We left as scheduled the next day. By the time we reached Chhindwara, it was almost 6 p.m. A Mr Nagpal was waiting for us at the station in an old Chevrolet. He greeted us with a warm smile. We left immediately, and by a quarter to seven, we were in Bhagwangarh. ‘I will show you to your rooms,’ said Mr Nagpal. ‘The Rajah will meet you at 7.30. I’ll come and pick you up.’ Our rooms turned out to be as large and luxurious as any in a five-star hotel. ‘Good heavens!’ Lalmohan Babu exclaimed. ‘My room here is five times the size of my bedroom back home. It’s a pity we haven’t got the time, or I’d have had a good, long soak in the bathtub.’ Mr Nagpal arrived exactly on time and took us to meet our host. Bhudev Singh was seated on a cane chair in a covered veranda. He had a quiet dignity about him, and looked younger than his age. Feluda introduced us. Bhudev Singh smiled and invited us to sit down. I could smell Hasnuhana as I took a chair, which meant that there was a garden behind the veranda, but I could see nothing in the dark. The conversation that followed turned out to be most interesting. True to his word, Lalmohan Babu did his best to make a contribution. It went thus: Bhudev: How did you find my article? Feluda: Very informative. Chandrasekhar would have remained unknown to us if it hadn’t been for you. Bhudev: The thing is, you see, we don’t often give our artists the credit they deserve. So I thought I’d try and do something worthwhile before I died—after all, I am nearly eighty—and let people know what a very gifted artist Chandra was. I sent my son to Baikunthapur, and he got me a photo of his self-portrait. Feluda: When did you first meet him? Bhudev: Here, it’s all noted in this diary. Let me see . . . yes, he came here to do my portrait on 5 December 1942. I had heard of him from the Nawab of Bhopal. Chandra had already done his portrait. He really had a wonderful skill. Lalmohan: Oh, wonderful! Feluda: Your article said he married an Italian woman. Do you know anything about her? Lalmohan: Anything? Bhudev: Chandra joined the Academy of Fine Arts in Rome. That was where he met Carla Cassini. She came from an aristocratic family. Her father was Count Alberto Cassini. Chandra and Carla fell in love, and she introduced him to her father. What many people didn’t know was that Chandra had a fairly good knowledge of ayurvedic medicine, and he had carried a number of special herbs from here. As it turned out, Carla’s father suffered from gout.

Chandra’s medicines worked on him like magic. It was not difficult after this for him to marry her. They got married in 1917. The Count’s wedding gift to them was a painting. Feluda: That famous