Chapter 7: Madam Rides the Bus

Important questions — the ones the board asked most (11)

1. Q1Long answer6 marksAsked: 2023

   Answer any one of the following questions in 100-120 words : (a) Whenever we want to achieve something, difficulties always come in our way. What did Valli have to do to go and ride in a bus ? (b) Through the story of Kisa Gotami, what did the Buddha try to preach to the common man ?

   

   Medha Ma’am

   AskMedha’s AI teacher

   Hear it from Medha Ma’am · 75 s

   Model answer · Valli's planning for bus ride

   1. 1.(a) To ride in the bus, Valli had to make careful, painstaking, elaborate plans. First she had to save the fare. She thriftily saved whatever stray coins came her way and resisted every temptation to buy peppermints, toys and balloons. In the end she had saved sixty paise, which was enough for the thirty-paise fare to town and back.3 marks
   2. 2.Saving the money was not easy for an eight-year-old girl. The hardest test came at the village fair. She had the money with her, but she resolutely stifled her strong desire to ride the merry-go-round. This shows how determined she was to reach her goal.2 marks
   3. 3.Her next problem was how to slip out of the house without her mother's knowledge. Every day after lunch, her mother napped from about one to four o'clock. Valli used these hours for her first excursion outside the village. She was back in her village at three forty, before her mother woke up.1 mark

   • Write the amount she saved, "sixty paise", and the thirty-paise fare each way.
   • Mention the merry-go-round at the village fair as her hardest sacrifice.
   • Say she used her mother's nap "from about one to four o'clock" to slip out unnoticed.

   Marks split as in the board’s published marking scheme

2. Q2Long answer6 marksAsked: 2023

   10. Answer any one of the following questions in about 100 – 120 words : (a) The people and surroundings are a great book to learn from. Valli in the lesson ‘Madam Rides the Bus’ learns a lot from others. Mention the traits of her character which help her to learn from people and her surroundings. OR (b) Mandela said, “People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love.” Discuss.

3. Q3Long answer6 marksAsked: 2024

   Answer any ONE of the following questions, in 100-120 words. (a) Valli was sensitive, but at the same time, she was fearless and quite determined. Think of another character from your text book, who displayed similar character traits. Compare and contrast the lives of Valli and the other character, that you have chosen from the text of Two Stories about Flying. You may begin this way. The characters who are fearless and determined from two texts are Valli and ______. (Reference : Madam Rides a Bus & Two Stories about Flying) OR (b) Based on your understanding of the Play, 'The Proposal', what do you think of relationships? Prepare a speech draft on relationships based on Natalya's and Anne Frank's characters. You may begin this way. Good morning everyone. Relationships are the bond between two people based on mutual likes, understanding, need or love. I'd like to discuss relationships as portrayed in the two texts ...... You may end this way To conclude, I'd like to say that ...... . Thank you, (Reference : The Proposal & from the Diary of Anne Frank)

   

   Medha Ma’am

   AskMedha’s AI teacher

   Hear it from Medha Ma’am · 175 s

   Model answer · Relationships: Natalya and Anne

   1. 1.Good morning everyone. Relationships are the bond between two people based on mutual likes, understanding, need or love. I'd like to discuss relationships as portrayed in the two texts, 'The Proposal' and 'From the Diary of Anne Frank'. First, interpersonal relationships are very important, and Natalya and Lomov's case shows this. Natalya and Lomov are neighbours who need each other and are about to be engaged. Still, they keep quarrelling over small things like land and dogs, because each of them wants to win. Natalya's relationship with herself is bad. She is short-tempered and not at peace with herself, and this leads her to problems with her other relationships. She nearly loses a good match because of her own temper. Second, a relationship with oneself is also very important, and Anne Frank's case proves it. Anne had good relationships with other people. She calls her father adorable, and she loves her grandmother, her sister and her headmistress. Even so, her best relationship was with herself. Because she felt she had no true friend to share her deepest thoughts with, she made her diary her friend and opened her heart to it. Knowing herself so well made her strong, honest and thoughtful. So these two girls show us two sides of relationships. Natalya's bad relationship with herself spoils her bond with others, while Anne's good relationship with herself helps her love others too. To conclude, I'd like to say that we must first build a healthy relationship with ourselves, and then value our relationships with the people around us with understanding and love. Thank you.6 marks

   • Write at least one point about each character: Natalya's "relationship with herself is bad" and Anne's "best relationship was with herself".
   • Name the people Anne loves: her father, whom she calls adorable, her grandmother, her sister and her headmistress, and say she "made her diary her friend".
   • Start with the given opening line, "Good morning everyone", and end with "To conclude, I'd like to say that ..." followed by "Thank you".

