Letter from James Ivory, New York, New York, to Ruth Prawer Jhabvala and Cyrus Jhabvala, Delhi, India, [1965] July 30 : typescript signed.

Beginning "Now that all the excitement is over, I can write in a calm frame of mind..."; going on to describe the trajectory of Merchant's recent illness-- beginning in Berlin and continuing in London and during the trip back to New York-- and his subsequent surgery for a chronic and severe mastoid infection, which probably saved his life but may leave him deaf in his left ear; describing Ismail in the hospital at Mount Sinai wearing a lungi and "shouting orders down the telephone to us all," and his fellow patients in the ward; picking up the story later, when Merchant's mood grows sober after being told by the doctor "what a narrow escape he had had," and Ivory is reminded "of how we all passed-off Geeta-bali's illness so lightly" (Bali, who was married to Shammi Kapoor, died of smallpox in January 1965); say that Merchant told him that "the doctor had said he must not get excited or argue with his business partner. He told me I must agree to everything he says from now. I said I would"; jumping back to their last day in London, when Shashi, Jennifer, Phoo and Madhur all came to town to have lunch with them, and confirming Ruth's apparent assertion that "they would need to be saints not to react adversely to M's award" at the Berlin Film Festival, and that Jennifer in particular is put out about it; saying that Jennifer also told him that Phoo (Felicity Kendal) does not feel that way and is hopeful about her career in Britain; resolving to try to help her career in any way he can; admitting he would have liked to stay longer in London but they needed to get to New York to prepare "Shakespeare Wallah" for the New York Film Festival; reporting that Saeed and Madhur may be able to reconcile; describing the passage back to New York and a new dance he learned on the ship; relating how Merchant and "American Express's Mr. Srinivasan in Bombay" shipped the negative of "Shakespeare Wallah" to the States marked as "household effects, used" so they didn't have to pay any duty; describing the work he wants to do on "Shakespeare Wallah" before the New York festival; telling them that he has rented a new apartment at 400 East 52nd Street; admitting he is missing India and no longer at home in his own country; asking that they write soon and forgive him for not writing sooner himself.