The Fictional Novel “Blue Umbrella” is written by Famous Anglo-Indian author Ruskin Bond and it was originally published on 1980. The story of novel was taken into Hindi film in 2005 which was directed by Vishal Bhardwaj and it thereafter won National film award for best children film of the year.
THE BLUE UMBRELLA BY RUSKING BOND
Summary of The Blue Umbrella By Ruskin Bond
The story of novel revolves around a village girl named Binya, who belongs to a mountain of Garhwal village in Himachal Pradesh. The full name of Binya is Binya Devi and she has one brother named Bijju, also known as Vijay, who is 2 years older than her. Binya has no fear of dense jungle and isolated hilltop as she is used to it. She feels nervousness only when she is in market town surrounded by people in bazaar.
Binya has two cows, Neelu and Gori, Neelu is a name of grey cow and white cow is called Gori. She daily takes them in forest to feed, it is Binya’s responsibility to take care of Neelu and Gori and to feed them. Sometimes cows come themselves from forest and sometimes they don’t and if they don’t it is Binya’s responsibility to fetch them from dense forest. One day when Binya was with her cows in forest, she heard voices and laughter of people, as she goes to see them, she came across a party of picnickers.
Binya was hiding beside trees admiring their clothes, she was watching the picnickers who are speaking in different accent which is unknown to her and then she starts gazing at their yummy foods. And now her gaze come to the bright blue umbrella which is very small but attractive and beautiful. She moved forward to see the beautiful blue umbrella and as she came near an umbrella, one woman from picnickers saw her. A woman notices a pendant around Binya’s neck which is made up of tiger’s claw and ask her to give pendant in return for two rupees. Binya put her hand on necklace and denied her request, the woman then showed her five rupees note but again she denied her request.
Binya without hesitancy point at woman’s blue umbrella in return for her necklace and woman exclaimed “My umbrella” you want my umbrella. A women picked her umbrella and gave it to Binya and says this umbrella is yours now. Binya removed her necklace and held it to the woman’s hand in return for umbrella. She takes the umbrella happily and then vanished into dense jungle. As she returns home with umbrella in hand everyone in her family start gazing at her beautiful umbrella because no one had seen such a beautiful umbrella in whole village.
The story now features new character, Ram Bharosa, a man who runs a tea shop at Tehri Road. When Binya visits his shop with her umbrella, he was surprised by seeing her umbrella and ask her to give him umbrella in return for 10 rupees. Binya denied his request without hesitation. Almost everyone in village of Binya is jealous of her blue umbrella as no one had seen such beautiful umbrella before.
The story now jumps to a life of Ram Bharosa, who hires a boy named Raja Ram in his shop, when Binya again visits Ram Bharosa’s shop to drink tea, he starts gazing at her umbrella again, Raja Ram asks his owner “Why are you gazing at Binya’s umbrella, Bharosa tells him that he likes her umbrella very much. Raja Ram says I can rob this umbrella for you if you give me 3 rupees in return. Firstly, Bharosa hesitates on Raja Ram’s offer but few minutes later he agrees and send him to rob Binya’s blue umbrella. As Raja Ram was robbing Binya’s umbrella, Binya with her brother’s help catch him and asks him why you are robbing my umbrella. Raja Rams replied that his owner, Bharosa forced him to rob your umbrella.
When everyone in village learns how Ram Bharosa has tried to rob a little girl umbrella, they stopped going at his shop. Binya feels bad for Bharosa, and she decide to go at his shop to drink tea. When she visits his shop, Ram Bharosa thought she has come to criticize him but later he learns that Binya has come to forgive him. After drinking tea, she left her umbrella in his shop and when Ram saw her umbrella, he follows her to give it back to her, on which Binya says that I don’t need this umbrella anymore and you can take it with my blessings.
Ram Bharosa put Binya’s Blue umbrella in front of his shop so that everyone can touch and feel the beauty of blue umbrella. One day in winter a wild bear comes in village who tried to rob a pumpkin growing on the roof of Bharosa’s tea shop. The next morning Ram Bharosa found the claw of bear in front of his shop, and he pick it up and put it in his pocket. He used bear claw to make a beautiful chain for Binya and afterwards when she visits his shop, he gave it to her with his blessings. Bharosa says this is the best moment of his life as because of his gift, Binya is very happy.
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