English LiteratureISC Class 12 · Chapter 5

ISC Class 12 Indigo (Satyajit Ray): Summary, Themes and Solved Questions

Updated 14 October 2026 · Fact-checked

Indigo by Satyajit Ray follows Aniruddha, who ignores Bhola Babu's warning and sets off alone by car from Calcutta to Dumka. Two punctures, a Norwester and a wrong turn leave him stranded, and he takes shelter in an old dak bungalow. ISC asks about the journey, its effects on him and the bungalow.

What Indigo is about

Indigo by Satyajit Ray, the film-maker and writer, is one of the five Class XII stories in Prism: A Collection of ISC Short Stories, prescribed for ISC Literature in English (English Paper 2).

It was set in both 2025 papers. The specimen asked why Aniruddha asked Sukhanram whether there were ghosts in the bungalow. The 2025 board paper set a 5-mark question: 'Bhola Babu warns Aniruddha against undertaking a solo car journey from Calcutta to Dumka. Describe the consequences of Aniruddha's decision', with the prompts 'Obstacles faced by Aniruddha in the journey' and 'Effect on him'. The examiners reported that most candidates 'clearly described the obstacles' but 'did not explain their effects adequately'.

The story begins as a realistic account of a difficult road journey and turns, at the old dak bungalow, into something stranger: Ray was a master of the eerie tale. Expect questions on the journey (sequence of obstacles), on Aniruddha's state of mind, on the atmosphere of the bungalow and on the title.

The story is in copyright, so this page does not reproduce its text, and it describes only what the CISCE 2025 specimen and marking scheme confirm. The events at the bungalow after Aniruddha's arrival are not narrated here: read them in Prism.

Weightage: Question 4 (Prism) carries 20 marks. Indigo supplied a 5-mark question in the 2025 board paper and a reason completion in the 2025 specimen.Source: CISCE ISC Specimen Question Paper 2025, English Paper 2; 2025 board paper in the ISC Analysis of Pupil Performance 2025, Literature in English

Indigo: summary

In our own words, in the order of the text. Read the NCERT text itself too: the board quotes from it.

The warning. Aniruddha plans to drive alone from Calcutta (Kolkata) to Dumka. Bhola Babu warns him against undertaking the long journey by car on his own, but Aniruddha decides to go anyway.

The journey. The decision has a string of consequences, listed in the 2025 marking scheme. For the first thirty-five miles the drive through dingy towns is dreary. As the military camp at Panagarh comes into view, he has a flat tyre. Before he can cross Ilambazar he is caught in a Norwester, the violent summer storm of Bengal. Then he has a second puncture, and there is no repair shop in sight to fix it. Finally, he takes a wrong turn and finds himself on the wrong road.

The effect on him. Each setback drains him further. He becomes hopeless, realises that he cannot possibly reach Dumka that night, and admits to himself that he should have listened to Bhola Babu.

The dak bungalow. Stranded, Aniruddha has to spend the night at an old dak bungalow, a government rest house of the kind once built along roads for travelling officials. There he meets Sukhanram. The place is spooky, and because old dak bungalows have a reputation for being haunted, Aniruddha asks Sukhanram whether there are ghosts in the bungalow.

What follows. The second half of the story, at the bungalow, is where the realistic journey turns into an eerie experience, and where the meaning of the title becomes clear. Read it carefully in Prism and note how Ray builds atmosphere from small details, and how Aniruddha's weariness and nervousness prepare the reader for what he experiences.

Themes and message

Ignoring advice and its consequences

The plot is set in motion by a warning ignored. Every obstacle on the road (punctures, storm, wrong turn) is a consequence of travelling alone by car, and Aniruddha himself comes to realise that he should have listened to Bhola Babu.

From the text: 2025 marking scheme, Question 4(i): 'Realised that he should have listened to Bhola Babu.'

