Rani

Waiting for my debit card to be validated in a cafe, I ask the waitress.  She is tall and thin with hair that is halfway between maroon and red.  I don't think the colour is natural.  She says she thinks it means 'princess' in Indian but she is not sure.  'I'll ask my mum', she says, 'it's hers too'.  She tears the receipt from the chip and pin machine, then calls a shorter and plumper woman from behind the counter.  She has dark hair in curls and large glass crystals hanging from her ears.  They don't look related.  'Yes, it means princess in Indian', she confirms.  I ask if it was her mother's before her.  'No, my mum was English', she tells me, 'my dad was Indian'.