Mr. Kapasi, an interpreter and tour guide, meets a family with a lot more secrets than he had expected. He explains his other occupation to Mr. and Mrs. Das in the car, and how he worked in a doctor’s office to serve as a translator between both parties. Although he does not see much in himself or anything special with the job, he is delighted when Mrs. Das calls it ‘romantic’ – a word that he has never heard anyone describe the occupation with, especially from his own wife who finds it distasteful. Throughout the text, the reader can tell that Mr. Kapasi begins to fall for Mrs. Das. Not just from her lovely appearance but her interest in his patient stories and him as a person. Around the end of the text, Mrs. Das reveals that Bobby was not actually Mr. Das’s child and exclaims that she did not tell anyone for eight years. She asks Mr. Kapasi for an answer to her pain because of his occupation as an interpreter and expects him to provide her with a solution to ease her suffering.

I believe that the scene where Bobby being attacked by monkeys is an analogy to Mrs. Das’s truth being exposed and is facing the consequences of them. Instead of telling her husband to save Bobby, she yells at Mr. Kapasi to – a stranger, who was simply supposed to drive them to the Sun Temple but gets caught in the ties of this family. The rice that she left a trail of symbolizes her mistakes that she caused and the carelessness that affects those around her.  Bobby, the child who is surrounded by lies, is the one who is the most damaged from the actions of his family. Mr. Das sees the world through his camera, refusing to let it go even as Bobby is being attacked by animals and instead snaps a picture of it. He was slightly more aggressive when Mrs. Das refuses to get out of the car to take a picture. This made me think that he is trying to ‘bring’ his family together and only sees the world through pictures, rather than facing reality through his own eyes. I believe that this text illuminates the harsh reality with some families and not everything can be seen just from being seen together.