In the 13th century, a young Persian girl named Sitara finds her life shattered when she is separated from her mother and sold into slavery. Wandering the slave market in the city of Tus, she is taken in not by a master seeking labor, but by a family of scholars who recognize the potential in her desperate eyes. Under their care, Sitara discovers that in a world poised for conquest, the most potent weapon is knowledge. She immerses herself in the medical techniques and scientific wisdom of Persia, trading a life of servitude for one of intellectual pursuit.

This fragile peace is irrevocably destroyed when the Mongol Empire, under the unstoppable command of Emperor Genghis Khan, descends upon Tus. During the brutal invasion led by the commander Tolui, Sitara’s mentor is killed defending her, and she is captured and forcibly taken to the heart of the Mongolian steppe. Stripped of her home and consumed by grief, she sheds her former identity and adopts the name Fatima. Her quest for survival transforms into a cold, calculated plot for revenge against the empire that destroyed her life.

Once inside the Mongol court, Fatima finds herself in a new kind of cage: the Khan’s palace. Her profound understanding of science, medicine, and logic is mistaken by the warriors for a form of magic, earning her the title of jaadugar, or witch. She falls under the notice of Töregene, the formidable sixth wife of Ögedei Khan. A woman of immense political ambition confined by the traditions of a patriarchal empire, Töregene sees in Fatima a unique tool. Together, these two women form an unlikely alliance, becoming the axle upon which the politics of the palace turn. As Fatima navigates the dangerous intrigues of the harem, she must decide if she will use her intellect merely to survive, or to become the witch who toys with an entire continent.

The narrative is defined by Fatima’s psychological transformation from a victim into a strategic mastermind. Her magic is not supernatural, but the rigorous application of observation and logic in a world that values brute force. The series explores the tension between the structured wisdom of the Persian world and the fluid, martial culture of the Mongols, asking whether knowledge can survive displacement without becoming a tool of the conqueror. Her relationship with Töregene is central to the plot; it is a space of mutual suspicion, intellectual attraction, and negotiation, where both women struggle to exert influence in a system designed to silence them. Other key figures include Tolui, the general whose actions set Fatima on her path, and Shira and Muhammad, figures from her past who represent the humanity and connections she lost.

Produced by Science SARU and scheduled to premiere in July 2026, the series is helmed by executive director Naoko Yamada (A Silent Voice) and director Abel Gongora. Based on the award-winning manga A Witch’s Life in Mongol by Tomato Soup, which ranked first in Kono Manga ga Sugoi for female readers in 2023, Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia is positioned as a historical drama that uses the vast landscape of the Mongol Empire as a stage for a deeply personal story of resilience, revenge, and the transformative power of knowledge.