The Thief’s Story: How Trust Can Change a Person

The Thief’s Story by Ruskin Bond is a simple yet powerful story about trust, kindness, and personal transformation. Through the journey of a young thief, the story shows how understanding and compassion can change a person’s life.

By the end of this article, you will be able to:

• understand the story in detail
• analyse characters and their development
• identify themes and moral lessons
• answer exam-based questions effectively

Table of Contents

• About the Author
• Summary of the Story
• Characters
• Themes of The Thief’s Story
• Important Concepts
• Key Takeaways
• Practice Zone

About the Author

Ruskin Bond is a well-known Indian author famous for his simple and meaningful storytelling. His writing often:

• focuses on everyday life
• explores human emotions
• highlights moral values and personal growth

Summary of the Story

The plot is a story about two very different people: a fifteen-year-old thief and a twenty-five-year-old simple person. Hari Singh is the narrator of this story. He was an artful thief. One day, he met Anil at a wrestling match. The thief introduces himself as Hari Singh (not his real name, as he changes it every month) and begins talking to Anil.

For the thief, Anil was an attainable target. Hari persuaded Anil to let him work for him. Anil informed him about his inability to pay him. Hari agrees to work for him if Anil feeds him in return. Hari also agrees to cook for Anil, even though he doesn’t know how. Anil took Hari to his home. Hari cooked a meal that day, which was awful and had to be thrown out. After this incident, he asked Hari to leave. Hari smiled charmingly, and Anil was compelled to keep him at his place. Anil agreed to teach him how to cook, write long sentences, and add numbers. Hari used to buy groceries for Anil and made a profit from the money he got from him. Anil knew that Hari stole money, yet he did not mind. Anil was not a rich man. Occasionally, he borrowed money but repaid it whenever he earned money from his magazine writing.

One day, Anil returned with a bundle of notes and informed Hari that he had sold a book to a publisher. All night, he kept the money safely under the mattress of his bed. Hari hadn't stolen for a long time, even though he had opportunities to steal; he didn’t because, according to him, there is no fun in robbing a careless person. Hari stole the money from under the mattress and decided to leave the city that night on the Lucknow Express. He reached the railway station and saw that the Lucknow Express was already leaving. Hari hesitated and didn’t board the train. He was left alone at the station. He counted the money, and it was six hundred rupees.

Unable to decide, Hari sat on a bench in a park while it rained. There was nowhere to go, so he decided to return to Anil’s place. Anil was the only person he knew, and he had looted him as well. He realised that learning how to read and write would help him get a more respectable and honest job, which would pay him much more than these few hundred rupees. The next morning, Anil made tea for him. He gave Hari a fifty-rupee note as he got paid for some work. The note was still wet while Hari took it. Hari realised that Anil had heard about it last night, but he couldn't see any sadness, anger, or guilt in his mind.

Characters

Hari Singh

• A young thief
• Smart but inexperienced
• Initially dishonest
• Undergoes a moral transformation

Anil

• Kind, simple, and trusting
• Patient and understanding
• Believes in giving people a second chance
• Represents goodness and forgiveness

Themes of The Thief’s Story

1. Trust and Forgiveness: Anil’s trust plays a key role in changing Hari. Instead of punishing him, Anil forgives him silently.
2. Power of Kindness: Kindness has a stronger and deeper impact than strict punishment.
3. Transformation and Growth: Hari changes from a thief to someone who wants to improve his life.
4. Values of Education: Hari realises that education can give him a better future than stealing.

Important Concepts

1. Moral Conflict

Hari faces a struggle between:

• doing the wrong thing (keeping the money)
• doing the right thing (returning it)

This conflict leads to his transformation.

2. Silent Forgiveness

Anil does not confront Hari. Instead, he forgives him quietly, showing profound understanding.

3. Trust as a Catalyst for Change

Trust becomes the turning point in Hari’s life.

Key Takeaways

• Trust can transform people
• Kindness is more powerful than punishment
• Education opens new opportunities
• Everyone has the ability to change

Practice Zone

A. Very Short Answer Type Questions [20-30 words]

1. What does Hari Singh do to earn his living? Why was the speaker ‘out of practice’?

Answer: Hari Singh is a thief who robs people of money for his livelihood and is constantly looking for his next prey. The speaker was out of practice because he had not stolen anything for a long time.

2. Describe Hari Singh. What does ‘fairly successful hand at’ mean?

Answer: Hari Singh was only fifteen years old. He was an experienced thief and was quite successful in robbing people.

3. Why did the narrator’s heart sink?

Answer: The narrator’s heart sank to think that Anil might have known that he had stolen his money. Therefore, he would be sad at the loss of his trust.

B. Short Answer Type Questions [40-50 words]

1. What did Anil and Hari agree upon for the mode of payment? [CBSE 2015]

Answer: After talking to Anil, Hari realised that he was incapable of paying him any money. Anil then questioned Hari about whether he could feed him. Hari realised he had misjudged his target and altered the situation to his benefit. Anil then agreed to feed him if he knew how to cook.

2. State the events that took place on the night of the theft. [CBSE 2016]

Answer: The night of the robbery was quite eventful for Hari Singh. After stealing Anil’s money and leaving Anil’s house, Hari went to the railway station but didn’t board the train to Lucknow. He walked slowly through the bazaar because he did not know anyone who would provide him shelter except Anil, as he had no friends. He was forced to take shelter under the clock tower later when it started raining heavily. That is when he realised the importance of education and decided to go back to Anil.

