Chapter 1

The Portrait of a Lady

Understanding the Text

Q1. The three phases of the author’s relationship with his grandmother before he left
the country to study abroad.
Ans.: The three phases of the author’s relationship with his grandmother before he
left the country to study abroad are:
Childhood – when he went to the village school and the grandmother helped him to
get ready and went to school with him.
Boyhood – when he went to the city school in a bus. He shared a room with
grandmother but she could no longer help him in his studies.
Early Youth – when he went to the university and was given a room of him own. The
common link of friendship was snapped.

Q2. Three reasons why the author’s grandmother was disturbed when he started
going to the city school.
Ans: The three reasons why the author’s grandmother was disturbed when he
started going to the city school are:
1. She hated western Science and learning.
2. She was pained to know that there was no teaching of God and the scriptures
there.
3. She was allergic to music. She thought it was not meant for decent people
and gentlefolk. It was the monopoly of prostitutes and beggars.

Q3. Three ways in which the author’s grandmother spent her days after he grew up.
Ans: The three ways in which the author’s grandmother spent her days after he
grew up are:
She lived alone in her room as she had accepted her loneliness quietly.
She sat at her spinning wheel reciting prayers.
In the afternoon, she would feed the sparrows for half an hour.

Q4. The odd ways in which the author’s grandmother behaved just before she died.
Ans: Just before her death, the author’s grandmother refused to talk to them. Since
she had omitted to pray the previous night while she was singing songs of
homecoming and beating the drum, she was not going to waste any more
time. She ignored their protests. She lay peacefully in bed praying and telling
beads.

Q5. The way in which the sparrows expressed their sorrow when the author’s
grandmother died.
Ans: Thousands of sparrows sat silently surrounding the dead body of the author’s
grandmother. There was no chirruping. The author’s mother threw some
crumbs of bread to them. They took no notice of them. As soon as the
grandmother’s corpse was carried off, they flew away quietly. Thus the
sparrows expressed their sorrow.
Talking About the Text

Talk to your partner about the following:

Q1. The author’s grandmother was a religious person. What are the different ways
in which we come to know this?
Ans: The author’s grandmother was a deeply religious lady. We come to know this
through the different ways of her behaviour. She visited the temple every morning
and read scriptures. At home she always mumbled inaudible prayer and kept telling
the beads of rosary. She would repeat prayers in a sing-song manner while getting
the writer ready for school. She hoped that he would learn it by heart. She didn’t like
English school as there was no teaching of God and scriptures.
Even while spinning at her spinning-wheel she would recite prayers. Perhaps it was
only once that she forgot to say her prayers. It was on the evening prior to her death
when she felt over excited while celebrating the arrival of her grandson with songs
and beatings of drum. She continued praying and telling beads of her rosary till her
last breath.

Q2. Describe the changing relationship between the author and his grandmother. Did
their feelings for each other change?
Ans: During his boyhood, the author was completely dependent on his grandmother.
She was a part of his life. The turning point in their friendship came when they went
to city. She could no longer accompany him to school as he went there by bus. They
shared the same room but she could not help him in his studies. She would ask him
what the teachers had taught. She did not believe in the things that were taught at
school. She was distressed that there was no teaching about God and the scriptures.
She felt offended that music was also being taught. She expressed her disapproval
silently. After this she rarely talked to him. When he went to university, he was given
a room of his own. The common link of friendship was snapped.
However their feelings for each other did not change. They still loved each other
deeply. She went to see the author off at the railway station when he was going
abroad for higher studies. She showed no emotion but kissed his forehead silently.
The author valued this as perhaps the last sign of physical contact between them.
When the author returned after five years, she received him at the station. She
clasped him in her arms. In the evening she celebrated his homecoming by singing
songs and beating an old drum.

Q3. Would you agree that the author’s grandmother was a person strong in
character? If yes, give instances that show this.
Ans: Yes, I agree that the author’s grandmother was a person strong in character.
She was a strong woman with strong beliefs. Although she was not formally
educated, she was serious about the author’s education. She could not adjust
herself to the western way of life, Science and English education. She hated music
and disapproved of its teaching in school.
She was a deeply religious lady. Her lips were always moving in a silent prayer. She
was always telling the beads of her rosary. She went to temple daily and read the
scriptures. She was distressed to know that there was no teaching about God and
holy books at Khushwant’s new English school.
She was a kind lady She used to feed dogs in the village. In the city she took to
feeding sparrows. Although old in years and weak in body she had strength of mind.
Just before her death, she refused to talk to the members of the family as she did not
want to waste her time. She wanted to make up for the time last evening when she
had not prayed to God. She lay peacefully in bed saying prayers and telling the
beads of her rosary till she breathed her last.

