Question

Give an account of the embarrassing experience of the narrator at the restaurant in ‘Oru Manushyan'.

Answer 1

One evening the narrator goes to a crowded restaurant to have his food and when he has to pay the bill of eleven annas, he realises that his purse with his life’s savings of fourteen rupees is missing. But, the owner of the restaurant thinks that the speaker is trying to cheat him, and threatens to gouge his eyes out. None of the others at the restaurant seem to have any kindness either. 

The speaker pleads with the owner to keep his coat as surety. But, the owner guffaws and makes the speaker remove his coat, shirt, and shoes. When he wants the speaker to remove even the trousers, the speaker pleads with him for mercy saying he has nothing inside. This only invokes more laughter and the restaurant owner, along with fifty other people gathered there, forces the speaker to strip further saying mockingly, “There must be something inside.” The speaker, now resigned to his fate, starts unbuttoning his trousers, all the time imagining himself standing naked in front of others, with his eyes gouged out.

We see that the narrator is not only embarrassed but also humiliated. Since he is not a cheat, it must have been terribly embarrassing for him to have realised that he had eaten his food at the restaurant, but had no money to pay for the food. His embarrassment would have increased when the owner of the restaurant treated him as a cheat. But, to top it all, the cruel way in which not only the owner but also the people gathered there treated him would have been humiliating for the narrator.Read more on Sarthaks.com - https://www.sarthaks.com/581389/describe-the-embarrassing-experience-of-the-narrator-in-the-restaurant-in-oru-manushyan

Answer 2

The narrator realised someone had picked his wallet — reported to the owner of the restaurant — laughed and caught him by the lapel — warned to gouge his eyes out if failed to settle the bill — told him to take off his shirt, shoes and trousers — narrator pleaded he had nothing on underneath — shuddered to think of going out blind and naked.

Detailed Answer : 

Once, the narrator went to the restaurant carrying fourteen rupees in his wallet and ate a full meal consisting of chapatis and meat curry. He drank tea. The bill was eleven annas. He searched his pocket to pay the bill, but he was shocked to find that his wallet was not in his pocket and that someone had stolen it. When he said the same to the restaurant owner, he caught the narrator by the lapels of his coat. The owner was inconsiderate and failed to understand the narrator's situation. He asked the narrator to strip down his clothes in front of everyone and was not given a chance to explain himself. He was forced to remove his clothes and was also asked to remove his trousers. Despite the narrator's efforts to convince the owner that he had not worn anything underneath, he was not excused. Just as he was ready to remove his trousers, a stranger stepped in and decided to pay for his expense. He was thus saved from further humiliation in front of everyone.