मैंने आपका कागज़ मेज़ के ऊपर रखा, और आपने मेरी कलम बैग में रखी।

ने is the marker often used with the subject of a transitive verb in the perfective past in Hindi.

So:

• मैंने = I
  • ने
• आपने = you
  • ने

In this sentence, both actions are completed past actions involving direct objects:

• I placed the paper
• You placed the pen

That is why ने appears with both subjects.

A very important point: ने does not mean by in the English sense here. It is a grammatical marker showing the subject in this kind of past sentence.

This is because the verb agrees with the direct object here, not with the subject.

Since the sentence uses ने, Hindi often makes the past participle agree with the direct object if that object has no marker like को.

So:

• कागज़ is masculine singular → रखा
• कलम is feminine singular → रखी

That is why you get:

• कागज़ ... रखा
• कलम ... रखी

This is a very common pattern in Hindi perfective transitive sentences.

Because possessives in Hindi agree with the thing possessed, not with the possessor.

So:

• कागज़ is masculine singular → आपका
• कलम is feminine singular → मेरी

Compare:

• मेरा कागज़ = my paper
• मेरी कलम = my pen
• आपका बैग = your bag
• आपकी किताब = your book

So the form changes according to the noun that follows.

Because कलम is a feminine noun.

Hindi possessive words change form:

• मेरा for masculine singular nouns
• मेरी for feminine singular nouns
• मेरे for masculine plural nouns, and also in some oblique contexts

Since कलम is feminine singular, the correct form is मेरी कलम.

के ऊपर means on top of or above/on.

In Hindi, this is a postposition phrase:

• मेज़ = table
• के ऊपर = on top of

Together: मेज़ ke ऊपर = on the table / on top of the table

Why के?

Because when a noun comes before a postposition, it usually takes the oblique form. With मेज़, the form does not visibly change, but the postposition phrase still uses के ऊपर.

You may also hear मेज़ पर, which is often a simpler and very common way to say on the table.

So:

• मेज़ पर = on the table
• मेज़ के ऊपर = on top of the table

Both can work, but के ऊपर is a bit more explicit.

में is the postposition meaning in / inside.

So:

• बैग में = in the bag

This is one of the most common Hindi postpositions.

Examples:

• घर में = in the house
• डिब्बे में = in the box
• बैग में = in the bag

As with other postpositions, the noun before it is in the oblique position, though with बैग there is no visible change in form.

Because Hindi normally follows a Subject–Object–Verb pattern, and other elements like place often come before the verb too.

So the structure is roughly:

• मैंने = subject
• आपका कागज़ = object
• मेज़ ke ऊपर = location
• रखा = verb

Hindi tends to keep the verb near the end of the clause.

This is different from English, where word order is more rigid. In Hindi, some movement is possible for emphasis, but the pattern used here is very natural and standard.

It can mean both.

आप is used for:

• polite singular you
• plural you

So आपने could mean:

• you (polite, one person)
• you all / you (more than one person)

Usually the context tells you which one is meant.

In learning materials, it is often understood as polite singular unless the context says otherwise.

Hindi does not normally use articles like English a, an, and the.

So a noun like कागज़ can mean:

• a paper
• the paper

And कलम can mean:

• a pen
• the pen

The exact meaning depends on context.

That is very normal in Hindi. Learners often want to look for a Hindi word corresponding to the, but usually there is none.

Yes, these are perfective forms of रखना = to put / to place / to keep.

In this sentence:

• रखा = put/placed/kept, masculine singular agreement
• रखी = put/placed/kept, feminine singular agreement

So this is not just about time; it is also about aspect and agreement.

A learner-friendly way to think of it is:

• रखना = to put
• रखा / रखी / रखे = put/placed, with gender-number agreement

In this sentence, repeating the verb is the most natural and clear choice:

• मैंने ... रखा
• और आपने ... रखी

Hindi can sometimes omit repeated material when it is obvious, but with two separate clauses like this, repeating the verb sounds normal and complete.

It also helps show the agreement clearly:

• रखा for कागज़
• रखी for कलम

So repeating the verb here is useful and idiomatic.

Because in perfective transitive sentences with ने, Hindi often blocks normal subject agreement.

Instead, the verb agrees with the direct object, if that object is not marked with को.

So here:

• subject = मैंने / आपने
• direct object = कागज़ / कलम
• verb agrees with object → रखा / रखी

If the direct object were marked with को, then the verb would often default to a masculine singular form instead of agreeing with it.

This agreement system is one of the trickiest parts of Hindi for English speakers.

Yes, very often.

• मेज़ पर = on the table
• मेज़ के ऊपर = on top of the table

In many everyday situations, मेज़ पर is the more common and simpler choice.

के ऊपर can sound a little more explicit, as if you want to stress the physical position more clearly.

So both are correct in many contexts, but they are not always identical in tone.

Yes:

• कागज़ is masculine
• कलम is feminine

Unfortunately, grammatical gender in Hindi often has to be learned noun by noun. There are patterns, but they are not always reliable enough to guess every word correctly.

The best way to learn a noun is together with:

• its meaning
• its gender
• one adjective or verb form that shows agreement

For example:

• एक अच्छा कागज़
• एक अच्छी कलम

That makes the gender easier to remember.