1.

The Portrait of a Lady

Khushwant Singh

(2 February 1915-20 March 2014)

Khushwant singh was one of the prominent Indian
writers and columnists. In the story the author draws a
pen portrait of his grandmother. He has beautifully
written an account of his relationship with her
grandmother.
Appearance of the grandmother
 Old. short, fat and slightly bent.
 Her silver hair scattered untidily on her wrinkled
face.
 She hobbled around the house in white clothes with
one hand resting on her waist and the other telling
the beads of her rosary.
 author remembers her as not very pretty but always
beautiful.
 He compares her calm and serene face to that of a
winter landscape. Daily routine(Chidhood phase in
village) During their long stay in the village 
Grandmother woke him up in the morning, plastered
 his wooden slate, prepared his breakfast, and
accompany him to school.
 While he studied alphabets, she read the scriptures
in the temple attached to the school.  On their way
back home she fed stale chapattis to stray dogs. The
turning point in their relationship (Family moved to
city)
 Author went to a city school in a motor bus and
studied English, law of gravity, Archimedes’ principle
and many more things which she could not
understand at all.
 Grandmother could no longer accompany him to
school nor help him in his studies.
 She was upset that there was no teaching of God
and scriptures at city school.
 Instead he was given music lesson which, according
to her, was not meant for gentlefolk. But she said
nothing. When author went to a university
 He was given a separate room.  The common link of
their friendship was snapped.
 Grandmother rarely talked to anyone now.
 She spent most of her time sitting beside her
spinning wheel, reciting prayers, and feeding the
 sparrows in the afternoon. When the author left for
abroad
 Grandmother did not get disturbed. Rather, she saw
him off at the railway station.
 Seeing her old age, the narrator thought that it was
his last meeting with her.
 But, contrary to his thinking, when he returned after
a span of five years. Grandmother was there to
receive him.
 She celebrated the occasion by singing songs of the
homecoming of warriors on an old, dilapidated
drum, along with the ladies of the neighbourhood.
Last hours of her life
 Next morning, she got a mild fever. She could
foresee that her end was near.
 Peacefully kept on praying and telling the beads till
her lips stopped moving and the rosary fell from her
lifeless fingers. Sparrows paid their silent tribute
 To mourn her death thousands of sparrows flew in
and sat scattered around her body.
 There was no chirruping and when author’s mother
threw breadcrumbs to the sparrows, they took no
notice of the bread.
  They flew away quietly when the dead body of
Grandmother was carried away for last rites.
 Short Answer Questions Answer the following
questions in not more than 30-40 words.
1. Why does the narrator call his grandmother a ‘winter
landscape’?
2. How did Khushwant Singh portray his Grandfather in
the lesson?
3. Which stories of Grandmother did the author treat as
‘Fables of the Prophets’? Why?
4. The author and his Grandmother were good friends in
the village. Support your answer with suitable examples
from the text.
5. Describe the happiest half-hourof the day’ for
Grandmother.
6. ‘We protested. But she ignored our protests’. Who
protested and why? What was the result?
7. How did the sparrows react at the death of the
author’s Grandmother?
8. Mention instances from the lesson to prove that
Grandmother was considerate towards animals.
9. Why was it hard for the author to believe that his
Grandmother had once been young and pretty? 10. Why
did Grandmother always accompany the author to school
in village 11. Why did Grandmother disapprove of the
‘things they taught’ at the English school? 12. How did
the move to the city prove to be the turning point in the
grandmother-grandson relationship? 13. What change
did Khushwant Singh’s return from abroad bring in grand
mother’s routine? 14. Mention some of the incidents
from the lesson to show that Grandmother was very fond
of her grandson. Long Answer Questions Answer the
following in about 120 words. 1. Describe the changing
relationship between the author and his Grandmother?
2. “Animals do recognize and value a relationship
established with human beings”. Write an article on
“Animals and Human Beings” on the basis of the above
statement. 3. The grandmother is a silent voice in the
story. However, her actions reveal her personality. Draw
a character sketch of Grandmother citing examples from
the text. 4. What light does the lesson throw on Indian
family values? 5. ‘When people are pious, kind hearted
and God fearing, even nature mourns their death’. Justify
this statement with reference to The Portrait of a Lady’.
198 XI – English Chapter - 1 The Portrait of a Lady By
Khuswant Singh Short answer Type Q.1. How did the
grandmother spend her whole day? Ans. The grand
mother spend her whole day by getting her grandson
ready for the school, making chapattis for him and
dropping him to school. Besides, she always remained
busy in reciting prayers and telling the beads of her
rosary. Q.2. Why was the grandmother so disturbed
when the narrator started gong to the city school? Ans.
The grandmother was a religious lady who loved to read
scriptures and tell the beads of the rosary. When her
grandson told her about the subjects being taught at
school. She felt offended and reacted strangely.
According to her music was a monopoly of harlots and
beggars. Q.3. How did the sparrows express their sorrow
when the author's grandmother died? Ans. Author's
grandmother was very fond of feeding sparrows with
beads crumbs. When the grandmother died, the
sparrows did not take notice of bread crumbs and flew
away without eating them. In this way, they expressed
their sorrow at her death. Q.4. How did the author's
grandmother behave just before her death? Ans. The
author's grandmother had got a fair enough idea bout
her upcoming death. Therefore, she decided not to
waste even a single second while talking to her relatives
but reciting the prayers and telling the beads of her
rosary. She gave a clear signal to her family that she was
no longer interested in talking to them. Q.5. Why did the
grandmother hate music? Ans. Grandmother considered
that music was indecent and was meant only for harlots
and beggars. It was not meant for gentle folk or school
children from respectable families. Q.6. Why was it hard
to believe that the author's grandmother was young and
pretty? Ans. It was hard to believe that the author's
grandmother was young and pretty because she author,
as a young boy, had always seen her as an old lady. She
was short XI – English 199 statured and wrinkled all over.
She had a quiet personality whom everybody respected.
So, to imagine her as a young and a pretty girl was a
revolting thought for the author. Q.7. Why was the grand
mother dissatisfied with the city's education? Ans. The
grand mother was dissatisfied with the city's education
because they never taught about the scriptures and God.
The teachers taught science, the law of gravity etc. which
was not of much importance to her. Q.8. What was the
turning point in the author's and the grandmother's
relationship? Ans. The author had to be sent to a big city
for education. This was the turning point in his and the
grandmother's relationship. The author began to receive
education in a English medium school. The grandmother
could not assist him with his assignment and therefore,
became withdrawn. She began to feel lonely and fed
sparrows in her past time.