Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar featuring an ensemble female lead cast including Manisha Koirala, Sonakshi Sinha, Sanjeeda Sheikh, Richa Chadha, Aditi Rao Hydari, and Sharmin Segal in lead roles revolves around the lives of courtesans set in the pre-Independence era. While the show received love from audiences, many social media users also shared memes and reels criticising Sharmin’s acting, who played the youngest daughter Alamzeb of Mallikajaan aka Manisha Koirala. Addressing the same, the casting director of the show Shruti Mahajan insisted that the casting process was done after much consideration.In a conversation with India Today, Shruti Mahajan opened up about the casting process saying, “Casting is purely done based on the script and the director’s vision. We only want actors who can enhance the project. And ultimately, it all boils down to what the audience expects from that project.” She further explained her decision adding, “I have not learnt to cast from a school but honed my skills over a period of time. Sometimes it’s a larger-than-life film, at times you want gritty performances. I think when a project is well received, that’s the end of such discussions. The more one project works, the more we can produce.”While Manisha Koirala, Sonakshi Sinha, Sanjeeda Sheikh, and others are basking in the rave reviews, Sharmin received a lot of flak for her acting chops, especially in emotional sequences where audiences criticised her for maintaining the ‘same expressions’ throughout the show, further accusing Sanjay Leela Bhansali of nepotism since Sharmin is his niece.
