Sketch the character of Sir Mohan Lal

Sketch the character of Sir Mohan Lal Class 11 | English (Karma) 6 Marks

Ans:

Sir Mohan Lal, a vizier and a barrister is one of the main characters of the short story ‘Karma’. He is neat, clean and well-dressed with his suit from Saville Row and Balliol tie. He has spent five years of his life in London and embraced the attitudes and manners of the English people. Sir Mohan Lal is full of pride and is scornful towards everything that is Indian. He considers Indians as dirty, mannerless and vulgar. He seldom speaks Hindustani and ill-treats his unsophisticated Indian wife. He suffers from identity crisis which is absent in Lachmi. He represents those shameless Indians who are determined to sever all ties with their origin. He always tries to maintain his calm and composure because excitement and hurry are exhibitions of bad breeding and Sir Mohan considers himself to be exceptionally well-bred. His display of ‘The Times’, his gold cigarette casefilled with English cigarettes, his sipping of scotch symbolise his artificiality of character. But, at the end of the story, we can see all of Sir Mohan Lal’s hypocritical efforts going in vain as he faces extreme humiliation from two British soldiers whose company he craved for during the train journey.