By Subhash K Jha

"Aunty Ayesha (Gayatri Devi) mother was a personal friend of my mother-in-law. The two families have been very very close. It was a very long association. She was very much part of my wedding and she was very fond of cricket.

Once she asked me a question about a cricket and I didn't know the answer and she said, ‘Why don't you know? Aren't you married to Tiger (Pataudi)? In fact we were in London when she fell ill. She was admitted to a hospital. She was remarkably versatile.

She was very keenly interested in sports and has written a cookbook...I've a signed copy. When she was in a roomful of people she made every single person feel special. When I got engaged to Pat she came across the entire length of the room, came and talked to me in Bengali. That one-to-one made me feel so special.

That time I was so young and so frightened. Her attention made me feel so confident. I've never forgotten that. Even very recently she would dress up and come out.

In London when we were there recently, she wanted to see the new Kyra Knightley film The Duchess. I remembered how I had arranged a show of my film Anupama in the 1960s for Aunty Ayesha's mother who was on a wheelchair.

I told Aunty Ayesha if The Duchess was in India I'd have definitely arranged a special screening for her.... She joined parliament and was such a glamorous presence there.And she coped with the jail sentence with such dignity.

Until the end there were so many dignitaries in her house. My husand was very close to Aunty Ayesha. She was exceptionally fond of him. I remember we were at a very well-known designer's exhibition and she said, ‘Is a table cloth or something to wear?' We burst out laughing.

She really enjoyed life. Her husband taught her all the etiquettes. He groomed her and made her what she was.She was the patron of the arts. And she did a lot for polo. I'll most certainly miss her. If a film on her life was made today I can't think of anyone who could fit in.

She had a quality that's hard to find these days. The way she held herself , the way she moved... that's hard to replicate. She was a fun person to be with. Not one of those boring people. She was great fun to be."