The crowd is confused. The politician fumes. Then, from the back of the crowd, a young woman (a nod to Mastram’s female readers, a recurring theme in the series) shouts: “I don’t care who he is. His stories made me feel less alone.” Others murmur in agreement.
Rajaram breaks down. He confesses that he doesn’t regret the stories — he regrets never signing his real name to anything. Shobha then reveals she has kept a trunk of all his original manuscripts, hidden under their bed. She says: “You wanted to be Mastram. I wanted you to be Rajaram. But maybe you are both.”
The episode opens in Rajaram’s dimly lit room, late at night. He sits with a fountain pen and a fresh notebook. Shobha is asleep in the next room, but the camera lingers on her face — tired, knowing, but no longer angry. She has accepted her husband’s dual life, but the cost is visible. Mastram Season 1 - Episode 10
Inspector Mishra, realizing the political tide has turned, quietly walks away. Phoolchand is arrested for “obscenity in publishing” as a scapegoat.
Episode 10 does not end with a dramatic arrest or a fiery confession. Instead, it ends with quiet reconciliation. Rajaram remains free, but Mastram — as a commercial brand — is retired. The season closes with the understanding that desire cannot be policed, only hidden. And sometimes, hiding it is the most honest thing a person can do. The crowd is confused
Rajaram writes the title of his last story: “Aakhri Raat” (The Last Night) . Unlike his previous works — purely sensational, with exaggerated descriptions — this one is melancholic. The voiceover (Rajaram’s internal monologue) says: “For ten years, I wrote about others’ desires. Tonight, I write about my own fear — the fear of becoming no one.”
By Episode 10, Rajaram (the small-town accountant who writes as “Mastram”) is trapped. His real identity is known by a few: his wife, Shobha; his publisher, Phoolchand; and Inspector Mishra, who has been shaking him down for bribes. The town of Kanpur is in a moral panic, led by a puritanical politician, and Mastram’s arrest has been publicly promised. Episode 9 ends with Rajaram deciding to write his “final” story, believing that ending the pseudonym will save his family. His stories made me feel less alone
The episode ends at sunset. Rajaram and Shobha sit on the roof of their home. He has torn up the last manuscript — Aakhri Raat — and let the pieces blow away in the wind. She asks: “So no more stories?”