“I heard many foreigners and not a few Indians complain about the corruption that adhered to every aspect of public and commercial life in Bombay. My few weeks in the city had already shown me that those complaints were often fair, and often true. But there's no nation uncorrupted. There's no system that's immune to the misuse of money. Privileged and powerful elites grease the wheels of their progress with kickbacks and campaign contributions in the noblest assemblies. And the rich, all over the world, live longer and healthier lives than the poor. There is a difference between the dishonest bride and the honest bribe, Didier Levy once said to me. The dishonest bribe is the same in every country but the honest bride is India's alone. I smiled when he said that because I knew what he meant. India was open. India was honest. And I liked that from the first day.”