Summary

“The Fourth Night”, Part 1, pp. 97 – 128. As he resumes his letter to Premier Jiabao, Balram begins with commentary about the chandeliers he has in his apartment, revealing that he is a man in “hiding” and that he finds a lot of humor in the fact that he’s supposed to be hidden, but is surrounded by light. He also says that looking at a chandelier helps him remember things. He then resumes his story, continuing with a description of how he, Ashok, and Pinky Madam began their lives in Delhi. He describes the living arrangements (the family upstairs in a luxurious apartment in a modern part of the city; him downstairs, in a concrete cellar with all the other servants of all the other families); and a conversation with someone who becomes an unexpected ally – a driver, unnamed by the narration, who suffers from vitiligo...