01 · Explore
The Birth of a Legend and a Miracle
The story introduces the Maharaja of Pratibandapuram, a man with a long, grandiloquent title but popularly known as the Tiger King. His life is marked by a supernatural event that occurs just ten days after his birth.
The narrator establishes that the Tiger King is already dead, reaching the 'final abode' of all living creatures. However, the circumstances of his death are of extraordinary interest and form the core of the narrative. The story begins with a fantastic event: when the Maharaja was born, astrologers predicted that he would grow up to be a great warrior and champion, but he would ultimately have to meet his death.
In an unprecedented miracle, the ten-day-old infant speaks, addressing the 'wise prophets.' He challenges the astrologers by stating that everyone who is born must die, and there would be sense in their prediction only if they could reveal the 'manner' of that death. This display of intelligence from an infant stuns the court and the chief astrologer.
The chief astrologer explains that because the prince was born in the 'hour of the Bull,' and since the Bull and the Tiger are enemies, the prince's death would come from a tiger. Rather than being terrified, the infant prince gives a deep growl and utters a warning: 'Let tigers beware!'
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What was the specific reason given by the astrologer for why a tiger would cause the prince's death?
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How did the ten-day-old infant prince react to the astrologer's prediction?
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Sign inNew here? Sign up freeNCERT reference: printed pages 8, 9, 10.
02 · Explore
The Royal Upbringing and the First Hunt
The prince's childhood reflects the heavy British influence on Indian royalty during the colonial era, leading up to the moment he takes full control of his kingdom.
The prince grew up drinking the milk of an English cow, cared for by an English nanny, and tutored in English by an Englishman. He watched only English films, mirroring the upbringing of other Indian crown princes of that time. At the age of twenty, the State, which had been under the Court of Wards, finally came into his hands.
Upon taking power, the Maharaja remembered the astrologer's prophecy. Despite the old saying that one may kill even a cow in self-defence, he decided to hunt tigers to safeguard his life. When he killed his first tiger, he summoned the State astrologer to prove him wrong.
The astrologer remained cautious, telling the King that while he might kill ninety-nine tigers in the same manner, he must be 'very careful with the hundredth tiger.' The astrologer was so certain of this that he vowed to burn his books, cut off his ritual hair tuft, and become an insurance agent if the King successfully killed the hundredth tiger.
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What did the astrologer vow to do if the Maharaja successfully killed the hundredth tiger?
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Sign inNew here? Sign up freeNCERT reference: printed pages 10, 11.
03 · Explore
The Vow and the British Officer
The Maharaja's obsession with the prophecy leads him to ban all tiger hunting in his state except for himself, eventually putting his throne at risk.
A proclamation was issued stating that if anyone else even threw a stone at a tiger, their wealth and property would be confiscated. The Maharaja vowed to attend to no other state matters until he had killed one hundred tigers. He faced many dangers, sometimes fighting tigers with his bare hands, but he always emerged victorious.
A crisis arose when a high-ranking British officer visited Pratibandapuram. The officer was fond of hunting and especially of being photographed with his trophies. The Maharaja, fearing that allowing one hunt would lead to more requests, refused permission. He even rejected a compromise where the officer would only pose with a tiger the King had killed.
To save his kingdom from British displeasure, the Maharaja sent fifty expensive diamond rings from a Calcutta jeweler to the officer's wife (the duraisani), expecting her to keep one or two. Instead, she kept all of them. Although it cost the King three lakh rupees, he was relieved to have retained his throne.
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How did the Maharaja manage to save his kingdom after refusing the British officer's request?
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04 · Explore
Strategic Marriage and the Vanishing Tigers
As the tiger population in Pratibandapuram becomes extinct, the Maharaja resorts to a strategic marriage to continue his hunt.
Within ten years, the Maharaja killed seventy tigers. However, the tiger population in his forests became extinct. The narrator humorously suggests the tigers might have practiced birth control or committed 'harakiri' (ritual suicide) to avoid being shot by anyone but the British.
The Maharaja summoned his dewan and announced his intention to marry. He instructed the dewan to find a bride from a royal family of a state with a large tiger population. The plan was successful; every time the Maharaja visited his father-in-law, he killed five or six tigers.
Eventually, the Maharaja reached a tally of ninety-nine tigers. The skins of these tigers adorned the walls of the reception hall in his palace. However, the hundredth tiger remained elusive, as tiger populations had run dry even in his father-in-law's kingdom.
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Why did the Maharaja decide to marry a princess from another state?
