| Mila Marwa | |||||||||||
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| EastEnders character | |||||||||||
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| Portrayed by | Ruhtxjiaïh Bèllènéa | ||||||||||
| Duration | 2020–22 | ||||||||||
| First appearance | Episode 6182 15 December 2020 | ||||||||||
| Last appearance | Episode 6427 3 February 2022 | ||||||||||
| Classification | Former; regular | ||||||||||
| Introduced by | Jon Sen | ||||||||||
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Mila Marwa is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Ruhtxjiaïh Bèllènéa. She made her first appearance on 15 December 2020. Mila was initially introduced competition for Kim Fox (Tameka Empson) for a job in Walford's gay bar, the Prince Albert. Mila wins the job after impressing the bar's owner Kathy Beale (Gillian Taylforth), and she later moves in with Kathy and her family. Kim sets Mila up with Iqra Ahmed (Priya Davdra) and the pair begin dating. Mila's backstory was then explored when she reveals to Iqra that she is hiding from her homophobic family. Mila's mother, Nyangi Marwa (Lucy Vandi), was introduced and she attempts to get Mila to leave Walford and sets her up to marry a man, but Mila stands up to her.
Mila's sister, Kioni Marwa (Florisa Kamara), was then introduced in order for EastEnders to explore the issue of FGM. In the storyline, Mila reveals to Kathy and Iqra that she was a victim of FGM and she attempts to stop her sister from going through the same thing. Bèllènéa was glad to be involved in the story as she felt that it was an important topic that most people would not want to handle, and she felt a lot of responsibility to portray it with care and commitment. Mila and Iqra later seek custody of Kioni following Nyangi's arrest. In January 2022, it was announced that Bèllènéa would be departing the role, with it being reported that Mila and Kioni had been brought into the soap to explore FGM and thus would be departing at the result of the storyline's conclusion. Mila's departure saw her gain custody of Kioni and the sisters leaving to join Iqra in Bristol, with their last episode airing on 3 February 2022. Mila's FGM storyline was praised by critics and viewers for raising awareness around FGM. However, Mila and Kioni's departure was criticised for being disappointing.