The journey from the ordinary to the uncanny

Ray moves the reader from a realistic, almost documentary account of a bad drive into the eerie world of the old bungalow. The dreary towns, the storm and the darkness build mood and make the traveller tired and vulnerable before the strange part begins.

From the text: Specimen reason completion (vii): the place was spooky; old dak bungalows had a reputation for being haunted.

Human helplessness before nature and chance

However confident Aniruddha is, a storm and two punctures defeat his plans. The Norwester and the empty roads show how small a lone traveller is against nature and bad luck.

From the text: The Norwester before Ilambazar; no repair shop in sight (2025 scheme).

The past in old places

Old dak bungalows carry stories and reputations from the past. Aniruddha's question about ghosts shows how such places stir the imagination; the title, Indigo, invites the reader to look for the past the story uncovers.

From the text: Aniruddha's question to Sukhanram (specimen Q2(vii)).

Characters

Aniruddha

The protagonist, who drives alone from Calcutta to Dumka.

Self-willed and confident: he ignores Bhola Babu's warning.
Persistent, but worn down by repeated setbacks.
Honest with himself: he admits he should have listened.
Imaginative and uneasy: he asks whether the bungalow is haunted.

2025 Question 4(i) marking scheme; specimen Q2(vii).

Bhola Babu

The man who warns Aniruddha against the solo journey.

Practical and cautious.
His warning becomes the measure of Aniruddha's mistake.

2025 Question 4(i).

Sukhanram

The man Aniruddha meets at the dak bungalow.

The traveller's only human contact at the bungalow.
The person to whom Aniruddha voices his fear of ghosts.

Specimen Q2(vii).

How it is written

Device	Example	Effect
Building suspense through a sequence of setbacks	Dreary towns, a flat tyre near Panagarh, a Norwester before Ilambazar, a second puncture, a wrong road.	Each obstacle raises tension and isolates the traveller, preparing for the eerie events at the bungalow.
Atmosphere and setting	The storm, the dark roads and the old dak bungalow.	Creates the spooky mood that makes Aniruddha ask about ghosts.
Foreshadowing	Bhola Babu's warning; Aniruddha's question to Sukhanram.	Hints that the journey will go wrong and that the bungalow holds something unusual.

Indigo in real life

Each concept, met in an everyday situation. Read the situation, answer the question in your own words, then compare with the model answer. The one-line hook is what to remember.

Listening to advice

Suppose a friend warns you not to drive at night on an unfamiliar highway alone during the monsoon, and you go anyway.

What does Aniruddha's journey teach about such decisions?

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

List the risks the friend saw: breakdowns, weather, getting lost.
Note that each one can compound the others.
Weigh convenience against safety.

Answer: Aniruddha's punctures, storm and wrong turn show how small risks pile up for a lone traveller. Advice from experience is worth weighing seriously.

Memory hook: Bhola Babu was right.

How setting shapes perception

Imagine arriving late at night at an old, empty guest house after a stressful journey, and hearing an unexplained sound.

Why might you interpret it as something supernatural?

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

Fatigue and stress heighten fear.
Old places carry stories and reputations.
Expectation shapes what we perceive.

Answer: Like Aniruddha asking about ghosts, a tired traveller in a spooky place is primed to imagine the uncanny. Ray uses this to make his story's turn believable.

Memory hook: Tired eyes see ghosts.

Planning for contingencies

Suppose you are planning a road trip with your family across two states.

What would Aniruddha's experience suggest you plan for?

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

Spare tyre and tools, and a second spare on long routes.
Weather forecast and timing.
Map and known halting places.

Answer: Planning for punctures, storms and navigation, and not travelling alone on long routes, prevents the chain of mishaps that stranded Aniruddha.

Memory hook: Plan for two punctures, not one.

Topics in this chapter

Indigo: Aniruddha's Solo Journey, Its Obstacles and the Dak Bungalow

How the board asks Indigo

The question patterns to expect, and the method that works for each.