   Marks split as in the board’s published marking scheme

4. Q4Case-based5 marksAsked: 2026

   Read the given extract and answer any one of the following questions given below : (a) It was a new bus, its outside painted a gleaming white with some green stripes along the sides. Inside, the overhead bars shone like silver. Directly in front of Valli, above the windshield, there was a beautiful clock. The seats were soft and luxurious. Valli devoured everything with her eyes. But when she started to look outside, she found her view cut off by a canvas blind that covered the lower part of her window. So she stood up on the seat and peered over the blind. (Madam Rides a Bus) (i) The effect on Valli as she describes the bus reveals that she is ________. Choose the most suitable option. (A) awed (B) scared (C) disgusted (D) repulsed (ii) How does the author's use of descriptive language enhance the narrative technique in the passage ? (iii) Fill in the blank with the correct word from the bracket. The use of the word 'devoured' adds to a sense of ________ (fascination / hunger) in the extract. (iv) Which action of Valli shows that she did not want to miss out on any part of the experience ? OR (b) Mme Loisel was a great success. She was the prettiest of all – elegant, gracious, smiling, and full of joy. All the men noticed her, asked her name and wanted to be presented. She danced with enthusiasm, intoxicated with pleasure, thinking of nothing but all this admiration, this victory so complete and sweet to her heart. (The Necklace) (i) How is "success" perceived by Matilda ? (ii) Fill in the blank with the correct word from the bracket. 'All the men noticed her, asked her name and wanted to be presented' indicates that the men wanted to be formally ________ (introduced / withholden) to her. (iii) Which of the following best describe Matilda's state of mind in the context ? (A) overwhelmed (B) anxious (C) confused (D) sad (iv) Explain the phrase "this victory so complete and sweet to her heart".

   How the model answer begins

   1. (a) (i) (A) awed. Valli is filled with wonder at the new bus, with its gleaming white paint, its overhead bars that shine like silver, its beautiful clock and its soft, luxurious seats.

   The full answer from Medha Ma’am →
5. Q5Short answer3 marksAsked: 2026

   Despite her young age, how does Valli manage to gather the subtle details about the bus journey ? (Madam Rides the Bus)

   How the model answer begins

   1. Valli gathered information about the bus journey by listening carefully to the conversations going on among the bus passengers and asking them questions. She would listen to people talking about the different things…

   The full answer from Medha Ma’am →
6. Q6Short answer3 marksAsked: 2026

   Valli made careful and painstaking plans for her first bus journey. What were her plans ? (Madam Rides a Bus)

   How the model answer begins

   1. Valli gathered information quietly. She listened carefully to the conversations of neighbours who regularly used the bus and asked a few discreet questions here and there.

   The full answer from Medha Ma’am →
7. Q7Short answer3 marksAsked: 2026

   In ‘Madam Rides the Bus’, how does the contrast between Valli’s boldness and her emotional response to the dead cow shape your view of her maturity ?

   How the model answer begins

   1. The contrast shows that Valli's maturity is layered: she acts grown-up, but the cow's death shows the child in her and also helps her grow. All through the journey she is confident and excited. She pays her own thirty…

   The full answer from Medha Ma’am →
8. Q8Short answer3 marksAsked: 2025

   Valli found joy and fascination in the simple act of watching the bus pass through her village. What does this reveal about her perspective on life and her surroundings ? (Madam Rides the Bus)

   How the model answer begins

   1. Valli's fascination with the bus shows that she had a keen sense of curiosity and appreciation for the world around her. The sight of the bus passing through her village brought her unending joy. This shows that she…

   The full answer from Medha Ma’am →
9. Q9Short answer3 marksAsked: 2025

   Why did the sight of the cow which made Valli laugh in the beginning dampen his enthusiasm later ? (Madam Rides the Bus)

   How the model answer begins

   1. The sight dampened Valli's enthusiasm because the cow she had laughed at was now dead. On the way to town, a young cow ran fast right in front of the bus. Valli was so amused that she laughed until there were tears in…

   The full answer from Medha Ma’am →
10. Q10Short answer3 marksAsked: 2023

    How did Valli gather the details of the bus journey ? (Madam rides the bus)

    How the model answer begins

    1. Valli gathered the details of the bus journey by listening carefully and discreetly to the conversations between her neighbours and the people who regularly used the bus. Here and there, she also asked a few questions…

    The full answer from Medha Ma’am →
11. Q11Short answer3 marksAsked: 2023

    What stopped Valli from going to the stall to have a drink ? What do we learn about Valli from this ?

    How the model answer begins

    1. Valli had saved only sixty paise for her trip, and all of it went on her fares: thirty paise to town and thirty paise back. When the conductor suggested that she go to the stall for a drink, she said, 'Oh, no, I…

    The full answer from Medha Ma’am →

Questions parents and students ask

How many marks does "Madam Rides the Bus" carry in CBSE Class 10 English?

In the CBSE papers of 2023–2026, this chapter carried about 2 marks and about 0 questions a year; by marks it ranks 13 in English.

Which are the most important (VVI) questions of "Madam Rides the Bus"?

The 11 questions above are from the board’s real papers, each with the years it was asked; the most-asked come first with their full model answers. All 11 written questions of this chapter, with answers, are in the AskMedha app.

Do the answers follow the board’s marking scheme?

Yes. CBSE publishes its marking schemes; every model answer here is written point by point to the marks the board’s own scheme gives, and checked by a second, independent model.