3. Why did the thief change his name every month? How did he rob people? [2019]

Answer: The thief changed his name every month to keep ahead of the police and his previous employers. He tried to win over the people he wanted to rob by striking up a conversation and smiling appealingly.

C. Long Answer Type Questions [100-120 words]

1. Money can’t make a man as much as education can. Elucidate the statement. [CBSE 2013]

Answer: The statement stands true in almost all aspects of life. Money may buy us all the luxuries and fulfil our needs, but it cannot buy us knowledge, civilised thinking, skills, or the ability to achieve our dreams. Education provides a foundation for everyone to pursue their goals based on their abilities. Education enables us to keep up with the fast-moving world. It provides us with access to opportunities we may not even be aware of. Money, on the other hand, can assist us to a certain extent. It can buy us a plan, but education gives us the knowledge to execute it.

In "The Thief’s Story", Hari Singh, a young thief, realises the importance of education. He meets a struggling writer, Anil, who hires him. Anil teaches Hari to work for him. He also teaches Hari to write. Hari, who had befriended Anil to steal money from him, returns because he understands that education will make him a big, clever, and respected man. He accepts that with education, he would be able to earn more than what he had robbed.

2. Hari Singh says. “He knew it but neither his lips nor his eyes showed anything.” Anil successfully addressed the situation by ignoring it. Elaborate based on your reading of The Thief’s Story.

Answer: Hari Singh was a petty thief who was provided shelter by Anil out of kindness. Hari Singh lied about being able to cook, but Anil still kept him. He wanted to help Hari become a better person. He decided to teach Hari.

Hari stole the money and decided to leave, but he returned when he realised his mistake. He feels that he is cheating the only man who has been kind to him. He returns and puts the money back. Even though Anil knows what has transpired, he does not question Hari. Anil knew that reprimanding Hari was not the right way to resolve the problem. He felt imposing faith in Hari would do the trick. His silence transforms Hari, who decides to study and work honestly and change his life.

3. Hari Singh didn’t confess that he robbed Anil. Did he lack the courage to do so, or did he really want to maintain his relationship with Anil at any cost? Explain.

Answer: Hari Singh was a teenager of fifteen. He was adept at stealing. He chose Anil to be his next victim because he seemed to be an easy-going and simple person. Anil was a struggling writer, and he agreed to appoint Hari Singh as his servant on the condition that Hari would cook for him in return. He was also unable to pay him regularly. Hari Singh began living with Anil, who, in turn, began teaching him to read and write. One day, Hari Singh got the opportunity to steal Anil’s money. He left with the money to go away, but his inner voice stopped him. He returned and kept the money under Anil’s mattress. The next morning, he started with his routine work and didn’t say anything about the incident to Anil. He was a teenager and lacked the courage to face Anil with his truth. He did not want to lose Anil’s trust. He wanted to maintain the relationship with Anil and to be educated and lead a respectable life. So, he did not disclose the incident to Anil.

D. Extract Based Questions

1. Well, it’s time I did some real work, I told myself; I’m out of practice. [CBSE 2013]

A. What ‘real work’ is the speaker talking about?

1. learning how to read and write
2. wrestling
3. stealing
4. friendship

Answer: 3. stealing

B. Why does the speaker say I’m out of practice?

1. The speaker was involved in anti-social activities.
2. The speaker was a wrestler.
3. The speaker was a thief, and he has not robbed anyone recently.
4. The speaker was a writer that has not written for long.

Answer: 3. The speaker was a thief, and he has not robbed anyone recently.

C. Give a synonym of ‘practice’.

1. habit
2. real work
3. regularity
4. proficiency

Answer: 1. habit

D. What part of speech is the word ‘real’ in the extract?

1. noun
2. adjective
3. adverb 
4. preposition

Answer: 2. adjective

1. What was the real intention of the speaker?

1. to help Anil
2. to work for Anil
3. to learn how to read and write from Anil
4. to rob Anil

Answer: 4. to rob Anil

2. “You look a bit of a wrestler yourself,” I said. A little flattery helps in making friends. “So do you,” he replied, which put me off for a moment because at that time I was rather thin. “Well,” I said modestly, “I do wrestle a bit.” “What’s your name?” “Hari Singh,” I lied.

A. Who is trying to flatter the listener?

1. Anil
2. other wrestlers
3. Hari Singh
4. Anil’s friend

Answer: 3. Hari Singh

B. Why did the speaker want to flatter the listener?

1. He wanted to befriend him and stay with him forever.
2. He was keen to learn reading and writing from him.
3. He wanted to work for him.
4. He wanted to befriend him and then rob him.

Answer: 4. He wanted to befriend him and then rob him.

C. How did the speaker feel after receiving the reply?

1. He was unprepared for the reply and quite surprised.
2. He was satisfied with the reply.
3. He was delighted with the reply.
4. He was expecting a similar reply.

Answer: 1. He was unprepared for the reply and quite surprised

D. Did the speaker reveal his real name? Why?

1. No, he was afraid.
2. No, he avoided disclosing his true identity.
3. No, he was hesitant.
4. Yes, he was confident to disclose his identity.

Answer: 2. No, he avoided disclosing his true identity.

E. Give an antonym of the word ‘proudly’ from the above extract:

1. proudly 
2. flattery
3. modestly 
4. wrestle

Answer: 3. modestly