Letter from James Ivory, New York, New York, to Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, Delhi, India, 1967 March 12 : typescript signed.

Begging for details of the "grand charity premiere" of "Shakespeare Wallah" in India; noting a "blurry picture from the Hindustan Times" that showed Madhur, Satyajit Ray, and Marlon Brando talking; playfully asking if Merchant has signed Brando to a string of films; asking if Stalin's daughter was there, and assuming that "the Prime Toad" [Indira Gandhi] was not; imagining shooting "the Afghan war film" with Brando, and "Mitra worrying about the light"; describing arrangements for the French "Shakespeare Wallah" premiere, being sponsored by Cahiers du Cinéma and the French Federation of Ciné Clubs, with Michel Delahaye doing the sub-titling; telling her he has restored a scene to "Shakespeare Wallah"; discussing Nazul Rahman and the proposal to shoot a film in "tea country"; asking her to reply positively to Rahman's letter, even if she doesn't want to go there immediately; telling he he will be dining with Rahman that night, and relishing the idea of the shoot, using "whoever we want-- Shashi, Jennifer, Foo, Utpal, Madhur, and the Maestro's actors: Sumitra Chatterji [sic], Aparna Das Gupta-- whoever we need"; discussing some aspects of the "Shakespeare Wallah" sequel; saying he has found the ideal person to play Eephie in "Vertical and Horizontal," a young jazz flutist named Jeremy Steig, who he would hire if he didn't already have "a good actor" lined up; describing the visuals that accompany Steig onstage and thinking they would make for a good title sequence; saying this idea excites both Lillian and their cameraman for "Vertical and Horizontal," Boris Kaufman; asking for "a detailed report" on the premiere-- "Everything. Use two air letters."