Mallikajaan is one of the primary protagonists in Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar. Manisha Koirala plays the characters in the show.
Mallikajaan is the Huzoor of Shahi Mahal, as the head courtesan of the elite house in all of Heeramandi. She wields power and command not just among other courtesans and nautch girls, but her influence spreads well above and beyond.
Since so many nawabs frequent the houses, its natural she can court favors from any of them. It’s also natural for her to know a great deal about these British-loyal aristocrats. This gives her immense power.
A dark past
Mallikajaan was treated most harshly by her elder sister Rehana, who used to be the Huzoor back when she was younger. Rehana was cruel to her own sister and even sold her son to a Nawab.
Mallika was deprived of her happiness and yet she continued living under her sister’s thumb until she confirmed that her oppression would never cease, which is when she decided to kill Rehana.
After killing her, an act that was witnessed by Nawab Zulfikar — Rehana’s client who was secretly stolen by Mallika — the two made Rehana’s murder to look like she committed suicide.
The cycle of abuse
Mallikajaan went on to become a very toughened woman, whose trauma and treatment had rendered her into the same cruel and cold-hearted woman that her elder sister used to be.
As the huzoor of Shahi Mahal, she presides over every minor to major decisions and changes. She continues the cycle of abuse as she frequently deprives her own family members of their rights and freedom.
She constricts, forbids, and keeps a tight leash on everyone. She fulfills her younger sister Waheeda’s demand after decades, only to snatch it right back and give it to someone else within the same day.
She forbids her youngest daughter Alamzeb from chasing after her dreams of becoming a poetess, and continually coerces her to become a courtesan, dreaming she’ll inherit the Shahi Mahal from her and become the next Huzoor.
Mallikajaan is especially ferocious in her battle for the ownership of Shahi Mahal against her niece Fareedan, who returns as an adult with a vengeance against the murderer of her mother.
The formidable courtesan
However, she’s also an untameable beast and willing to sacrifice even her modesty for the sake of saving her loved ones, like she does when she lets the British officers rape her in exchange for the release of Alamzeb.
Everyone surrounding her hates her, and for good reasons too, but all of them also have a deep respect for her as an unmatched and unrivaled courtesan.
She also feels proud of her elder daughter Bibbojaan, who takes after her and becomes a courtesan with tremendous skill and talent. When Bibbo kills Henderson as a freedom fighter, Mallika expresses her pride for her rebel daughter.
While Bibbo gets executed, Mallika, who agrees to a truce with Fareedan to fight against the British together, rallies with all her people of Heeramandi, taking the bearings of the British army, yet unfazed and determined as ever.
Also Read: Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar summary and ending explained