Answer (Value Based) Type Questions [8 Marks each]

Question 1.
‘Dowry is negation of the girl’s dignity’. Discuss with reference to the story ‘Bholi’.