Khushwant singh is an Indian author,novelist, lawyer, diplomate journalist and politician. His famous literary contribution is'Train to Pakistan', in 1956,most well-known novel relates his experience in 1947 partition of India.
He was born on 2nd February, 1915,Hadali in Punjab which is gone under Pakistan government on February 2nd, 1915. He died on 20March, 2014,Sujan Singh Park in New Delhi.
The name of his spouse is Kanwal Malik, 1939-2001.
He studied at Delhi Modern School from1930 to 1932.He completed intermediate of arts from St. Stephen's College in Delhi in 1934.He received ll. B. from King's College and from the university of London.
He was the editor of some well- known newspapers, periodicals and magazines:
The Hindustan Times
The National Herald
The illustrated weekly of India
'The portrait of a lady' is an autobiographical episode included in his book of Collected Stories published in the year 2013,is a collection of stories which revealed khushwant Singh's literary skill as a modest, restrained, well-crafted story teller in a wonderfully peculiar descriptive style.
Summary of the story:
Khushwant Singh draws the pen-picture of his grandmother in his story 'The Portrait of a Lady'. In this story the author describes his relation with his grandmother from his very childhood to his adulthood and also describes how the passege of time has an gradual impact in their close relationship and in their affection for each other.
The reader's involvement:
He starts telling the story of his grandmother in a wonderfully peculiar narrative style. He involves his readers by saying 'like everyone's grandmother' and starts drawing his grandmother's portrait in everyone's mind through his vivid description of his grand mother's personality.
The style of his description:
His grandmother was like everyone's grandmother.
His grandfather's portrait was also hung above the Chimneys in the wall of the drawing room. His grandfather didn't only look like hundred years old but he looked like the husband of many wives and had many grandchildren. His long beard covered almost the best part of his chest.
The grandmother's physical features:
Khushwant Singh's grandmother was an old lady and her face bore too many criss cross of wrinkles and for which she looked terribly old. She was short and slightly bent forward in her posture. In her one hand she always carried a wooden bead of rosery which she was counting silently.Another hand was seen rested on her back to balance Her stoop. Her lips was seen moved in an inaudible prayer. She was seen hobbled about her house in her spotless white clothes with her grey hair scattered on her shoulder.
Difficult for the author to believe:
People said, which khushwant Singh also heard, that his grandmother was once a pretty young lady.For him it was hard to believe as he had seen her terribly old with so many criss-cross of wrinkles since his very childhood till he became an adult.
Physical appearance:
She was fat, short and slightly bent.She always carried a wooden beads of rosery which she counted in a silent way.Her another hand was always rested on her waist only to balance her stoop. Her silvery grey hair was scattered on her pale puckered face.
Devine qualities
She always wore spotless white clothes and walked slowly from one room to another room exerting an environment of peace and contentment. The author compared her appearance with the white serenity of the wide expanse of snow covered mountain landscape.
Noble qualities of the grandmother:
According to the author, his grandmother, though looked not pretty, she looked beautiful. Her noble qualities and her devine appearance made her looked beautiful.
At the village home:Khushwant Singh's parents left him with his grandmother, as they had to go to the city to establish and settled properly in the city.
Early education:
Khushwant Singh's early education started at the village school which was not so far from his grand mother's home. His grandmother accompanied him to his school with great satisfaction. The village school was attached to a temple. While her grandson read alphabets in the verandah of the school she sat inside the temple and read scriptures. The village prist taught them alphabets.
The author and the grandmother are good friends:
At the village home the author had a close relationship with his grandmother.Both they were good friends because they were constantly with each other.
Motherly care:
His grandmother took every responsibilities of him like a mother. She wake him up in the morning, bathed him, and get him ready for the school. She collected all his needs such as the slate, pencil, and inkpot, tie them in a bundle to go for school. While she bathed him she sang her prayer monotonously as if she wished him to learn them by heart. But khushwant sing had paid no attention to it.
Grandmother served him breakfast and accompany to school:
She served him breakfast with stale chapattis, a small butter and sugar spread on it.
The grandmother liked to go with her grandson to the village school as because the school was attached to a temple. She liked to read holy scriptures inside the temple.
