Friendship
Why This Matters
Think about your best friend. Now think about how you became friends.
Maybe you sat next to each other. Maybe you both liked the same game. You found something you shared. That is how most friendships begin.
But here is a fun question. Can two friends be completely different and still be best friends? Can a very big animal and a very small animal become close? Can a tall, quiet person and a short, noisy person love spending time together?
This unit says yes. Friendship does not need two people to be the same. It needs care. It needs sharing. It needs you to be there for each other.
In this unit you will meet a huge royal elephant and a tiny stray dog. They look nothing alike. Yet they become best friends. Their story will warm your heart. And it will teach you something you can keep for life — what real friendship truly means.
The Big Idea
True friends do not have to be alike. A giant elephant and a small dog can love each other deeply. Real friendship is about care, sharing, and being there for someone — even when you are very different, and even when you are far apart. This unit shows that a friend is far more important than we sometimes think.
📖 Where to read the original: For copyright reasons, the full original story and poem are not reproduced here — read them in your NCERT Poorvi (Grade 6) textbook. This page gives you a clear summary and explanation to study alongside it.
Before we start, let us be clear about one small word. The story’s title uses it.
The Story — “The Unlikely Best Friends”
This story was written by Subba Rao. It is a sweet, gentle tale about an elephant and a dog. Let us walk through it slowly, in simple steps.
What happens
There was a royal elephant named Gajaraj. He lived in the best room of the king’s stable. (A stable is the place where animals like horses and elephants are kept.) The king loved Gajaraj and made sure he was looked after very well.
But Gajaraj was sad. Why? Because he had no friend. The only person he met was his mahout. (A mahout is the person who trains and takes care of an elephant.) The mahout was kind. He fed Gajaraj and gave him a bath every day. But a caretaker is not the same as a friend. Gajaraj had everything — yet he was lonely.
One late evening, a tired, hungry dog wandered into the stable by mistake. Gajaraj saw that the little dog was hungry. So he gently pushed some of his own food towards the dog. The dog wagged his tail to say thank you, ate the food, and fell asleep.
The next morning the mahout found the dog. He did not mind. He saw that Gajaraj liked the dog’s company. So he threw some food for the dog too.
After that, the two became best friends. When Gajaraj went for his bath, the dog went along. Gajaraj splashed water on the dog with his trunk to play. The dog hated showers and cried out, and the mahout laughed. On the way home, Gajaraj lifted the dog with his trunk and gave him a ride on his back. The dog was so happy.
Then one day a farmer passed by. He saw the dog and shouted, “Buntee!” The dog ran to him. The dog was the farmer’s lost pet. The farmer had been looking for him for a long time. He was very happy to find Buntee. So he tied a rope around Buntee’s neck and took him home.
Only when the rope pulled did Buntee understand he was being taken away from his friend. He cried out. Gajaraj’s face filled with pain. Both friends had tears in their eyes. But the farmer and the mahout did not notice.
The next day, the mahout gave Gajaraj his favourite food. But Gajaraj did not eat. He did not eat that night either. Or the next day. The mahout was worried. He checked Gajaraj’s tummy. Nothing was wrong with his body. Then he understood — Gajaraj was missing his friend, the dog.
Meanwhile, at the farmer’s house, Buntee was not eating either. The farmer understood too. He said, “If you miss your friend so much, go to him.” He removed the rope. Buntee, though weak, sprang up, licked the farmer’s hand, and ran. He stopped only when he reached the stable.
Gajaraj lifted Buntee with his trunk and gave him a joyful swing. The mahout brought food and said, “Both of you eat first.” The farmer had followed Buntee. He and the mahout watched the two friends eat together. The mahout hugged the farmer and said, “It is not only Gajaraj who has found a friend. I have found one too.”
A happy ending for everyone.
The picture below shows the shape of this whole story — how it rises to joy, falls to sadness, then rises again. Figure 2.1 walks through all five steps in order.
The characters
A character is a person or animal in a story. This story has four main characters. Let us meet them one by one.
Gajaraj — the royal elephant. He is big, strong, and lives in comfort. But he is lonely and kind. He shares his food with a hungry stranger. He feels friendship very deeply.
Buntee — the dog. He is small and was once a stray. (A stray is an animal with no home.) He is loving and loyal. He misses Gajaraj so much that he too stops eating.
