The Bastard of Istanbul

Zeliha Kazanci is introduced in the first chapter as a 19-year-old woman with “frizzy raven-black hair” and “jade green” eyes (3). She has a nose-piercing that she gave herself to outrage her mother. She is taller, voluptuous, and fond of “mini-skirts of glowing colors” (3). Zeliha despises conventional femininity, which she associates with modesty and vulnerability. She is the youngest of three daughters and has an elder brother, Mustafa. Zeliha is the only non-religious member of her family, but she does believe in some aspects of mysticism.

Later in life, Zeliha opens a tattoo parlor, where she performs the shamanistic ritual of tattooing heartbroken people with an animal that resembles their beloved. Zeliha differs from her sisters in that she is financially independent and does so well that she buys a sports car, an Alfa Romeo. Her relationship with her daughter, Asya, is often distant, which occasionally frustrates Asya, but Zeliha asserts maternal authority in instances when she feels the need to protect Asya. For instance, Asya feels excluded and confused by Zeliha’s refusal to allow her to accompany the family and Armanoush to the airport to pick up her uncle, Mustafa, and her aunt, Rose. Asya does not yet understand that her mother is trying to protect Asya from learning the truth about her conception.