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NCERT Solutions Poorvi Chapter 2 The Unlikely Best Friends, Part II — Let us discuss

Book page 45 Updated on2026-09-05

Q1.
Why did Gajaraj not eat his food?
Answer

Gajaraj did not eat because he was missing Buntee, the friend who had just been taken away from him.

The mahout served him his favourite food, but when he came back after his chores “he was surprised to see that the food had remained untouched”. It happened that night too, and the next day. The mahout “ran his hand on Gajaraj's tummy and felt there was nothing wrong”, so the illness was not in his body — it was sadness. As the mahout himself wondered, “Is he missing his friend, that dog?”

Notice the pattern: At exactly the same time, at the farmer's house, “the dog had also not touched his food ever since he was brought home”. The author makes both friends behave in the same way, so that we feel the loss is equal on both sides.
Q2.
Who were friends at the end of the story?
Answer

Two pairs of friends are made by the end of the story:

  • Gajaraj and Buntee — reunited, the elephant “picked up the dog with his trunk and gave him a joyous swing”, and they ate their food side by side.
  • The mahout and the farmer — the two men watched the animals “with satisfaction”, and the mahout hugged the farmer saying, “It's not only Gajaraj who has found a friend. I've also found one.”
The neat ending: The friendship of the animals creates a friendship between the humans. Kindness spreads — that is the quiet lesson of the story.
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