Question type	How it is asked	Method
Section A: reason completion	'In the short story, Indigo, Aniruddha asked Sukhanram if there were ghosts in the bungalow because ____' (specimen).	Give the reason in terms of the setting: the place was spooky and old dak bungalows had a reputation for being haunted.
Section B: 5-mark consequences (obstacles and effect)	'Bhola Babu warns Aniruddha against undertaking a solo car journey from Calcutta to Dumka. Describe the consequences of Aniruddha's decision. • Obstacles faced by Aniruddha in the journey • Effect on him' (2025).	List the obstacles in order, briefly, then give the effect on him a full half of the answer. The 2025 examiners said effects were 'not explained adequately'.
Section B: 10-mark atmosphere or title	Expected types: how Ray builds atmosphere; the significance of the title; Aniruddha's character.	Use specific details of the journey and the bungalow, and link them to mood and meaning.

Tricks to remember Indigo

Short memory aids. Say each one aloud once, then use it on a question the same day.

Route of trouble
Dingy towns, Panagarh tyre, Norwester before Ilambazar, second puncture, no shop, wrong road.
Use it when: Recall the obstacles in order.
Three effects: H-D-B
Hopeless; Dumka out of reach that night; Bhola Babu was right.
Use it when: The second half of the 2025 5-mark question.
Spooky + reputation
Why the ghost question: the place was spooky, and old dak bungalows are said to be haunted.
Use it when: The specimen reason completion.

Indigo: board-level solved questions

Ordered from board level to HOTS. Cover the solution, write your own, then compare step by step.

Example 1: Reason completion: the ghost question (specimen) · 1 mark · Very short answerBoard level

Complete with a reason: In the short story, Indigo, Aniruddha asked Sukhanram if there were ghosts in the bungalow because ________.

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

Think about the place: an old dak bungalow at night after a storm.
Think about its reputation.

Answer: the place was spooky, and old dak bungalows had a reputation for being haunted.

Example 2: MCQ: the sequence of obstacles · 1 mark · MCQHarder board level

Which of these did NOT happen to Aniruddha on the way to Dumka, according to the 2025 marking scheme?
(a) A flat tyre near the military camp at Panagarh
(b) A Norwester before he could cross Ilambazar
(c) A head-on collision with a truck
(d) A wrong turn onto the wrong road

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

Recall the obstacles: dreary towns, flat tyre near Panagarh, Norwester, second puncture, no repair shop, wrong road.
Eliminate those that occur.

Answer: (c) A head-on collision with a truck.

Example 3: 5-mark model: consequences of the decision (2025) · 5 marks · Long answerHarder board level

In the short story, Indigo, Bhola Babu warns Aniruddha against undertaking a solo car journey from Calcutta to Dumka. Describe the consequences of Aniruddha's decision. Write 100-150 words, incorporating: • Obstacles faced by Aniruddha in the journey • Effect on him.

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

Obstacles in order, concisely.
Effects: hopelessness; realising he cannot reach Dumka that night; regret at ignoring Bhola Babu.
Balance the two halves.

Answer: Aniruddha's decision to ignore Bhola Babu's warning brings one setback after another. For the first thirty-five miles the drive through dingy towns is dreary. As the military camp at Panagarh comes into view, he gets a flat tyre. Before he can cross Ilambazar, a Norwester catches him, and then he suffers a second puncture with no repair shop anywhere in sight. To make matters worse, he takes a wrong turn and ends up on the wrong road. These mishaps wear him down completely. The confident traveller who set out alone becomes tired and hopeless, and he realises that he cannot possibly reach Dumka that night. Above all, he admits to himself that he should have listened to Bhola Babu, whose warning now seems wise. Stranded, he must seek shelter at an old dak bungalow. (134 words)

Example 4: Explaining the effect, not just the event · 5 marks · Long answerHOTS / competency

A candidate's answer to the 2025 question lists all six obstacles but ends: 'Then he reached the bungalow.' What is missing, and how should it be fixed?

