Pi agrees to meet Mr. Kumar, the Muslim baker, at the zoo’s main gate after school because Mr. Kumar admits he has lived nearby for years without ever visiting and asks Pi to show it to him. As the meeting time approaches, Pi becomes anxious that Mr. Kumar looks so plain he will fail to recognize him in the crowd and accidentally insult him.

At the gate, Pi awkwardly rubs his eyes as a strategy to buy time and avoid missing Mr. Kumar, fending off interruptions from friends (Raj and Ajith), Mother’s acquaintance Mrs. Radhakrishna, strangers asking directions and prices, and Mamaji. When Mr. Kumar finally speaks—"I am here, Piscine"—Pi recognizes the voice immediately and greets him warmly, claiming the red eyes are only dust.

Pi proudly brings Mr. Kumar into the zoo without making him pay. Inside, Mr. Kumar is amazed by the order and design of the place—how animals are fed, housed, and adapted—seeing it as evidence of meaningful patterns in nature, and he quotes the Qur’an about messages for those who use reason.

At the zebra enclosure, a second Mr. Kumar arrives: Pi’s biology teacher, an atheist. The two men, sharing the same name, greet each other politely as Pi offers each half of a carrot to feed the zebra.

The baker and the teacher respond differently while feeding the animal, but both are delighted. As they admire the zebra, the teacher supplies its scientific identity and classification while the baker responds with religious awe, and Pi simply calls it beautiful, holding both perspectives together as they watch.