THE PORTRAIT OF A LADY

Collected Stories
KHUSHWANT SINGH

Prepared by Devendra Sharma

PGT(English)
About the Author
 Khushwant Singh was a man of many parts: author, lawyer, diplomat
,journalist and politician. His experience in the 1947 Partition of India
inspired him to write 'Train to Pakistan' in 1953 (made into film in
1998), which became his most well-known novel.
Born: 2 February 1915, Hadāli, Pakistan
Died: 20 March 2014, Sujan Singh Park, Delhi
Education: GCU, Panjab University, King's College London
Awards: Padma Bhushan, Padma Vibhushan, Punjab Rattan Award
Best books of Khushwant Singh
 Train to Pakistan (1953)
 I Shall Not Hear the Nightingale (1959)
 A History of Sikhs (1963)
 The Company of Women (1999)
 Truth, Love and a Little Malice (2002)
 Why I Supported the Emergency (2004)
The Portrait of A Lady Theme

‘The Portrait of a Lady’ is a part of an autobiography by

Khushwant Singh. In this story, the author draws a pen portrait of
his grandmother. He beautifully unfolds their relationship and
how it undergoes several changes. In other words, the story is a
loving tribute from a grandson to his grandmother. The story
gives a picture of human relationships. It is a realistic account of
how the grandparents give all their time, attention and love to
their grandchildren.
In 'The Portrait of a Lady‘, we have the theme of innocence,
friendship, love, connection, kindness, selflessness, respect and
acceptance.
About the Characters
 Grandmother: Khushwant Singh’s grandmother
is described as an extremely religious person. She
was a very kind lady. She was short, fat and slightly
bent. Her face was wrinkled and she was always
dressed in spotless white clothes. In the village, she
took care of all the needs of the author when he was
a child.
 Khushwant Singh, the author (Narrator): He
recounts his childhood days and his relationship
with his grandmother.
Word Meanings
 Word – Meaning
portrait – a painting, drawing, or photograph of a person
mantelpiece – shelf above a fireplace
absurd – ridiculous
hobbled – walked with difficulty
stoop – bent body due to old age
telling the beads – counting the beads while chanting
prayers
rosary – a string of beads used for counting prayers as they
are chanted
puckered – wrinkled
inaudible – which cannot be heard
serenity – calm and peaceful
monotonous – unchanging
stale – not fresh
in a chorus – together
Word Meanings
 courtyard – an open space just outside the
house
lewd – indecent
harlots – prostitutes
bedlam – confusion
thumped – beat hard
dilapidated – falling to pieces
pallor – pale colouring of the face
shroud – a piece of cloth used to cover a dead
body before cremation
crude – made in a simple manner
scattered – lying here and there
took no notice of – did not care
 Summary
 Appearance of grandmother
The author recalls his grandmother as a very old lady
with a wrinkled face. She appeared so old that it was
hard for him to believe that she had once been “young
and pretty”. She was short, fat and a little stooped in
appearance. The author remembers her moving about
the house in “spotless white”, counting the beads of
her rosary while her lips moved constantly in silent
prayers. She was not “pretty” in the traditional sense,
yet her serenity made her “beautiful”.
 Initial years of togetherness: life in the village
In the initial years of his life, the author lived with his
grandmother in the village, sharing a good friendship.
His grandmother used to wake him up in the morning
and get him ready for the school. She would hand over
to him the things he required in the school. After
having thick, stale chapatti's with butter and sugar for
breakfast, they used to leave for school.
 The author's grandmother always accompanied him to
school as it was attached to the temple. It was her habit
to carry several stale chapatti's for the village dogs,
which they used to feed while returning from the school.
The grandmother used to sit inside the temple reading
holy books while the narrator learnt alphabets and
prayers in the school.

 Turning point of their friendship: Life in the City

 The ‘turning-point’ of their friendship came when they
moved to the city to stay with the author’s parents.
Though they shared the same room, his grandmother
no longer accompanied him to the school since the
author started going in a bus. As years rolled by, they
“saw less of each other”.
 Meanwhile, as there were no dogs in the streets, she
took to feeding the sparrows.
 Unlike the village school, the author was not taught about God
and the scriptures which troubled his grandmother. She did not
believe in what was being taught at his school and was unhappy
as she could not help him with his lessons. Moreover, she was
disturbed at the idea of music lessons being given at school as she
considered music to be unsuitable for gentlefolk. Her disapproval
was conspicuous in her silence.
 The grandmother combat's her loneliness by feeding
the sparrows
When the author started going to the university, he was given a
room of his own. It resulted in a further gap between them. She
accepted her loneliness and rarely spoke to anyone. All day long,
she sat spinning the wheel and reciting her prayers. She relaxed
for a short time, only in the afternoon, to feed the sparrows who
came in large numbers. The bond and level of comfort they shared
with her is evident in the fact that they perched even on her legs
and head. She used to be at her happiest- self while feeding the
sparrows.
 Author leaves for higher studies
The author decided to go abroad for further studies. He was sure
that his grandmother would be upset at his departure. On the
contrary, she came to the railway station to see him off but did
not show any emotion. She was absorbed in her prayers, telling
the beads of her rosary. She silently kissed the author's forehead,
which the author considered to be (supposedly) the last sign of
their physical contact.

 Author’s homecoming
On his return after five years, the author did not find any change
in his grandmother. She was as old as ever and remained
absorbed in her prayers. Even that day, the happiest moment for
her was feeding the sparrows. In the evening, for the first time
ever, she did not pray. She collected several ladies of the
neighborhood and sang songs related to the home-coming of the
warriors. She had to be persuaded to stop singing in order to
avoid overstraining. However, the next day she was taken ill.
 Grandmother's death

 Though diagnosed with a mild fever by the doctor, grandmother

knew that her end was near. She decided to spend the last few
hours of her life reciting prayers and telling her beads. Soon, her
lips stopped moving and she died.

 A silent tribute by the sparrows

 The family went to make arrangements for the grandmother’s

funeral. As they came with a stretcher, they stopped mid-way to
find thousands of sparrows scattered around her dead body. The
sparrows mourned the death of the grandmother in utter silence.
They ignored the bread crumbs thrown at them by the author’s
mother and flew away silently after the body was carried away
for cremation. The bread- crumbs were swept away by the
sweeper next morning.
Expressions From the Text
 the thought was almost revolting: the author has used
pretty strong language to show a child’s dislike for
imagining his grandmother to be any different from how he
had always known her. He did not at all like the idea that his
grand mother was young pretty at one time, like other
women.
 expanse of pure white serenity: an unbroken stretch of
snow covered mountainside looks like a picture of peace
and calmness. The grandmother’s personality is calm and
serene like a snow covered landscape.
 a turning point: a point of change. The shift from the
village to the city brought about a qualitative change in the
relationship between the grandmother and the grandson.
 accepted her seclusion with resignation: the
grandmother did not protest about her grandson
shifting to another room. She became lonely but
accepted her loneliness quietly.
 veritable bedlam of chirrupings: great noise and
confusion created by the chirping and fluttering of
sparrows around the grandmother.
 frivolous rebukes: the grandmother playfully scolded
the sparrows as they flitted noisily around her.
 sagging skins of the dilapidated drum: the
grandmother sang thumping a broken down drum
(dholak). Even the skin areas for thumping and giving
the beat had become loose due to disuse and neglect.
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