Q4. Have you known someone like the author’s grandmother? Do you feel the same
sense of loss with regard to someone whom you have loved and lost?
Answer:
Yes, I have known my grandfather, who loved me deeply and looked after me. He
had served in the army before he retired as a colonel 20 years ago. When I was a
school going kid, he was still active and smart. He was fond of walking, jogging and
playing outdoor games. He inspired us to get up early in the morning. He believed
that a healthy mind lives in a healthy body. He used to give us good physical
exercises followed by milk and nourishing food and then asked us to study for a
while before going to school. In the afternoon, he would enquire what we had been
taught at the school. He would help us in our home task and supervise our reading,
writing and doing sums. He was gentle but firm. He laid stress on good habits and
character building. He passed away when I had gone abroad for higher studies. I
miss him a lot. A sense of loss fills me whenever I see his portrait on the wall. But his
cheerful looks remind me to take heart and fight the struggle of life.

Thinking About language

Q1. Which language do you think the author and his grandmother used while talking
to each other?
Ans: The author’s grandmother was not much educated. So, I think the author and
his grandmother used to talk in their mother tongue—in this case Punjabi.

Q2. Which language do you use to talk to elderly relatives in your family?
Ans: My elderly relatives are well versed in English and Hindi. I feel at home
greeting them in English but like to converse with them freely in Hindi.

Q3. What is the expression used in your language for a ‘dilapidated drum’?
Ans: The expression used in our language for a ‘dilapidated drum’ is ‘phata-purana
dhol.’

Q4. Can you think of a song or poem in your language that talks of homecoming?
Ans: There are many folk songs and poems singing of the exploits of brave warriors.
All these talk of their homecoming after winning a battle.
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More Questions Solved
Short Answer Type Questions
Q1. How long had the narrator known his grandmother—old and wrinkled? What did
people say? How did the narrator react?
Ans: The narrator had known his grandmother—old and wrinkled for the last twenty
years. She was terribly old. Perhaps she could not have looked older. People said
that she had once been young and pretty. They said that she even had a husband.
The narrator found it hard to believe.
Q2. How did the narrator’s grandfather appear in the portrait?
Ans: His grandfather looked very old. He had a long white beard. His clothes were
loose fitting. He wore a big turban. He looked too old to have a wife or children. He
looked at least a hundred years old. He could have only lots and lots of
grandchildren.

Q3. Which thought about the grandmother was often revolting and for whom?
Ans: The narrator’s grandmother was very old and wrinkled. She had stayed at this
stage for the last twenty years. People said that once she was young and pretty. The
narrator couldn’t even imagine her being young. So, the thought was revolting to
him.

Q4. Explain: “As for my grandmother being young and pretty, the thought was almost
revolting”.
Ans: The narrator’s grandmother was terribly old. She could not appear young and
beautiful. Her face was a criss-cross of wrinkles. She was short, fat and slightly bent.
The very idea of her being young and pretty did not appeal to the mind.

Q5. The narrator’s grandmother ‘could never have been pretty, but she was always
beautiful’. Explain the importance of the statement.
Ans: She was terribly old to appear pretty. Her face was a criss-cross of wrinkles.
She was short, fat and slightly bent. She didn’t create any physical appeal or
attraction. However, in her spotless white dress and grey hair she was a picture of
serenity, peace, sobriety and beauty.

Q6. Why was it hard for the author to believe that his grandmother was once young
and pretty?
Ans: She was quite an old lady. She had been old and wrinkled for more than two
decades. It is said that once she had been young and pretty. But it is hard to believe
so.

Q7. The narrator’s grandmother looked like the ‘winter landscape in the mountains’.
Comment.
Ans: The grandmother was always dressed in spotless white. She had silvery hair.
Her white locks spread untidily over her pale and wrinkled face. She looked like an
expanse of pure white serenity. The stretch of snow over the mountains looks
equally white and peaceful. So, her silvery locks and white dress made her look like
the winter landscape in the mountains.

