NCERT Solutions for Class 10 English First Flight Chapter 7 Madam Rides the Bus

Valliammai was eight year old girl who was curious about things. Her favourite pastime was to stand in the front doorway of her house and watch what was happening in the street outside. For her standing at the front door was as enjoyable as other games that the children played outside.

Valli enjoyed the sight of street standing on her door. For her the source of unending joy was the sight of the bus that travelled between her village and the nearest town, filled with a new set of passengers each time it passed through her street. Her strongest desire was to ride on that bus.

Valli heard conversations of her neighbours and people who regularly travelled on that bus and found out that the town was six miles from her village. The fare was thirty paise one way. The trip to the town took forty-five minutes. On reaching the town, if she stayed in her seat and paid another thirty paise, she could return home on the same bus. She also gained information by asking them a few questions.

Valli was planning to travel on that bus.

Valli was trying to behave sophisticated and more mature than her age. She is trying to look overconfident and smart. The conductor tries to tease her and calls her ‘madam’. Everyone is amused at her behaviour in the bus.

Valli devoured everything with her eyes but her view was cut off by a canvas blind that covered the lower part of her window. So, she stood up to look over the blind. She saw that the bus was going along the bank of canal and the road was very narrow. On one side of which there was the canal and beyond it were palm trees, grassland, distant mountains, and the blue sky. On the other side, there was a deep ditch and many acres of green fields.

The elderly asked her not to stand in the bus. The elderly man was concerned for her. But Valli was annoyed by his attention and told him that there was nobody on the bus who was a child. She had paid her fare of thirty paise like everyone else.

The elderly woman sat beside Valli. She found the women repulsive. The elderly women had big earlobes with bigger holes. Valli could smell her chewing betel nut and the betel juice was about to spill out of her mouth. That is why Vaali did not want to make friends with her.

Valli was very curious to travel on the bus for once. She thriftily saved every coin that came her way resisting herself from every temptation like having peppermints, buying toys and balloons. Sacrificing her childish urges would have been very difficult for her. It is tough to savour a candy or to enjoy a toy for the kids.

Valli saw a young cow whose tail was high in the air, running very fast right in front of the bus in the middle of the road. Valli started clapping in glee. The bus slowed and the driver sounded his horn loudly over and over again. However, the more he honked, the more frightened the cow became and it kept running faster and faster, right in front of the bus. Somehow it was very funny for Valli and she kept on laughing until she had tears in her eyes. At last, the cow moved off the road.

The bus reached its destination and everyone got off that bus except Valli. She did not get off the bus at the bus station because she had to go back on that same bus. She took out another thirty paise from her pocket and handed the coins to the conductor. She just wanted to ride on the bus.

The conductor insisted Valli to go and have a drink at the stall but she did not want to go because she did not have any money for that. Even when the conductor offered her a cold drink as a treat, she refused firmly and said that she only wanted her ticket. This shows that Valli had a lot of self will and pride. Possibly, she did not want to take anything for free, particularly from a stranger.

Valli was every enthusiastic and excited throughout her journey. But on her way back home she refused to look out of the window because she saw a young cow lying dead by the roadside. It had been struck by some fast-moving vehicle. It was the same cow that was running in front of their bus, during their trip to the town. She was overcome with sadness. The memory of the dead cow haunted her and therefore, she refused to look out of the window.

Valli’s mother said that many things happen around us, but we are usually unaware of them. Valli had gone on a bus ride to town, all alone, and had come back without any harm. She did all this without the knowledge of her mother. Hence, she agreed with what her mother said.