Dr KP Mathur was possibly the last few people Prime Minister Indira Gandhi spoke with before her assassination. Her personal physician for more than 18 years, Dr Mathur, now 92, despite his disintegrating memory, recounts with haunting clarity what transpired between him and the PM on the morning of the tragedy. “I had gone to her Safdarjung Road residence (New Delhi) for a routine check-up,” he says, “She was getting ready for an interview with British actor Peter Ustinov scheduled in the adjoining house. Two make-up artistes were busy preparing her for it. She was her usual happy self, but in a bit of a hurry to make it on time. After I was done, we exchanged pleasantries, and I left for my duty at Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital. She, on the other hand, took the other exit to meet Ustinov.”