The mahout — Gajaraj’s caretaker. He is kind and gentle. He feeds Gajaraj and bathes him. He is a good caretaker. But at the start, he is not a friend. By the end, he makes a friend too — the farmer.
The farmer — Buntee’s owner. He loves Buntee and is happy to find him. But he is also wise and kind. When he sees Buntee is sad and not eating, he lets him go back to his friend. That takes a big, generous heart.
The mahout and the farmer teach us something quiet but important. They put the animals’ happiness above their own wishes. The farmer gave up his own dog so the dog could be happy. That is love too.
Why Gajaraj stopped eating — the depth of friendship
This is the most touching part of the story. Let us not rush past it. Let us ask why.
Gajaraj had a tummy full of the best royal food. The mahout checked, and his body was perfectly healthy. So why would he refuse to eat?
The answer is the heart of the whole story. Gajaraj was not sick in his body. He was sad in his heart. He had finally found a true friend after being lonely for so long. Then that friend was suddenly taken away. The pain of losing Buntee was so strong that he lost all interest in food.
Think about a time you felt very upset — maybe you had a fight with a friend, or someone you love went away. Did you feel like eating? Many people do not. When the heart hurts a lot, the body often does not want food. That is exactly what happened to Gajaraj.
Figure 2.2 below shows this as a chain. Each box leads to the next, ending in the result.
And here is the beautiful part. The same thing happened to Buntee at the farmer’s house. He too stopped eating. Two friends, far apart, both refusing food because they missed each other. That tells us how deep and equal their friendship was. It was not one-sided. Both loved the other just as much.
The mahout checked Gajaraj's tummy and found nothing wrong. Why is this an important detail in the story?
It proves Gajaraj was not sick. His body was fine. So the reason he would not eat had to be a feeling — sadness at losing his friend. This detail tells us the problem was in his heart, not his stomach. That is the whole point of this part of the story.
The lesson — friendship can cross all differences
Now let us pull out the big lesson.
Gajaraj and Buntee were as different as two animals can be. One was huge; one was tiny. One lived in a royal stable; one was a homeless stray. One belonged to a king; one belonged to a farmer. On paper, they had nothing in common.
Yet they became the best of friends. How? Because friendship is not about looking the same or living the same way. It is about care. Gajaraj cared enough to share his food with a hungry stranger. Buntee cared enough to come back and to refuse food without his friend. They were there for each other.
So the lesson is simple and lovely: real friendship can cross any difference — size, home, owner, anything. What matters is the heart.
Figure 2.3 shows this “bond map”. On the two sides you can see how different Gajaraj and Buntee are. In the middle, a heart shows what they share — and that is what joins them.
There is even a real-life version of this story. The unit mentions a true friendship at an elephant sanctuary in the United States, between an elephant named Tarra and a dog named Bella. When Bella was hurt and kept inside for three weeks, Tarra waited outside for her the whole time. So this is not just a made-up tale. Unlikely friendships really happen.
The Poem — “A Friend’s Prayer”
The unit also has a lovely poem called “A Friend’s Prayer”, written by Jill Wolf.
First, one small word. A prayer is a wish or hope, often spoken gently, asking for something good. When you say “May my friend get well soon,” that is like a prayer.
In this poem, the speaker (the person speaking) does not pray for money or toys. She prays about friendship. She asks to be the best friend she can be.
Simple meaning, idea by idea
Let us go through the poem’s ideas in plain words. (Remember, we are explaining the meaning, not copying the poem.)
Idea 1 — Keep friendship most important. The speaker prays that friendship will always stay the most important thing in her life. She feels lucky and blessed to have special friends.
Idea 2 — Give her very best. Because she feels so lucky, she wants to give her friends her very best. She does not want to do the bare minimum. She wants to do more.
Idea 3 — Do more than just share. It is easy to share hopes and plans with friends. But the speaker wants to do more than that. She wants to actually help make her friends’ wishes come true. She will try everything a good friend can do.
Idea 4 — See with the heart. The speaker prays to use her heart — her feelings — to understand what friends really are. She does not want to judge her friends from far away or find faults in them.
Idea 5 — Love friends as they are. Finally, she prays to love her friends just the way they are. Not as she wishes they were. Not after changing them. She accepts them fully, with all their good points and faults.
Figure 2.4 below gathers the poem’s four main wishes around its central picture — two hands joined in prayer, with a heart that “sees”.
Its message about friendship
So what is the poem really telling us?
