The Henna Artist

Lakshmi succeeds in reviving the young maharani, and her client list grows as a result. She, Malik, and Radha are kept busy from morning until night, though Radha still appears unhappy. Because Radha won’t tell Lakshmi what’s bothering her, Lakshmi goes to see Kanta, whom Radha trusts.

While Lakshmi and Kanta are visiting, Radha bursts in with a black eye. She is surprised to see her older sister there. When pressed, she confessed that Sheela elbowed her during a dance class. Radha says all the girls dislike her because she dresses differently. Kanta has a ready solution. She books an appointment for a stylish haircut and orders English clothes so that Radha will fit in. Lakshmi says, “Kanta always knew just what to say and do to make my sister happy when I seemed to have no clue” (158).

By late April, the new house is ready, and Lakshmi plans a moving-in ceremony. She invites all the neighbors and has a priest perform the necessary rituals. During the festivities, Lakshmi notices that Radha has an upset stomach and needs to excuse herself repeatedly to use the bathroom.

That evening, Lakshmi grows suspicious that Radha is pregnant. Furious, she goes in search of Hari, assuming he is the father. When she finds him, she attacks him, but he protests his innocence, saying he would never take advantage of a child. In fact, he is trying to help the prostitutes of the district using the healing arts his mother taught him. He says, “Maa taught me what she taught you, after you left. And I understood, at last, why those women sought her out. She was their last hope” (171). Hari uses the money Lakshmi gave him to help women in need to get medical help.

Lakshmi finally believes him and goes home. Radha is sleeping, but Lakshmi rouses her and insists that her sister abort the baby. Radha refuses, saying, “I’ll tell the father, and we’ll marry. We’ll keep the baby” (177). Lakshmi questions what will happen if the father is uninterested, but Radha won’t listen and flees into the night. When she still hasn’t returned the following morning, Lakshmi begins to worry. Kanta arrives at her house to say that Radha came to seek refuge with her. The two women console one another over the catastrophe.

Lakshmi accompanies Kanta to her house, where they confront Radha. The girl finally admits that Samir’s son, Ravi, is the father. The couple began meeting outside the polo grounds and started having an affair. When the women point out that Radha is only 13 and much too young to be a mother, Radha insists that Ravi will want to marry her and raise the baby. Kanta blames herself for exposing Radha to romantic notions from Western books and movies. Unable to reason with Radha, Lakshmi leaves to clear her head.

Lakshmi walks for hours. In a poor section of town, she encounters a Singh family servant who was thrown out after she became pregnant by Ravi. Eventually, Lakshmi ends up in the district where Samir’s current mistress lives. Lakshmi asks to wait until he arrives. She goes to an upstairs guestroom, where she falls asleep.

When Samir appears, the two make love, even though his current mistress is waiting downstairs. Afterward, Lakshmi tells Samir about Ravi and Radha. Samir is unsympathetic and advises that she get rid of the baby. Lakshmi says Radha has refused, but as her legal guardian, the elder sister can force her to give up the infant. Samir and Lakshmi then hatch an adoption plan. Ravi is related to royalty, and the maharajah is looking to adopt a successor. With Radha’s Brahmin caste status, the child might have a suitable pedigree, providing it is male.

Samir is a favorite of the dowager maharani’s and says he will arrange the transaction. Ravi will be sent to school immediately in England, and Radha will be sent away from Jaipur to deliver. Lakshmi leaves, disillusioned by Samir’s behavior. She thinks, “His son, Ravi, who already showed signs of growing up to be just like him, would continue to bed young girls too innocent to know he did not care enough” (200).

Kanta, now pregnant, plans to spend the summer in the mountain region around Shimla to avoid the city heat and will take Radha with her so that the two can deliver their babies there. Two weeks later, Lakshmi receives a signed divorce decree from Hari. At the same time, she receives an invitation from the dowager maharani to come to the palace to sign the adoption papers.

Although Lakshmi hesitates at the thought of the child being raised by strangers, she eventually executes the paperwork. While at the palace, she learns that Maharani Indira has agreed to finance Hari’s efforts to help the women of the pleasure district. Lakshmi denies knowing him, despite the fact that they have the same last name.

By the beginning of May, the adoption contract has been finalized, and Radha agrees to give up the baby. Lakshmi corresponds with Samir’s friend, Dr. Kumar. He will be attending to Radha during her pregnancy and will be on hand to deliver the baby.