Q8. How did the narrator and his grandmother become good friends?
Ans: During his childhood, the narrator stayed with his grandmother in the village.
She was his constant companion. She looked after him. She used to wake him up.
She got him ready for school in the morning. She would give him breakfast. She
went to school with him.

Q9. Why could the grandmother not walk straight? How would she move about the
house?
Ans: The grandmother was short and fat. She was also slightly bent. She put one
hand on her waist to support the stoop. She could not walk straight. She walked like
a lame person. She limped or hobbled about while moving.
Q10. Describe how the grandmother spent her time while the narrator sat inside the
village school.
Ans: The grandmother went to the school with the narrator. The school was
attached to the temple. The narrator would learn alphabet and morning prayer at
school. The grandmother would sit inside the temple. There she would read holy
books. Thus, she spent her time before they came back together.

Q11. Grandmother has been portrayed as a very religious lady. What details in the
story create this impression?
Ans: She visited the temple every morning and read scriptures. At home she always
mumbled inaudible prayer and kept telling the beads of rosary. She would repeat
prayers in a sing-song manner while getting the narrator ready for school. All these
details create the impression that she was a religious lady.

Q12. The grandmother had a divine beauty. How does the author bring this out?
Ans: The grandmother’s silvery locks scattered untidily over her pale and wrinkled
face. This made her look like an expanse of pure white serenity. She had a divine
beauty. She looked like the winter landscape in the mountains.

Q13. What proofs do you find of the friendship between grandmother and grandson
in this story?
Ans: The grandmother was closely attached to the narrator in his childhood. She
woke him, got him ready and took him to school. She prepared his wooden slate.
She waited in the temple while he studied in school. They returned home together.

Q14. The grandmother was a kind-hearted woman. Give examples in support of your
answer.
Ans: Grandmother had a very kind heart. She loved her grandson. She loved even
birds and animals. In the village, she fed the street dogs. In the city, she would feed
the sparrows.

Q15. “That was a turning point in our friendship.” What was the turning point?
Ans: The turning point in their friendship came when they shifted to the city. Now the
narrator went to an English school in a bus. Grandmother could no longer
accompany him to school. Although they shared the same room, they saw less of
each other.

Q16. Draw a comparison between village school education and city school
education.
Ans: Elementary education was given in village school. The pupils were taught
alphabet and multiplication tables. It was quite simple—confined to the three R’s—
reading, writing and arithmetic. In the city school, English, Science and Music were
taught. Unlike village school there was no teaching about God and scriptures.

Q17. How did grandmother react to the narrator’s receiving education in English
school?
Ans: She did not believe in the things they taught at the English school. She hated
Western Science and learning. She was pained to know that there was no teaching
of God and the scriptures there.
Q18. What led to the gradual distancing of the narrator from his grandmother in the
city? Give three reasons.
Ans: As the years rolled by, the narrator grew older. His dependence on
grandmother became lesser. He started going to an English school in a motor bus.
She could not go with him. Moreover, she couldn’t help him in teaching English and
Science. She hated English school. There was no teaching about God and scriptures
there. All these things distanced the narrator from his grandmother.

Q19. Why was the narrator’s grandmother so much allergic to music? Why was the
grandmother disturbed when she came to know that music lessons were being given
at school?
Ans: She considered that music had lewd associations. It was not meant for decent
people and gentlefolk. It was actually the monopoly of prostitutes and beggars.

Q20. When was the common link of friendship between the narrator and his
grandmother finally snapped?
Ans: The narrator went to the university. Now he was given a room of his own. This
separated the narrator from his grandmother. The common link of their friendship
was thus finally broken.

Q21. How did the grandmother spend her time when the narrator went up to
university?
Ans: She now lived alone in her room. She accepted her loneliness quietly. She was
now always busy with her spinning wheel. She sat at her spinning-wheel reciting
prayers. She hardly talked to anyone. In the afternoon, she would feed the sparrows.
This was her only pastime.

Q22. Why did the grandmother take to feeding sparrows in the courtyard of their city
house?
Ans: In the village, she used to throw ‘chapattis’ to the street dogs. But there were
no dogs in the streets of the city. So, she took to feeding the sparrows in the
courtyard of their city house.

