A wealthy Muslim woman who finances the Hummingbird’s political campaign. Her name roughly translates to “the Queen of Nothing” in English, and she is Aadam’s close friend and intellectual ally when the Reverend Mother refuses to discuss politics with him. Rani provides the lawyer and mullah, an Islamic advisor, when Aadam’s daughter, Mumtaz, marries Nadir Kahn, the Hummingbird’s personal secretary. She also gifts the couple a beautifully ornamented silver spittoon as a wedding gift, which the two spend countless happy hours playing hit-the-spittoon with. Rani is described as a pale woman who grows increasingly lighter as she suffers from an unknown illness, turning completely white by the time of her death, a phenomenon mirrored by postcolonial Indian businessmen. Rushdie’s depiction of modern Indians turning white underscores the lasting influence of British colonialism on postcolonial India.
Rani of Cooch Naheen Quotes in Midnight’s Children
The Midnight’s Children quotes below are all either spoken by Rani of Cooch Naheen or refer to Rani of Cooch Naheen. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Book 1: Hit-the-Spittoon
Quotes
“I started off as a Kashmiri and not much of a Muslim. Then I got a bruise on the chest that turned me into an Indian. I’m still not much of a Muslim, but I’m all for Abdullah. He’s fighting my fight.”
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Rani of Cooch Naheen Quotes in Midnight’s Children
The Midnight’s Children quotes below are all either spoken by Rani of Cooch Naheen or refer to Rani of Cooch Naheen. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Book 1: Hit-the-Spittoon
Quotes
“I started off as a Kashmiri and not much of a Muslim. Then I got a bruise on the chest that turned me into an Indian. I’m still not much of a Muslim, but I’m all for Abdullah. He’s fighting my fight.”
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