Grandmother's love for animals:
She also packed some chapattis with them and took them with her to feed the village dogs while they were returning to home. She threw it to them and the dogs followed them to their home hauling and growling for the chapattis. The grand mother had a great love for animals.
Grandmother amused her grandson:
The grandmother used to entertain him by telling him about the games which she used to play in her childhood,which the author found quite insignificant.
At the city home:
Khushwant Singh's patents were well settled in the city and they sent for the author and the grandmother to live with them in the city.
A turning point :
A turning point came into their relationship:
The author and the grandmother went to live in the city with his parents. In the city home they were given a room to share with each other. But the author had less time to spent with his grandmother. Their closeness of their relationship had gone.Because they saw less each other and had less time to spent with each other.
The time had changed their attachment.
Khushwant Singh was admitted in an English school which was far away from his city home. The grand mother couldn't accompany her grandson to the school as the author went to the school by motor bus.
Grandmother became less responsible:
The grandmother's responsibilities to her grandson were reduced. She began to feel lonely. As there was his mother to take care of him.
Grandmother's behaviour changed at the town home:
. In the city home the grand mother had no opportunity to feed the dogs. So she used to feed the sparrows. She made herself busy with her spinning wheel to pass her times.
Grandmother became lonely:
Sometimes the grandmother wake him up on the morning as she did it before. But she couldn't accompany her grandson to his school and couldn't help him in his studies as she didn't know english. Sometimes she asked him about his studies. But when she had learnt that her grandson had lessons on science and maths and lessons on music also she became very upset.she was most upset when she had learnt that there was no learning on God and scriptures.In the city home she had no other work to do except to take care of herself.
Grandmother, a religious and conservative lady:
She was a religious conservative lady and she had a wrong notion about learning. She was quite upset when she had learnt that he had lessons on music in that school she became silent.she had a wrong notion about the learning on music that learning on music was not for gentleman but for the baggers and harlots.
Grandmother accepted her seclusion silently:
From then she stopped asking anything to the author because the grandmother didn't want to be bothered by new information from her grandson.
she silently accepted her resignation to a life of seclusion.
Grandmother became more busy with her spinning wheel:
She used to pass her time with her spinning wheel more than before. From sunrise to sunset she was busy with her spinning wheel and only in the afternoon she took some rest and sat in the backyard to feed the sparrows.
Grandmother's love for sparrows:
Hundreds of birds came and accepted their breadcrumbs thrown to them by the grandmother. The sparrows were so confident with the grandmother's company . Some of them took their feed from the grandmother's hand and some of then sat on her shoulder and amused her with confidence.
At the university:
Khushwant Singh went to the university for higher studies. Then he had given a room for himself. The common link of their friendship had gone. Both they were given separate room because the author had to busy himself with studies more then before.
Time had changed their attachment but not their affection for each other.
Grandmother's strong personality:
When khushwant decided to go abroad for higher studies for five years.He thought his grandmother might be upset and worried. But to his surprise nothing such happened. The grandmother neither became upset nor showed any emotional reaction. She had the strength to restrain her emotion and went to the railway station to see off her grandson and kissed on his forehead by praying for his safe return.
Responsible grandmother:
The kiss on his forehead was ever memorable for the author as he thought that moist imprint of her kiss might be the last sign of the physical contact between them. Because his grandmother was so old at that time and perhaps he wouldn't see her alive after five years again.
The grandmother's responsibilities and her affection to her grandson remained as same as before. Their relationship didn't change a bit.
After five years:
When khushwant Singh returned from his higher studies from abroad he met his grandmother at the railway station. She welcomed her grandson with a warm embrace.
His grandmother was over excited :
The grandmother, to celebrate her grandson's home-coming, invited some of her neighbouring women and that evening she started singing with them by beating a drum continuously for hours. They sang the songs of home-coming of warriors.
Grandmother fell I'll:
The authors family tried to prevent her from doing that as they thought that due to overstrain she might fell I'll. But she didn't listened to anybody.
That day was an exceptional day to her that she forgot to pray and in the afternoon she feed the sparrows with some frivolous rebukes.