Q23. Describe in brief how grandmother spent half-an-hour with the sparrows. How
did she feel then?
Ans: The grandmother usually fed the sparrows in the afternoon. She sat in the
verandah. She broke bread into little bits. Hundreds of sparrows would gather there.
They would chirrup noisily. Some perched on her legs and shoulders. Some sat even
on her head. She enjoyed feeding them. She never pushed them away. It was her
happiest half an hour.

Q24. What was the happiest moment of the day for the grandmother?
Ans: The happiest half-hour of her day used to be the time when grandmother fed
the sparrows. She would sit in the verandah breaking the bread into little bits. The
sparrows would collect around her. They chirped noisily. Some perched on her legs
and shoulders. Some even sat on her head. She relished this game. She never
shooed them away.

Q25. How did the grandmother see the narrator off at the railway station?
Ans: She was not at all sentimental. She kept silent and didn’t show her emotions.
Her lips moved in prayer and her fingers were busy telling the beads of her rosary.
She only kissed the narrator’s forehead. He cherished the moist imprint as perhaps
the last sign-of physical contact between them.

Q26. What was the “last sign” of physical contact between the author and the
grandmother? Why did the author think that to be the last physical contact?
Ans: The grandmother, kissed Khushwant Singh on his forehead. The author
thought that this was perhaps the last sign of physical contact between them. He
was going away for five years. She was extremely old and at her age one could
never tell whether she would be alive for long.

Q27. Why didn’t the grandmother pray in the evening on the day narrator came back
home?
Ans: There was a strange change in her behaviour. She was over-excited. She
celebrated the arrival of her grandson. She collected all the women of the
neighbourhood. For hours she continued singing and beating the drum. She had to
be persuaded to stop to avoid overstraining. Perhaps it was the first time that she
didn’t pray.

Q28. How did the grandmother die?

Ans: The grandmother realised that her end was near. She continued praying. Her
fingers were busy in telling the beads of her rosary. She lay peacefully in bed. She
did not talk to anyone. After sometime, her lips stopped moving. The rosary fell down
from her fingers. She died peacefully.

Q29. How did the sparrows show that they had not come for the bread?
OR
How did the sparrows pay their last homage to the grandmother?
Ans: The grandmother lay dead. Thousands of sparrows came there. They did not
chirrup. They paid their last homage to the old lady silently. She used to feed them
regularly. The narrator’s mother threw some crumbs of bread to them. They took no
notice of them. As soon as the grandmother’s corpse was carried off, they flew away
quietly.

Q30. Everybody including the sparrows mourned grandmother’s death. Elaborate.

Ans: The old grandmother died peacefully. The members of the author’s family
mourned her death. Thousands of sparrows came and sat silently in the courtyard
and the verandah where grandmother lay dead and wrapped in a red shroud. They
took no notice of the bread crumbs thrown to them. They flew away quietly the
moment grandmother’s corpse was carried off.

Long Answer Type Questions

Q1. Describe the friendship ‘between Khushwant Singh and his grandmother.
Ans: Khushwant Singh’s grandmother was closely involved in bringing him up when
the author lived with her in the village during his early life. She used to wake him up
early in the morning. While bathing and dressing him, she sang her prayers. She
hoped that the young boy would learn it by heart. She then gave him breakfast—a
stale chapatti with butter and sugar. Then they would go together to the temple
school. While the author learnt his lesson, the grandmother would read holy books.
They returned home together.
A turning point came in their friendship when his parents called them to city.
Although they shared a room, she could not help him much. She hated music,
Science and Western education. The common link of their friendship was gradually
snapped.

Q2. What image of the grandmother emerges from ‘The Portrait of a Lady’?
Ans: Khushwant Singh’s grandmother has been portrayed as a very old lady. She
was short statured, fat and slightly bent. Her face was wrinkled and she was always
dressed in spotless white clothes. She was a deeply religious lady. Her lips were
always moving in a silent prayer. She was always telling the beads of her rosary.
She went to the temple and read the scriptures.
The grandmother was a kind lady. She used to feed dogs in the village. In the city
she took to feeding the sparrows. She had great affection for her grandson. She
looked after him in the village. She could not adjust herself to the Western way of
life, Science and English education. She hated music and was distressed to know
that there was no teaching about God and holy books at Khushwant’s new English
school. On the whole, she was a nice, kind-hearted and religious lady.

