On May 1, Netflix dropped Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar, directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, the famed director known for his grandiose approach to filmmaking. Not surprisingly, the series is larger than life, depicting the lives of six courtesans portrayed by Manisha Koirala, Sonakshi Sinha, Aditi Rao Hydari, Richa Chadha, Sanjeeda Sheikh and Sharmin Segal. They all live in Heera Mandi, the red-light district of Lahore (once known as the Shahi Mohalla), in the twenties and forties.

They reside in grand havelis replete with glittering chandeliers and tasteful art, wear couture and spout highfalutin Urdu, or at least attempt to. Given Bhansali’s proclivity for creating larger-than-life films, be it Devdas or Padmaavat (to name just two), every frame is magnificent and painstakingly detailed.

The series has received a mixed bag of responses. At one end, people praise the glamour, soundtrack, performances and the fact that it depicts strong women, all of which keeps them engrossed.

The incomparable Rekha, who was once offered Manisha Koirala’s role a decade or two ago, praised the latter’s performance, saying: “Bacha, I was praying if I couldn’t do the role, you would. You have done it marvellously.”

On the other hand, are the haters. They criticise the series for being historically and architecturally inaccurate (the Badshahi Mosque, which is located near Heera Mandi, is nowhere in sight). Furthermore, they claim that the lives of the women in Heera Mandi were anything but glamourous. They lived in insalubrious conditions and hardly had enough money to survive, let alone spend on couture, priceless jewellery or live in grand havelis. Furthermore, they opine that the women in Heera Mandi spoke Punjabi rather than lofty Urdu and that the atmosphere depicted is therefore more reminiscent of Agra, Delhi or Lucknow. My personal grievance is that, given that Heeramandi is primarily set in the forties, there is no mention of Jinnah’s Pakistan, despite the fact that Independence serves as the backdrop of the series.

Bhansali has repudiated these insults by simply stating that his work is not attempting to create an authentic series.

“I was not making a documentary on Heera Mandi…What does a filmmaker do if not bring his own interpretation of reality?”

Bhansali has a point, although I am pretty sure that even if he had concocted an area in pre-Partition India, he would have received flak, because that is what haters do. However, even though there are some loopholes and unresolved storylines, the series is engrossing and leaves you wanting for more. At least it did for me.

However, what is rather laugh-inducing is the number of memes that have surfaced on social media since the series’ release. These include those with women – and bearded men – donning ghararas and attempting to speak Urdu as it is spoken in the series, as well as imitating Aditi Rao’s gajgamani dance moves, in which she shows off her love handles unabashedly (one even has Sheldon Cooper swaying to the song). Needless to say, most of the memes are hilarious, including the ones that emulate Koirala’s use of the word huzoor with aplomb.

A gaffe making the rounds is the one that spots one of Umera Ahmed’s novels – written well after Partition – in a scene that takes place in a bookshop. More recently, keeping Bakra Eid in mind, one Instagrammer created artwork depicting goats and cattle wearing ornate clothing with Bakra Mandi written on it. Many of these rival the memes created for the latest season of Bridgerton – another ‘historical fantasy’ brimming with inaccuracies (of course, we will not hate on it since the colonial hangover is far from gone, but that is another story).

Love it or hate it, Heeramandi has become part of our pop culture for now. And for those who did not hate it, the good news is that a second season has been announced. So what does one do in the meantime? Make do with mandi memes, of course, in case re-watching the series is not your thing. Here are some of our favourites: