Guide Mentor

Character Role Analysis

Ama, Shahanna

Ama is naturally the mentor figure for Lakshmi in Nepal—she's her mother, after all. Ama guides Lakshmi through her transition from girl to woman, and she models how Lakshmi should behave in her society. It's through Ama that Lakshmi learns how to work, how to manage money, how to treat men, and how she should expect to be treated.

But in the brothel—when Ama is thousands of miles away—Shahanna steps in to fill the void of the mentor. She explains the new rules in Lakshmi's life, helps her through her transition from innocent to brothel worker (for a really interesting comparison, reread the chapters "Everything I Need to Know" and "Everything I Need to Know Now"), and explains how the brothel actually works.

In both Nepal and India, Lakshmi has help transitioning from one way of life to another. So it's pretty significant that both Ama and Shahanna disappear from Lakshmi's life before she's rescued.