Q3. Write a character sketch of the author’s grandmother by using following words:
affectionate, caring, kind and benevolent, religious, a strong woman.
Ans: Khushwant Singh’s grandmother was a very old lady. She was short, fat and
slightly bent. Her face was wrinkled. She had white hair. She was very affectionate.
She was closely involved in bringing up the author. The two lived in the village. She
was a caring grandmother. She would wake him early in the morning and get him
ready for school. She served him breakfast and took him to school. She waited for
him in the temple. She prayed while he studied. She returned with him.
She was kind and benevolent. She used to feed dogs in the village. In the city she
took to feeding the sparrows. She was a deeply religious lady. Her lips were always
moving in a silent prayer. She was always telling the beads of her rosary. She went
to the temple and read the scriptures.
She was a strong woman with strong beliefs. Although she was not formally
educated, she was serious about the author’s education. She could not adjust
herself to the western way of life, Science and English education. She hated music.
She was distressed to know that there was no teaching about God and holy books at
Khushwant’s new English school. On the whole, she was a nice, affectionate, kind
hearted and religious lady.

Q4: The grandmother herself was not formally educated but was serious about the
author’s education. How does the text support this?
Ans: The grandmother was quite serious about the author’s education. She woke
him up in the morning and got him ready for school. She washed his wooden slate.
She plastered it with yellow chalk. She tied his earthen ink-pot and reed pen into a
bundle. She took him to school. He studied in school. She waited for him in the
temple reading scriptures.
In the city, the author went to an English school in a motor bus. When he came back
she would ask him what the teacher had taught him. She could not help him with his
lessons. She did not believe in the things taught at the English school. She was
distressed to learn that her grandson was being taught music. She considered it unfit
for gentle folk.
Q5. Gradually the author and the grandmother saw less of each other and their
friendship was broken. Was the distancing in the relationship deliberate or due to
demand of the situation?
Ans: During his boyhood, grandmother was a part of his life. He was completely
dependent on her. The turning point in their friendship came when they went to city.
Now, he went to school by bus. She no longer accompanied him. As the years rolled
by they saw less of each other. For sometimes she continued to wake him up and
got him ready for school. When he came back, she would ask him what the teachers
had taught. She did not believe in the things that were taught at school. She was
distressed that there was no teaching about God and the scriptures. She felt
offended that music was also being taught. She expressed her disapproval silently.
After this she rarely talked to him. When he went up to university, he was given a
room of his own. The common link of friendship was snapped. Now she spent most
of her time at the spinning wheel. Thus, we find that the distancing in the relationship
was due to demand of situation. The graph of life never follows a straight line.

Q6: The word ‘portrait’ generally means a painting, a drawing or a photograph but
here it implies a representation or impression of someone in language. Write a pen
picture of your grandparents describing the qualities you admire and appreciate
most.
Ans: I am lucky that my grandparents are still alive. They live in our native village.
My grandfather is about 70. My grandmother is about 65. My grandfather served in
the army before he retired as a colonel 20 years ago. He is still active and smart. He
has strong will power and manliness in the way he carries himself. He is fond of
walking and jogging. He looks after the family farm and briefs the workers every
morning. In the evening he asks each of them to report the progress and work done.
He believes in trusting people. Even then he has some surprise checks. My
grandmother is a bit fat and small. She is slow moving. She is deeply religious. She
visits the temple every morning. She supervises the household work and activities.
She helps the poor and the needy. She is kind, generous and hospitable. My
grandparents visit us in the city on important days such as birthdays or marriage
anniversaries etc. We spend a part of our holidays with them. Their company is a
blessing.

Q7: Imagine that you are Khushwant Singh. Record the changes that came in your
relationship with your grandmother as you grew up from kid to university student.
Ans: During my boyhood days I lived with my grandmother in the village. She used
to wake me up in the morning and prepared me for school. She accompanied me to
school. A turning point came in our friendship when my parents sent for us in the
city. Now I went to an English school in the motor bus. I was taught English, Science
and music. She could not help me in my studies. She hated Science, music and
Western education. We still shared the same room, but talked less and less. When I
joined the university, I was given a separate room and our common link of closeness
was finally snapped.