Grandmother was a religious lady:
At last she fell ill. The doctors came and declared that it was a mild fever. The grandmother was lying in her bed in praying and counting her beads of rosery. She told to the author's family that her end was near so that she requested them to leave her alone. Suddenly the rosery fell from her hand and her lips stopped moving and she died.
The sparrows came to show their tribute:
Her dead body was lying down to the ground and covered with a red shroud.
The last ray of sunshine entered. Suddenly the thousands of sparrows appeared and they gathered around her shrouded body silently. They were not creating any noise. The author's mother threw some breadcrumbs like the grandmother but the birds gave no notice at them. After spending sometime around the covered body in silent way they flew away again silently.As if it was their tribute to the grandmother they loved.
The author's mother had cleaned the breadcrumbs away in the next morning.
Questions and answers:
1.Mention the three phases of the author's relationship with his grandmother before he left the country to study abroad.
Ans:The three phases of the author's relationship with his grandmother was:
At the village
At the village home both the author and the grandmother were enjoyed a very close relationship. Because both of them were constantly with each other. The author was left with the grandmother at the village home because his parents had to settle properly in the city.
In absence of the mother the grandmother took every care of the small kid who was the author. She entertained him by telling stories of some games she used to play in her childhood. But for the author they were quite absurd and insignificant.
The grandmother woke him up in the morning, bathed him and get him ready for the school. She served him breakfast with stale chapattis with little butter spread on it. She also accompanied her grandson to the village school which was attached to a temple.
At the city home
At the city home both the grandmother and grandson were given to share the same room. Though they shared the same room the closeness of their relationship had gone. The author had less time to spend with his grandmother. The grandmother's responsibilities had been reduced. She begun to feel lonely. She occaisonally woke him up in the morning and asked him about his learning The author had to go to school by motor bus far away from the city home. The grandmother neither accompany him to school nor could she help him in his studies. The grandmother stopped talking with her grandson when she had learnt that her grandson had lessons on science, maths and music in his new english school. She was highly upset to know that there was no learning on God and scriptures. The grandmother had no good opinions on music lessons. For her music should be learnt by baggers amd harlots. It was not the subject to be learnt by gentle people. She remained silent in quite disapproval.
She stopped asking more to her grandson about his learning at the new school because she didn't want to be bothered by new things.
At the university
The author and the grandmother were seperated as khushwant Singh was given a seperate room to live in. The common link which was the common room they enjoyed had gone. Because khushwant Singh had to study more as he get admitted in the university. The grandmother became more lonely then before. She made herself busy in spinning wheel and in feeding the sparrows . Time had changed their relationship physically but the affection and responsibility of the grandmother to her grandson never changed.
The grandmother went to see off her grandson to the railway station for abroad with a warm kiss on his forehead and with a prayer for his safe return.she wouldn't be able to see her grandson for five years which couldn't make her sad Or emotional but made her more responsible. The grandmother showed her affection and responsibility even at that time also.
2.Mention the three reasons why the author's grandmother was disturbed when he started going to the city school.
Ans:-The author's grandmother was disturbed when he started going to the city school for three reasons.
First, khushwant Singh was admitted in a English School in the city. The grandmother couldn't accompany her grandson to the school as he went to the school by motor bus because of the distance of the school from the city home. The grandmother couldn't help him in his studies as she didn't know English words.
Second, the grandmother was highly upset by her grandson's learning at that English school as he was taught science, maths and music. There was no learning on God and scriptures which upset his grandmother most.
Thirdly, the grandmother's opinion on music lessons was not good. For her music is not for the civilized people but for the baggers and harlots. She stopped asking the author more about his school as she decided not to be bothered by any new information.
3.Mention the three ways in which the author's grandmother spent her days after he grew up.
Ans:-The author's grandmother's responsibilities to her grandson were reduced at the city home. Because there was his mother to do all the work for him. The grandmother begun to feel lonely.
She made herself busy with her spinning wheel. Secondly, as there was no dogs she started feeding the sparrows in the afternoon. She developed an unique relationship with the sparrows.
Thirdly, she regularly prayed with her rosery as before and spent her time by reading holy books.
4.Mention the odd way in which the author's grandmother behaved just before she died.
