Like this one

Here they talk about certain figures in hindu stories and traditions that may count as queer,however,shikhandi's part is this

I don't know why people don't realize shikhandi was a TRANS MAN.

He was born a woman,then due to the gender exchange with a yaksha,he became a man(it's even mentioned in some lines that he had kids with his wife)

Shikhandi is referred by every other person as a man,also,this is from the udyoga parva:

"Bhishma didn't fight shikhandi,recognizing her unique identity"

Bhishma's vow included not fighting women,or anyone he perceived as feminine

The following line is said by Bhishma.

Jaskirat is Arjuna in this case. The fighter and avenger and warrior supreme. Sanyal obviously is Krishna considering he is pulling the strings of Jaskirat and laying the ultimate trap, the master of the chessboard.

In a way Hamza, Jaskirat's identity can be paralleled into how Arjuna was in disguise as Brihannala. Not exactly apt but you get the gist. The espionage factor during the incognito period of the Pandavas' exile.

And Hamza had to kill his family, his loved ones (as Hamza not Jaskirat) for dharma, for the righteous deed and for his motherland. So in this scenario I feel like I can parallel Rehman as Bhishma considering he is somewhat of a father figure as shown in the movie. The mentor. He is nearly invincible and the first domino that needed to be felled to destroy the Kauravas (here to get to the heart of the underworld nexus in Lyari).

Hamza loved him but he killed him like Arjuna had to. He couldn't do it alone so he took help from Amba/Shikhandi who in a way could be called Bhishma's own karma coming back to haunt him. Though I can't quite match Aslam to Shikhandi but then again, you get the basic gist.

I think I have losened some screw in my head.

My mahabharata heart is crying.

Princess Amba was way ahead of her time. She refused to accept a swayamvar that turned into abduction, openly declared her love, and stood her ground in a world that expected women to stay silent. Even when the man she loved abandoned her, she didn’t shrink herself to fit society’s expectations—she demanded justice. She wasn't one to bow down. She was one to hold her head up high. She was one to know her worth. She was a WOMAN.

She questioned the injustice done not just to herself, but to her sisters too. She refused to be treated as a burden or a “charity case.” And when every door was shut on her, she chose not submission, but resistance.

Her story isn’t soft or easy—it’s fierce, painful, and relentless. She didn’t just endure; she transformed her suffering into purpose, into a vow that would echo across lifetimes.

It’s no surprise that she returns as Shikhandi, the sister of Draupadi—because Amba was never meant to be forgotten. She was never meant to bow down.

But we also have to agree canon Mahabharat Shikahndi doesn't exactly count as trans man in the typical sense. Since his sex was changed to be a biological male with fully functioning reproductive organs and even hormones. To the point he was able to have kids of his own.

Yes, him being a trans icon is my favourite thing ever. But acknowledging he probably wasn't the best example of transgender people, or that pre sex change Shikhandini wasn't a trans man is also important.

Before he changed his sex with the Yaksha, she was just a biological woman born as a female but raised to live as a man. That's his identity. A very tomboyish prince(ss).

It is after her* wedding to the princess of Darsana that she* went to the Yaksha and changed to be a complete biological man. And lived as one his entire life.

(Or, my favourite guy dressed up for his favourite guy)

Shikhandi: *on the phone* Hold on just a 😅 just a second my sib-my siblings 😅 are-... Im sorry 😅-

Shikhandi: *turns to them* STOP 👹👹👹

Draupadi and Drishtadhumnya: *frozen*

Shikhandi'a wife: *wheezing at a corner*

Shikhandi: GET OFF THE COUCH 👹👹👹

Draupadi and Drishtadhumnya: *do so in a millisecond*

Frames:

Shikhandi: Cloaks.

Yudhamanyu: Little hats.

Uttamaujas: Big hats.