It tells us that being a good friend takes effort and kindness. A real friend does not just enjoy good times. A real friend tries hard for you, understands your feelings, helps your wishes come true, and accepts you exactly as you are.
This is a great match for the story. Gajaraj and Buntee lived this message. They cared, they shared, and they accepted each other completely — a giant and a tiny dog, just as they were.
Let us put the story’s lesson and the poem’s message side by side. They teach the very same things about friendship.
| What true friendship means | In the story | In the poem |
|---|---|---|
| Cross all differences | A huge elephant and a tiny dog become best friends | Love friends 'the way they are', not how you wish they were |
| Care and share | Gajaraj shares his food with the hungry dog | Give your friends 'your very best' |
| Understand feelings | Both friends miss each other so much they stop eating | Use your 'heart to see' what friends really are |
| Do more than the minimum | The farmer gives up his own dog so it can be happy | 'Do much more than share' — help wishes come true |
Both the story and the poem grow from one root: real friendship is built on care. Figure 2.5 sums up the whole unit’s idea in one web.
Common Mistakes
Some ideas in this unit are easy to get a little wrong. Let us clear up a few before they trip you up.
The first one is about the title word “unlikely”.
'Unlikely' in the title means the two friends did not like each other.
The word 'unlikely' sounds a lot like 'unliked' or 'did not like', so it is easy to hear it that way.
'Unlikely' means 'not expected'. The title means a friendship you would not expect to happen — a huge elephant and a tiny dog. It has nothing to do with not liking each other. In fact, they loved each other very much.
The next one is about why Gajaraj would not eat.
Gajaraj stopped eating because he was sick or had a stomach problem.
In real life, when someone does not eat, we often think they are ill — so this feels like the natural guess.
The mahout checked and found nothing wrong with Gajaraj's body. He stopped eating because he was sad and missing his friend Buntee. The cause was a feeling in his heart, not an illness in his body.
The last one is about the farmer.
The farmer was unkind because he took Buntee away from Gajaraj.
Taking a friend away looks cruel, and we feel sad for Gajaraj at that moment, so the farmer seems like the 'bad' one.
The farmer was actually very kind. Buntee was his own lost dog, so it was natural to take him home. And the moment he saw Buntee was unhappy, he set him free to go back to his friend — giving up his own pet for the dog's happiness. That is a generous, loving choice.
Quick Check
Let us see how well the story and poem have settled in. Try these short questions.
Why was Gajaraj sad at the start of the story, even though he lived in comfort?
Gajaraj had every comfort, but no friend. The mahout was a kind caretaker, not a friend. So Gajaraj felt lonely. This is why the arrival of the little dog meant so much to him.
What does the word 'unlikely' in the title mean?
‘Unlikely’ means ‘not expected’. We would not normally expect a giant elephant and a tiny dog to become best friends — so their friendship is ‘unlikely’.
In the poem 'A Friend's Prayer', what does the speaker want to use to truly understand her friends?
The speaker prays to use her heart — her feelings — to understand what friends really are, instead of judging them from far away. This is why the poem feels gentle and loving.
What is the main message shared by both the story and the poem?
Both the story and the poem teach the same thing: real friendship is built on care, sharing, and accepting your friend as they are — even if you are very different.
Practice
Now try writing some answers yourself. Attempt each one first, then open the solution to check.
Easy
In one or two sentences, why is the story called 'The Unlikely Best Friends'?
The story is about a huge royal elephant (Gajaraj) and a tiny stray dog (Buntee). We would never expect two such different animals to become close. But they become the best of friends. Since this friendship is not expected, it is called ‘unlikely’.
Name the four main characters in the story and write one line about each.
- Gajaraj — the royal elephant. He is big and strong but lonely, and very kind.
- Buntee — the dog. He is small and loving, and was once a stray.
- The mahout — Gajaraj’s caretaker. He is kind and feeds and bathes Gajaraj.
- The farmer — Buntee’s owner. He loves Buntee but kindly lets him go back to his friend.
Medium
Why did Gajaraj stop eating after Buntee was taken away? Explain in 3–4 sentences.
Gajaraj stopped eating because he was very sad and lonely without Buntee. He had finally found a true friend after a long time, and then that friend was taken away. The pain in his heart was so strong that he lost all interest in food. The mahout checked his tummy and found nothing wrong — so the real reason was his feelings, not any illness. Buntee, too, stopped eating at the farmer’s house for the same reason.
