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Synopsis Nasiruddhin Haider, the Nawab of Awadh, had always had problems with his hair. Whatever he did it contrived to remain as flat and straight as ever, like the fringe of a silken tapestry. When an English barber turned up at court and offered to curl the royal locks, the King opened his heart to him. Before long the Englishman became not only his barber but (as is the way with hairdressers) his confidant and friend. Now, what the barber wanted was wealth and power, so, when he fell out with the King’s favourite wife, he saw a way to use his influence to good effect. Knowing the King’s weakness for all things British, he decided to replace the queen with a choice of his won. In this way, a beautiful young Englishwoman found herself the consort of an Indian king. In Paris, an unhappy actress is sent a biography by her agent who would like her to take the role of the book’s heroine in a film which is about to be made. The book is the story of a young Englishwoman, the wife of the Nawab of Awadh. Forgetting her sadness, the actress reads on. Vijay Singh has created a skilful and entrancing narrative which could come straight from The Arabian Nights, a deft manipulation of fantasy and reality.