BLOOD LINE: Queen Elizabeth II

The Raj still lives on

As is well known by now, neither the Queen nor the Duke of Edinburgh will be attending the wedding of Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles next Friday at Windsor Guild Hall.

You can take it from me I would have had stern words with Swraj and Aruna Paul had they suddenly declared they were going to give the marriage of Angad and Michelle a miss. And it would have also have been unthinkable for Lakshmi and Usha Mittal to have absented themselves when Vanisha and Amit were married in France last summer.

The only explanation that makes sense to Her Majesty?s subjects is that she is not frightfully keen, as they say in British racing circles, on the said Camilla.

However, the Queen will be present at the blessings at Windsor Castle and pay for the reception afterwards, which is better than nothing, I suppose.

I have been scanning the guest list for the party to see if I can recognise any Indian names. Though Charles has enjoyed much Indian hospitality and support over the years, his list seems a remarkably Indian-free zone.

There are plenty of altu faltu relatives and European royalty. There is Sabrina Guinness, an ex-girlfriend of Prince Charles; Lucia Santa Cruz, also described as an ?ex-girlfriend?; Joanna Lumley, an actress; and Barry Humphries, an Australian comedian.

On Camilla?s side, there is her father, Major Bruce Shand, her sister, Annabel Elliot, and her brother, Mark, who befriends elephants in Assam. Camilla?s children, Tom and Laura Parker Bowles, are coming, as are the young princes, William and Harry.

So far as Indians are concerned, there is no mention of Amjad Ali Khan, who has played the sarod at the prince?s private parties. Even Gulshan Grover has been left off, even though the Bollywood heavy was unwise enough to spend ?330 buying candles at Highgrove, Prince Charles?s Gloucestershire home.

What the guest list proves is that Indians in England may have become very rich and even manoeuvred their way into the House of Lords but, socially, the spirit of the Raj still lives on. Even with such a progressive man as Prince Charles.

Rhythms : Book cover of Broken Verses

Kamila?s story

Compared with the number of English-language writers from India, there are relatively few from Pakistan. But one such is Kamila Shamsie, who has just brought out her fourth novel, Broken Verses (Bloomsbury; ?15.99).

I first met Kamila, who is 32, along with her mother, Muneeza Shamsie, who is also an author, when she published her first novel, City by the Sea. Kamila then attracted further acclaim with Kartography and Salt and Saffron.

As a writer, Kamila is in a difficult situation. As someone who still spends time in her home city of Karachi, she instinctively defends Pakistan when abroad. Yet, she is clearly worried about the growing influence of Islamic fundamentalists in Pakistan, for which she partly blames George Bush. She now spends part of the year teaching in America.

I remember Kamila telling me once, with a certain amount of wry humour, that she was all set to collect the Prime Minister?s award for literature in Pakistan. Unfortunately for Kamila, that very day Nawaz Sharif was ousted by General Pervez Musharraf.

I hope Kamila has better luck with Broken Verses, which I have just received and which seems to have a promising storyline ? a daughter?s search for her missing mother, whose poet lover was found mysteriously murdered 16 years ago. The tale is set in present-day Karachi.

VIEW FROM THE TOP: The painting by Edward Lear to go under the hammer

Not too far

London has a little tradition involving Javed Akhtar. Every few months the Bollywood lyricist comes over to the UK for yet another awards ceremony in the course of which he goes to the platform and collects a statuette for best something or the other. To his great credit, he always expresses delight and humility at being honoured, although we all know there is no room left on his mantelpiece. At one show even he was embarrassed at being called five times. This time the awards were organised by Zee. Everyone had a great time, especially those who couldn?t make it.

The point is, these ceremonies are now as common as one-dayers. We would miss them if they weren?t there but they are treated with the seriousness they deserve.

Anyway, in between collecting awards, Javedsaab had time for a chat last week with Michael Ward, producer of The Far Pavilions, the musical which started previewing in London on March 24.

Ward tells me he is still fine-tuning the musical, which is based on M.M. Kaye?s long novel, before the critics troop in on April 14, scalpels at the ready, for the formal ?First Night?. The singer, Gayatri Iyer, imported from India to play the female lead, Princess Anjuli, has impressed Ward.

?We are already getting bookings from Mumbai,? he said.

His talks with Javedsaab were about adapting the musical into a Hindi film for which the scriptwriter of Sholay will write the lyrics and perhaps even co-write the screenplay as well.

?We might call it something like Dur ka Himalaya ? or have a competition for the name,? muses Ward, who was born in Assam.

Peak viewing

Another Himalayan peak is making the news. Bonhams, the auctioneers, are selling ?Kinchinjunga? (Kanchenjunga) by the Victorian painter Edward Lear who executed the 1.18 metre by 1.80 metre oil on canvas in 1873. Bonhams, who have included the enchanting painting as part of next month?s sale of travel and topographical pictures, are estimating a sale price of between ?400,000 and ?600,000.

In my imagination I can just imagine Chhabi Biswas pausing to admire the painting in Ray?s 1962 film of the same name.

The painting makes the cover of a Bonham?s catalogue, with an article on ?Lear?s Indian Summer? by his biographer, Vivien Noakes, who curated a major exhibition, Edward Lear: 1812-1888, at the Royal Academy in London 20 years ago.

Lear went to India in 1873 at the invitation of his friend, Thomas Baring, the first Earl of Northbrook, who had become Viceroy of India the previous year. The painting was bought by another of Lear?s friends, Henry Bruce, who had become Lord Aberdare in 1873.

I would like Lakshmi Mittal to buy the painting for his new home. It?s only ?3,333 a centimetre.

Tittle tattle

A profile of Khushwant Singh is also a good read and the interview by Edward Luce in the Financial Times Magazine is fun. Everyone who comes to see Khushwant remarks on the notice by his front door: ?Only ring the bell if you are expected.?

Khushwant revealed he had once signed L. K. Advani?s nominations papers. That was 40 years ago. More recently at a public meeting, Khushwant berated the BJP leader, he told Luce.

In a variation of the comment on Cassius in Julius Caesar, Khushwant told Advani: ?You sowed the seeds of communal hatred in this country. You are a puritan: you neither drink nor womanise. Such men are dangerous.?

As to whether he had any profound thoughts at the age of 90, Khushwant had only one: ?Oh that?s easy. I think about all the opportunities I have missed of seducing women.?