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

The second prompt, 'Effect on him', is not addressed.
The examiners said effects were not explained adequately.
Add his hopelessness, the realisation about Dumka, and his regret about Bhola Babu.

Answer: The answer is missing the effect of the journey on Aniruddha, half of the question. Fix: cut the obstacles to two or three sentences and add: 'The repeated setbacks left him exhausted and hopeless. He realised that he could not reach Dumka that night and regretted not having listened to Bhola Babu.'

Example 5: 10-mark plan: atmosphere · 10 marks · Long answerHOTS / competency

How does Satyajit Ray build an atmosphere of unease in the first part of Indigo? Answer in 200-250 words (plan and key points).

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

Opening: a warning ignored creates a sense of foreboding.
The dreary towns and the lone drive: isolation.
Mechanical failures and the Norwester: loss of control.
Darkness and the wrong road: disorientation.
The old dak bungalow and its reputation: the question about ghosts.
Conclusion: the reader, like Aniruddha, is primed for the uncanny.

Answer: A strong answer moves step by step through the journey, showing how each detail (the warning, loneliness, the storm, the punctures, the wrong turn, the spooky bungalow) increases Aniruddha's vulnerability and the reader's unease, and ends by explaining that Ray uses this realistic build-up to make what follows at the bungalow believable. Quote briefly from your Prism text where you can.

Where the marks are

How a typical answer is marked: the value points the examiner looks for and the marks each earns.

Question 4(i), 5 marks (2025): obstacles and their effect, 100-150 words. Indicative split; the scheme lists six obstacles and three effects. (5 marks)

Step	Marks
Obstacles in the journey, in sequence	2
Effect on Aniruddha: hopelessness, realising he cannot reach Dumka, regret at ignoring Bhola Babu	2
Expression and word limit	1

Where students lose marks in Indigo

The slips examiners see most often, and what to write instead.

Mistake: Describing obstacles but not their effect
The events are easy to list. The 2025 examiners: candidates 'clearly described the obstacles' but 'did not explain their effects adequately'.
Do this: Give the second bullet half the answer: his hopelessness, the realisation about Dumka, regret about Bhola Babu.
Usually costs: About half of the 5 marks.
Mistake: Getting the sequence or places wrong
Students mix up where each mishap happened.
Wrong working
The Norwester struck at Panagarh and the tyre burst at Ilambazar.
Right working
A flat tyre as the Panagarh military camp came into view; the Norwester before he could cross Ilambazar.
Do this: Learn the order: dreary towns, Panagarh tyre, Norwester, second puncture, no repair shop, wrong road.
Usually costs: Accuracy marks.
Mistake: Inventing events at the bungalow
Students who have not read the second half guess. Any detail not in the text is wrong.
Do this: Read the whole story in Prism and use only what it says.
Usually costs: Content marks and credibility.
Mistake: Vague reason for the ghost question
Answers like 'because he was scared' miss the specimen's points.
Do this: Name the cause: the spooky place and the haunted reputation of old dak bungalows.
Usually costs: 1 mark.

Practice questions on Indigo

Write each answer on paper first. Open the hint only if you are stuck, and the answer only when you have finished.

