“He went into the closet to get something one day and there were a bunch of hats on a shelf of different colors. He said, ‘that’s kind of pretty — it would be fun to collect some of them ...

People wear different hats in different contexts,” said Mr. Pillai. One of the central figures of such an exploration in the book is “the Brahmin” who stands at the top of the caste ...

"Previously Gloucestershire had nine different types of headwear," said Ch Insp Bourne. "Those hats were rarely ever worn because they were uncomfortable, impractical, and fell off quite regularly.