Letter from Ismail Merchant, New York, New York, to Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, Delhi, India, 1968 May 18 : autograph manuscript signed.

Saying he is pleased she likes the film ["The Guru"], as does he-- in fact, "I think this is our best film"; describing the "sudden panic" at Fox about the film, their concern being that because the Beatles had broken off their association with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, the film was no longer marketable; laying out his argument against this view; saying he is going to meet with Fox's art department and "shape something tasteful" for the advertising campaign; claiming he cannot be idle for a long time again, so he has come to New York to try to prepare for their next project; admitting that Filmways is not interested in "A Lovely World" [the "Shakespeare Wallah" sequel] but Fox has shown some interest, as they have with "Passion"; saying "the Faye Dunaway project is all resolved and will go ahead in February"; informing her he spent a week in Los Angeles talking to "all kinds of people."