The Night Train at Deoli by Ruskin Bond

The Night Train at Deoli

• The narrator spent his summer vacations in Dehra at his grandmother's place.
• Deoli was a small station about thirty miles from Dehra, marking the beginning of the Indian Terai's heavy jungles.
• The train stopped at Deoli at 5 am, when the station was dimly lit, and the jungle was barely visible in the faint light of dawn.
• Deoli had only one platform, an office for the stationmaster, and a waiting room, with a tea stall, fruit vendor, and stray dogs.

The Mysterious Girl

• A girl came down the platform selling baskets during one of the narrator's stops at Deoli.
• The girl was young, barefoot, and wore old clothes, but walked with grace and dignity.
• She had pale skin, shiny black hair, and dark, troubled eyes that met the narrator's gaze.
• The narrator felt a strong connection to the girl and wanted to find out more about her.

The Search for the Girl

• The narrator didn't get off the train at Deoli, but instead asked the station-master about the girl when he visited again.
• The station-master had been transferred, and the new one didn't know anything about the girl.
• The narrator then asked the owner of the tea stall, who remembered the girl but didn't know what happened to her.
• The narrator decided to break his journey at Deoli to find the girl, but never did, fearing what he might discover.

Reflections and Longing

• The narrator reflected on the experience, wondering what happened to the girl and why he was afraid to find out.
• He prefers to keep hoping and dreaming, looking out of the window at the lonely platform, waiting for the girl with the baskets.
• The narrator continues to pass through Deoli, but never breaks his journey there, preferring to maintain the mystery and his imagination.

A nostalgic summer vacation story set in Dehra, India. The narrator shares his experience of traveling to Deoli station during his college days. The story revolves around the scenic beauty of the Indian Terai jungles.