Q1 · 2 marks · Short answerBoard level
Why does Bhola Babu warn Aniruddha against the journey? Answer in about 40 words.
Hint
Think of the risks of a long solo drive.
Answer
He thinks it unwise to undertake a long car journey from Calcutta to Dumka alone, since a single traveller has no help if the car breaks down or the weather turns, risks that all come true for Aniruddha.
Q2 · 1 mark · Very short answerHarder board level
Complete with a reason: Aniruddha realises that he cannot reach Dumka that night because ________.
Hint
Combine the obstacles.
Answer
two punctures, a Norwester, the lack of any repair shop and a wrong turn have delayed and stranded him.
Q3 · 5 marks · Long answerHarder board level
Describe Aniruddha's state of mind on his arrival at the dak bungalow, in 100-150 words, incorporating: • The effect of the journey • His reaction to the bungalow.
Hint
Weariness, hopelessness, regret; unease at the spooky place.
Answer
Points: exhausted and hopeless after the dreary drive, two punctures, the storm and the wrong road; regretful that he ignored Bhola Babu; resigned to not reaching Dumka; uneasy at the old, spooky bungalow, aware of the reputation such places have, so he asks Sukhanram whether there are ghosts. Conclude that his tired, nervous state makes him receptive to what follows.
Q4 · 10 marks · Long answerHOTS / competency
Discuss the significance of the setting (the road and the dak bungalow) in Indigo, in 200-250 words.
Hint
Setting creates mood, isolates the character and links the present to the past.
Answer
Points: the road (dreary towns, Panagarh, Ilambazar) as a realistic, recognisable Bengal landscape; the Norwester and darkness as forces that isolate him; the old dak bungalow, with its reputation, as a place where the past lingers; how the setting shapes Aniruddha's mood and question about ghosts; how the shift from road to bungalow marks the shift from realism to the uncanny. Support with details from your Prism text.
Q5 · 1 mark · MCQBoard level
Which word best describes Aniruddha's decision to travel alone, judged by its consequences?
(a) Wise
(b) Rash
(c) Generous
(d) Cowardly
Hint
He himself regrets it.
Answer
(b) Rash.
Q6 · 3 marks · Short answerHOTS / competency
Do you think Aniruddha's experience on the road makes him a more or less reliable witness to what happens at the bungalow? Give reasons in about 80 words.
Hint
Consider fatigue, fear and expectation.
Answer
Arguably less reliable: he arrives exhausted, hopeless and nervous, in a spooky place he already suspects of being haunted, so his perceptions may be coloured by fatigue and expectation. Yet Ray may intend the opposite effect: a sceptical, practical man worn out by real problems makes any strange experience more convincing. Either view, if reasoned from the text, is acceptable.

Test your recall

Answer in your head or on paper first, then open the card. Pulling an answer out of memory makes it stick far better than re-reading.

1.Who wrote Indigo?Show answer
Satyajit Ray.
2.Where was Aniruddha driving to, and from where?Show answer
From Calcutta (Kolkata) to Dumka.
3.Who warned him against the solo journey?Show answer
Bhola Babu.
4.Where did he get his first flat tyre?Show answer
As the military camp at Panagarh came into view.
5.Whom did he ask about ghosts at the bungalow?Show answer
Sukhanram.

Quick revision checklist

The night before the exam: can you do each of these without looking?

Can you list the obstacles of the journey in order?
Can you describe three effects of the journey on Aniruddha?
Can you explain why he asked Sukhanram about ghosts?
Have you read the second half of the story in Prism and noted why it is called Indigo?
Can you explain how Ray builds atmosphere before the bungalow?

Indigo: frequently asked questions

What is Indigo about?

Aniruddha ignores Bhola Babu's warning and drives alone from Calcutta to Dumka; a chain of mishaps strands him at an old dak bungalow, where the story takes an eerie turn.

What obstacles did Aniruddha face?

A dreary drive through dingy towns, a flat tyre near Panagarh, a Norwester before Ilambazar, a second puncture with no repair shop, and a wrong turn onto the wrong road.

What is a dak bungalow?

A government rest house built along roads, historically for travelling officials; old ones often have a reputation for being haunted.

Why doesn't this page explain the ending?

The story is in copyright and the CISCE papers so far cover only the journey and the arrival at the bungalow. Read the rest in your Prism text.

Based on: CISCE ISC 2027 Appendix I: Prism: A Collection of ISC Short Stories (Evergreen Publications); CISCE ISC Specimen Question Paper 2025: English Paper 2 (Literature in English), with answer key; CISCE ISC Analysis of Pupil Performance 2025: Literature in English (board paper, marking scheme, examiners' comments)