Ans:-The grandmother behaved quite an odd way just before she died.She celebrated her grandson's homecoming with great enthusiasm by singing and beating a dilapidated drum with some neighbouring women.The author's family prevented her from doing that. But she never listened.
That day, it was an exception that the grandmother feed the sparrows with some frivolous noises.
That day she even forgot to pray which was an exception.
Late in the afternoon she fell ill and according to the doctor it was a mild fever. She was lying on the bed in constant prayer. She told everyone to leave her alone and said that her end was near. After that she died peacefully in praying. Her dead body was lain on the ground covering with a red shroud as a ritual.
5.Mention the way in which the sparrows expressed their sorrow when the author's grandmother died.
Ans:-The sparrows loved the grandmother in an unique way. Thousands of sparrows appeared in that afternoon and gathered around the covered body of their beloved one without any noise. The author's mother threw some breadcrumbs to them but to their surprise the sparrows took no notice of them. They spent sometime silently and flew away without making any noise. That was their unique way of expressing their sorrow as well as their tribute to their beloved one.
6.How do we know that the grandmother was a religious person?
Ans:-The grandmother was a religious person which can be known by her appearance, her lifestyle, her views on learning and by her great devine personality.
The grandmother wore spotless white clothes and hobbled about her home exerting an environment of peace and contentment. Her appearance was like a wide expanse of snow covered mountain landscape which is shrine.
The grandmother always carry a wooden beads of rosery counting with a constant prayer in an inaudible way. Her lips were seen constantly moving in an inaudible prayer.
The grandmother was highly upset by her grandson's learning in his new English School because there was the teachings on science, maths and music but was no teachings on God and religion. Her views on music was quite conservative. She believed that music should be learnt by baggers and harlots but not by gentle folk.
The grandmother died in constant prayer peacefully which ultimately proved that the grandmother was a strongly religious person.
7.Describe the changing relationship between the author and his grandmother. Did their feelings for each other change?
Ans:-The relationship between the author and grandmother changed time to time. At the village the author was completely under the supervision of the grandmother because his had to go to the city to settle them properly in the city.
At the village both they were good friends as they were constantly with each other. The grandmother took all the responsibility as a mother. She entertained him with games and stories she used to play in her childhood. She not only got ready him to school but accompanied him to school also.
But at the city their closeness with each other had gone. Though they enjoyed the same room the author had found less time to spend with her. The grandmother's duty to her grandson was reduced. Both of them were to busy by their work. While her grandson became busy in studies the grandmother would've to busy her with the spinning wheel. She couldn't accompany him to school and couldn't help him in his studies as she didn't know English.Although the grandmother was upset by her grandson's learning in that English School. She stopped talking with her grandson as she didn't want to be worried by some new facts from the author's new school.
When the author got admission in the university he was given a seperate room to study and live. The common link of their friendship had been taken away by time. The grand became more busy in her spinning work and in feeding the sparrows.
The time had changed their relationship physically but by heart and soul both of them remained the same as before. The grandmother's affection and responsibilities to the author remained same as before. Time had no impact on their emotional relationships.
8.Would you agree that the author's grandmother was a person strong in character? If yes, give instance that show this.
Ans:-Yes, the author's grandmother was a strong person in character. Though she was highly religious and conservative in character she had the conscience to maintain a good environment in her home. She was remained silent in quite disapproval of her grandson's learning on music at his new school. She couldn't bear the fact that the author's new English School didn't provide education on religion and scriptures. But she remained silent and decided to resign to a life of seclusion.
When the author gave her the news that he would go abroad for five years for higher studies the grandmother didn't become emotional and didn't outburst in emotion. She went to see off her grandson at the railway station and bade farewell with a warm kiss on his forehead. The grandmother only prayed for his safe return.
After five years again she went to welcome her grandson at the railway station and embraced him with love and happiness. But she fell ill after her celebration of the homecoming of her grandson. The doctor told that the grandmother suffered from a mild fever but the grandmother told the author's parents that her end was near. She told her families to leave her alone. She started praying constantly and her rosery fell from her hand. Her lips stopped moving and she died in prayer peacefully. All these confirmed that the grandmother was a strong religious person in character.