Letter from James Ivory, New York, New York, to Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, Delhi, India, 1967 May 27 : typescript signed.

Questioning Ruth's assertion that Shashi is "limited" as an actor [in relation to the casting of the Ustad character in what will become "The Guru"]; weighing the relative merits of casting Dilip Kumar or Utpal Dutt in the role rather than Shashi; updating her on their dealings with Paramount over "Vertical and Horizontal"; describing a fight Merchant had on the telephone with a Paramount executive named Sabinson [probably Lee Sabinson, who died in 1991], and its eventual de-escalation by another executive named Norman Flicker; describing the ongoing elevator operators' strike at 400 East 52nd Street, and how much he enjoys operating the elevator; pointing out that Ruth has a great deal more energy than she thinks; musing on the possible title "Strangers in India" ; telling her that Madhur has arrived back in New York-- "She looks good, if a little bitter and sour about life?"; signing off the letter and continuing with a detailed description of English village fêtes [presumably for the "Shakespeare Wallah" sequel].