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05 · Explore
The Hunt for the Final Tiger
The Maharaja's anxiety reaches a fever pitch as he searches for the final tiger. His obsession begins to negatively impact his administration and the local population.
The Maharaja became obsessed with the hundredth tiger, thinking of it day and night. When news arrived that sheep were disappearing from a hillside village in his own state, he suspected a tiger. He exempted the village from taxes for three years and set out on the hunt immediately.
When the tiger was not found, the Maharaja's fury grew. He refused to leave the forest, and many officers lost their jobs due to his frustration. In a fit of rage, he even ordered the dewan to double the land tax, ignoring the dewan's warning that this might lead to political unrest and the state falling to the Indian National Congress.
To save his own position, the dewan secretly arranged for an old tiger to be brought from the People’s Park in Madras. He and his wife hid the tiger in their home and later dragged it to the forest where the Maharaja was camping.
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What drastic administrative measure did the King take when the hundredth tiger could not be found?
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06 · Explore
The Fateful Shot and the Secret
The Maharaja finally encounters what he believes is the hundredth tiger, but the reality of the kill is hidden from him by his subordinates.
The old tiger from Madras wandered into the King's presence, appearing to surrender. The Maharaja took careful aim and the tiger fell. Elated that his vow was fulfilled, the King ordered a grand procession and left for the capital.
After the King's departure, the hunters discovered that the tiger was not actually dead; it had merely fainted from the shock of the bullet whizzing past. Fearing for their jobs if the King found out he had missed, one of the hunters shot the tiger from a close distance of one foot and killed it.
The dead tiger was buried with great pomp, and a tomb was erected over it. The Maharaja remained blissfully unaware that he had not actually killed the hundredth tiger himself.
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What was the irony regarding the death of the hundredth tiger in the forest?
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07 · Explore
The Toy Tiger's Revenge
The prophecy is finally fulfilled in an unexpected and ironic way, not by a living beast, but by a simple wooden toy.
A few days later, the Maharaja celebrated his son's third birthday. He bought a wooden tiger from a toyshop as a gift. Although it was poorly made and cost only two annas and a quarter, the shopkeeper charged three hundred rupees, calling it a rare piece of craftsmanship to avoid punishment.
The wooden tiger was carved by an unskilled carpenter, and its surface was covered in tiny wood slivers. While the King was playing with his son, one of these slivers pierced his right hand. He pulled it out, but the wound became infected.
The infection spread, developing into a suppurating sore. Three famous surgeons were brought from Madras. After an operation, they emerged and ironically announced: 'The operation was successful. The Maharaja is dead.' Thus, the 'hundredth tiger'—the wooden toy—took its final revenge.
The Chain of Events Leading to the Maharaja's End
- 1
The Toy Gift
The Maharaja buys a poorly crafted wooden tiger for his son's birthday.
- 2
The Injury
A tiny wood sliver from the toy pierces the Maharaja's right hand during play.
- 3
The Infection
The wound develops into a suppurating sore that spreads across his entire arm.
- 4
The Operation
Surgeons operate on the King, but he dies during the procedure.
The sequence shows how a trivial injury from a wooden toy fulfilled the prophecy that a tiger would cause the King's death.
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How did the wooden tiger cause the Maharaja's death?
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What is the irony in the surgeons' final statement?
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08 · Explore
Themes and Literary Devices
The story 'The Tiger King' is a sharp satire on the conceit of those in power and the futility of attempting to outrun destiny.
The primary literary device used is dramatic irony. The Maharaja believes he has killed the hundredth tiger and conquered his fate, but the readers (and the King's hunters) know he missed. Ultimately, he is killed by a tiger, but it is a harmless-looking wooden toy rather than the savage beast he spent his life hunting.
The story also serves as a critique of human callousness toward nature. The Maharaja's whim leads to the extinction of tigers in two kingdoms, showing how the powerful often disregard the lives of innocent animals for their own vanity or fears.
The behavior of the King's subordinates—the dewan and the hunters—highlights a system driven by fear rather than loyalty. They lie to the King and manipulate situations (like bringing the old tiger from Madras) simply to save their own lives and jobs, reflecting a sycophantic political order.
| Element | Description in the Story |
|---|---|
| Satire | The mockery of the King's grand titles and his absurd obsession with a prophecy. |
| Dramatic Irony | The King dies from a 'tiger' after thinking he had safely killed 100 of them. |
| Theme of Power | The King's ability to ban hunting and double taxes on a whim. |
| Environmental Critique | The extinction of tigers in Pratibandapuram due to one man's fear. |
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What does the story suggest about the relationship between the King and his subjects?
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