What does the poem 'A Friend's Prayer' tell us about being a good friend? Write 3–4 sentences.
The poem tells us that being a good friend takes effort and kindness. The speaker prays to keep friendship the most important thing and to give her friends her very best. She wants to do more than just share — she wants to help her friends’ wishes come true. She also wants to understand her friends with her heart and love them just the way they are, without judging them.
Challenge
Vocabulary: explain the words 'mahout', 'stray', and 'prayer' in your own simple words, with a tiny example for each.
- Mahout — the person who trains and takes care of an elephant. Example: The mahout gave Gajaraj a bath every day.
- Stray — an animal that has no home and wanders about. Example: The hungry stray dog wandered into the stable.
- Prayer — a gentle wish or hope, often asking for something good. Example: “May my friend get well soon” is like a prayer.
The story and the poem are placed together in one unit called 'Friendship'. Explain how they teach the same lesson, using one example from each.
Both the story and the poem teach that real friendship is about care, sharing, and accepting each other — even across differences.
- From the story: Gajaraj, a huge elephant, and Buntee, a tiny dog, are completely different, yet they become best friends because they care for and share with each other. Gajaraj even shares his food with the hungry dog.
- From the poem: The speaker prays to love her friends ‘just the way they are’ and to give them her very best. She accepts her friends fully and tries hard for them.
So the made-up story shows the lesson in action, and the poem says the same lesson as a heartfelt wish. Placed together, they make the unit’s idea of friendship clear and strong.
Summary
- “The Unlikely Best Friends” by Subba Rao is about Gajaraj, a lonely royal elephant, and Buntee, a small stray dog, who become best friends.
- They are completely different — one huge, one tiny — yet they care for, share with, and play with each other. Their friendship is ‘unlikely’, meaning not expected.
- When the farmer takes Buntee home, both friends are heartbroken. Gajaraj refuses to eat — not because he is sick, but because he is missing his friend. Buntee stops eating too.
- The farmer kindly sets Buntee free, and the two friends are happily reunited and eat together. The mahout and the farmer also become friends.
- The story’s lesson: real friendship can cross any difference — size, home, or owner. What matters is care.
- The poem “A Friend’s Prayer” by Jill Wolf is a gentle wish to be the best friend possible — to keep friendship most important, give one’s best, understand friends with the heart, and love them just as they are.
- Both the story and the poem teach the same thing: friendship is built on care, sharing, effort, and acceptance.
- New words to remember: unlikely (not expected), mahout (an elephant’s trainer), stray (a homeless animal), prayer (a gentle wish).
What’s Next
You have seen how friendship connects two very different living things. In the next unit, Unit 3 — Nurturing Nature, we move from friendship between living beings to our bond with the natural world — the trees, rivers, and earth around us. Just as Gajaraj and Buntee cared for each other, Unit 3 asks us to care for nature. See you there.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the summary of 'The Unlikely Best Friends' in class 6 English Poorvi?
A royal elephant named Gajaraj is lonely in the king's stable. One evening a small stray dog named Buntee wanders in and Gajaraj shares his food with him. The two become best friends and play together every day. When Buntee's owner the farmer takes him home, both Gajaraj and Buntee stop eating out of sadness. The farmer lets Buntee return, and the friends are happily reunited.
Why did Gajaraj stop eating in 'The Unlikely Best Friends'?
Gajaraj stopped eating because he missed Buntee deeply. His body was perfectly healthy, but his heart was sad after losing his best friend. When we feel very upset, we often lose interest in food too. This detail shows how strong and real the friendship between the elephant and the dog was.
What is the lesson or moral of the story 'The Unlikely Best Friends'?
The lesson is that real friendship can cross any difference in size, home, or background. What matters is care and being there for each other. Gajaraj and Buntee were completely different animals, yet they loved each other deeply. True friendship is about the heart, not about being alike.
What is the meaning of the poem 'A Friend's Prayer' by Jill Wolf?
In the poem, the speaker prays to be the best friend she can be. She asks to always put friendship first, to give her very best to her friends, to help make their wishes come true, and to love them just as they are. The poem shows that being a good friend takes effort and a generous, open heart.
Who wrote 'The Unlikely Best Friends' and what does 'unlikely' mean in the title?
The story was written by Subba Rao. 'Unlikely' means something you would not normally expect to happen. An elephant and a dog becoming best friends is 'unlikely' because they are so different from each other. But the story shows that even the most unexpected friendship can be the most beautiful.