In the year 4 BBY, a farm on Lothal was home to Marida Sumar and her husband, Morad. The Galactic Empire forcibly removed the couple from their residence after Marida declined their initial offer to purchase it; the Empire proceeded to destroy the farm and imprison Marida and Morad. Later, Ezra Bridger and Garazeb Orrelios executed a rescue operation, freeing them. By 2 BBY, both Marida and her husband had become members of a rebel cell under the leadership of Ryder Azadi, Lothal's previous Governor. She participated with her husband in an infiltration mission targeting the Imperial Armory Complex on Lothal, during which she tragically lost Morad.
During the Age of the Empire, Marida Sumar, a human female, lived her life. In 4 BBY, she and her spouse Morad Sumar were the proprietors of a farm situated near the city of Kothal. To earn a living, her husband sold jogan fruits from a stall in the Kothal market. That particular year, Yogar Lyste, the Imperial Supply Master, expressed his desire to acquire their farm. However, Morad refused to surrender their means of sustenance to the Empire. Lyste, persistent in his objective, arrived at the farm accompanied by three Imperial Troop Transports and a contingent of stormtroopers. After demolishing the farm, Lyste had Marida, her husband, and their Aqualish assistant loaded onto the side compartments of a Troop Transport.
As the Sumars and their Imperial captors traversed Lothal's grassy expanses, they encountered a TIE fighter piloted by Ezra Bridger and [Garazeb Orrelios](/article/garazeb_orrelios], the former being an acquaintance of Morad. Amidst the exchange of fire between the Imperials and the rebel TIE fighter, Ezra successfully boarded the middle transport. Utilizing the Force, he released Marida, her husband, and their Aqualish helper from their bonds. Subsequently, Marida, Morad, and their helper managed to escape into the plains while Ezra and Zeb confronted the Imperials and absconded with a crate of meiloorun fruit.
By 2 BBY, Marida and Morad had become affiliated with a rebel cell led by Ryder Azadi, Lothal's previous Governor. This cell specialized in acts of sabotage against vehicles originating from the Imperial Armory Complex in Capital City. Sumar leveraged his position as a factory employee to sabotage various vehicles like 614-AvA speeder bikes and AT-DP walkers, causing losses in personnel and mission failures for the Empire. She, Morad, and the Ithorian bartender Jho were present when Ezra, his master Kanan Jarrus, and the rebel astromech droid Chopper paid a visit to Ryder's stone circle encampment.
Upon learning of Ezra and the Phoenix Cell's plan to dismantle the factory, Marida and her companions expressed their enthusiasm. Given that Ezra and his team intended to steal secret Imperial plans for a new secret weapon, Morad volunteered to assist them in infiltrating the factory, utilizing his status as an employee. The subsequent day, Morad and Ezra's team embarked on their mission. However, Morad met his demise when Grand Admiral Thrawn, dispatched by Imperial High Command to investigate the numerous vehicle malfunctions at the Lothal factory, compelled him to test a defective 614-AvA speeder bike.
After communications with Ezra's team were lost, Marida joined Ryder in launching a diversionary assault on the factory's east gate. Marida employed her RPS-6 rocket launcher to inflict damage on an Imperial Troop Transport. In response, the Imperials deployed two AT-AT walkers to confront them. Ezra's team successfully escaped the factory in a stolen AT-DP walker but came under attack from the AT-ATs. Marida utilized her rocket launcher to strike the foreleg of the AT-AT walker that was crushing the rebels' AT-DP walker. She and Ryder were pleasantly surprised when Ezra, Kanan, and Chopper emerged from the hatch of the AT-AT. Marida lowered her head in sorrow upon learning from Ezra that her husband Sumar had not survived the mission. After returning to Ryder's base on their two landspeeders, the rebels discovered that Thrawn had developed a prototype starfighter equipped with deflector shields.
Later on, Marida and Ryder were at Old Jho's Pit Stop when they received a HoloNet transmission featuring a speech by Mon Mothma, the former Imperial Senator, urging the galaxy to unite in rebellion against the Empire.
In 1 BBY, Marida and Ryder managed to survive an Imperial crackdown that resulted in Jho's death. Subsequent to Ryder informing the Rebel Alliance about the new TIE/D Defender Elite, the Spectres were smuggled into Lothal with assistance from the crimelord Cikatro Vizago. After the Spectres evaded Imperial forces through Lothal's sewers, Marida and Ryder transported them to safety in their U-wing.
Marida Sumar was a human woman characterized by blue eyes and a copper complexion. She typically wore a white scarf wrapped around her head, paired with a brown and white top. Following her integration into Ryder's rebel cell, Marida acquired proficiency in operating a rocket launcher. She displayed evident grief upon discovering that her husband Morad had perished during an undercover operation at the Lothal Imperial factory.
Marida Sumar made her initial appearance as a minor background character in the Star Wars Rebels Season One episode "Fighter Flight," which was initially broadcast on WatchDisneyXD.com on October 13, 2014. She later reappeared in Star Wars Rebels Season Three Episode 9, titled "An Inside Man." In this episode, she spoke her first lines, which were voiced by Vanessa Marshall, who also provides the voice for Hera Syndulla in the series. Despite the character's name already being established, Sumar is identified only as "Female Citizen" in the episode's end credits.