Fritz Summary

Shankar and Jayanto have recently arrived in Bundi and are having tea in the garden of the circuit house. The two have known each other since their school days and, in spite of the fact that they have embarked on different career paths, they remain close friends. They had been planning to take a trip together to Rajasthan for some time, and though there are other, more desirable destinations in the region, Jayanto insisted that they come to Bundi. Jayanto’s desire to visit Bundi at first puzzles Shankar, but on the train up, Jayanto confesses that he had visited the town as a child and wishes to revisit it to see how it compares to his memories. Jayanto is an emotional person, and he has been quiet and pensive ever since they got to the circuit house. Shankar believes that the return of his childhood memories has caused him to feel depressed. During their conversation, Jayanto tells Shankar how much grander the circuit house seemed to him as a kid. Now that he is an adult, the place has lost a lot of its charm, and Jayanto remarks on the fact that those inaccuracies would have remained with him had he never decided to return.

After tea, Shankar and Jayanto are strolling through the garden when, out of nowhere, Jayanto pauses and says the word “deodar.” He begins searching for the tree and is delighted when he finds it where he expected it to be. When Shankar asks him why the tree matters to him so much, Jayanto cannot recall. Instead, he mentions “a European,” and the two go on about their evening. Then, at dinner, Jayanto starts to remember more and more. He shows Shankar where his parents used to spend time and recalls the physical features of the old circuit house cook. Finally, he tells the story of Fritz, a lifelike doll that one of his uncles brought to him from Switzerland. Jayanto loved Fritz more than any of his other toys and would spend hours playing with the doll and talking to it. Shankar asks Jayanto what happened to Fritz, and Jayanto tells him that he had brought it with him to Bundi, where it was destroyed by a couple of stray dogs. Believing Fritz to be dead, Jayanto buried him directly into the ground at the foot of the deodar tree that he had seen earlier that day.

That night, Shankar is woken up by a strange sound and sees Jayanto sitting up on his bed looking terrified. Jayanto tells Shankar that he felt something walk across his chest. Shankar tries to search the room to find it, believing it to be some kind of small animal, but finds nothing. Then, Jayanto shows Shankar some brown circular marks on his quilt. Shankar tries to reassure Jayanto by telling him that it could have been a cat and, after more attempts to comfort his friend, falls back asleep. It is clear the next morning that Jayanto has barely slept, but the two have already made plans to rent a car and go and visit the Fort of Bundi, which they had seen from afar the previous day while sightseeing. While they are out, more of Jayanto’s memories return, and his joy and enthusiasm suggest that he has forgotten all about his doll. This reassures Shankar until about an hour later, when he finds Jayanto alone on a terrace and staring off into the distance. Jayanto asks Shankar if they can leave, and it becomes clear in the car that his anxiety is mounting. Shankar pleads with him to tell him what is going on, no matter how unbelievable it might be, so Jayanto tells him he believes it was Fritz who had come into their room the night before.

Not wanting the memory of this doll to ruin his friend’s vacation, Shankar convinces Jayanto to dig up Fritz’s burial spot. Though Jayanto is hesitant at first, he eventually lets himself be persuaded. A little later, they spot the gardener, and Shankar approaches him and asks if he would do them the favor. Though there is at first no sign of the doll, the gardener keeps digging and eventually uncovers a pristine, twelve-inch-long, white human skeleton.