Family Matters

This section is narrated in first person by Jehangir, while the rest of the book has been narrated in third person. Five years after the Chenoy family moved into the apartment with Jal, Murad and Yezad get into a fight. Recently, they’ve been getting into arguments more and more. This time, the argument starts about Murad’s haircut—Yezad thinks it’s too short—but quickly becomes about religion. Yezad accuses Murad of being disrespectful and not taking Zoroastrianism seriously. Yezad has been dour for several years, Jehangir thinks, and isn’t anything like the jovial person he used to be.

Nariman died a year after the Chenoy family moved in with Jal. When they first moved in, they hired a woman named Rekha to look after Nariman full-time. Nariman seemed lonelier after they moved into Jal’s apartment because instead of being on the couch in the front room, as he’d been at the Chenoys’ smaller apartment, in Jal’s apartment, Nariman once more had his own room. Rekha proved to be careless, and she was fired less than two months after she started. They then hired a man named Mahesh to look after Nariman. Nariman’s condition continued to deteriorate.

When it was clear Nariman would die in a day or two, Jehangir brought up the promise that Daisy, the violin player who lived below them in their old apartment, had once made to play a private concert for Nariman before he died. Jal and Yezad said it would be unfair to expect Daisy to keep that promise, but Jehangir insisted. He then went to the apartment building where his family used to live. A neighbor told him that Daisy was at rehearsal, and Jehangir went to look for her.

When Jehangir found Daisy and told her about Nariman, Daisy said that she had forgotten about the promise she once made. Jehangir turned to go, but Daisy then collected her things and left with Jehangir. Jehangir and Daisy then returned to the apartment where Nariman was on his deathbed. Daisy played beautifully for him, and Nariman began to hum along to one of the songs. Everyone in the family began to cry. Nariman then passed away with a serene look on his face.

Three months after Nariman died, Daisy had a concert with the Bombay Symphony Orchestra. Jehangir told his parents that he thought they should go, but Roxana and Yezad said they were still in mourning for Nariman, so it wouldn’t be proper for them to go. Jehangir then insisted that he wanted to go. Roxana and Yezad gave him permission but maintained that they were not going to go. Jal ended up going with Jehangir. At the concert, Daisy was a soloist, and Jehangir and Jal beamed with pride as she played. After the concert, Jehangir and Jal spoke with Daisy, and Daisy invited Jal to come with her to another concert. Jal immediately accepted the invitation. 

In the present (five years after the Chenoy family has moved in with Jal), Yezad sees Murad kissing a young woman, Anjali, on the stairwell. Yezad is irate and tells Murad he can’t be in a relationship with Anjali because she isn’t Parsi. Yezad adds that in their religion, marriages with people of other religions are forbidden because purity must be preserved. Murad becomes angry and says that Yezad is prejudiced and bigoted. He then compares his father’s ideas about purity to Hitler’s. The fight escalates and isn’t resolved.

Meanwhile, it’s almost Murad’s 18th birthday, and everyone in the family is preparing for the party. During the preparations, Jal finds two sets of cufflinks and shirt studs along with a message in Coomy’s handwriting that says that they’re meant for Murad and Jehangir on their wedding days. When Jal shows them to Roxana, Roxana is deeply moved. As part of the birthday preparations, Roxana also gives Jehangir sweets to bring to Inspector Masalavala and Dr. Fritter to thank them for how they have helped the family over the years.

When Jehangir is at Dr. Fritter’s apartment, Dr. Fritter brings up Lucy and Yasmin’s deaths. He says that in the aftermath, rumors abounded, as people wondered if their deaths had been a double murder, a suicide pact, or an accident. Dr. Fritter says that he heard Yasmin’s last words, which were, “What did we do?” Some people misheard those words, though, and thought she said, “What did he do?” which they interpreted as incriminating for Nariman. But, Dr. Fritter clarifies, that isn’t what she said. Instead, she was implicating herself in the last question she asked.

Meanwhile, Yezad decides that they cannot keep holy pictures of figures from other religions in the house. He plans to dispose of those pictures ceremonially by letting them float out into the sea. Jehangir accompanies Yezad to perform the ritual, and the two sit in silence, watching the ocean. While sitting there, Jehangir wants to tell his father that he doesn’t recognize the person Yezad has become, and he misses the person who laughed and told jokes. But Jehangir doesn’t say anything.

Not long after, Yezad imposes a rule in the house whereby Roxana cannot enter the drawing room and must sleep in a separate room from Yezad when she is on her period. Roxana asks why Yezad has become so strict and embraced orthodoxy, and Yezad says he was ignorant before but has since studied and learned more. Yezad then threatens to kick Murad out of the house if he doesn’t follow Yezad’s rules. Roxana says kicking Murad out of the house would kill her and is out of the question.

Roxana confides in Jehangir and says she thinks their problems are related to moving into the apartment with Jal. She adds that Nariman warned them not to go to that apartment, which Nariman associated with a kind of doom. Roxana tells Yezad that she thinks Nariman died prematurely because she stopped taking care of him herself. Yezad says that while she was taking care of Nariman, she neglected the rest of the family. Jehangir speaks up and says that that isn’t true.

The day of Murad’s 18th birthday comes. He takes part in the ritual to mark the occasion, and when Yezad says a prayer before hugging Murad, Murad doesn’t roll his eyes or otherwise act like he’s annoyed. Roxana and Yezad then give Murad a new watch for his birthday. Afterward, Roxana says that the clock in the kitchen needs to be wound. Yezad says that Murad can do it. Roxana lays out the fine china on the table, which was a gift from Nariman. Jehangir then thinks fondly of his grandfather.

Roxana then asks Jehangir to help her in the kitchen. He says yes but doesn’t get up. He then thinks of Yezad, who he feels has become an overly religious stranger, and of his mother, who seems to always be busy. Roxana then asks Jehangir if he’s okay and if he’s happy. Jehangir responds that he is happy.