Muslims Like Us is a British reality television series shown on BBC Two in December 2016. In the show, ten British Muslims of varying beliefs and backgrounds were placed in a house together. It was produced by Mobeen Azhar.
Synopsis
The ten housemates came from various backgrounds and beliefs: Nabil Abdulrashid, a comedian of Nigerian heritage; Abdul Haqq, a black former boxer born Anthony Small who believes in strict gender segregation; fashion follower Mehreen Baig; Saba, a 76-year-old white convert born Hilary; Ferhan Khan, who is gay; and Zohra, a Shia Muslim.
Events in the series included the housemates going to feed the homeless, with Baig responding to anti-immigrant sentiments from some of them; Bara hugging a member of the English Defence League in an attempt to change his views; and Abdul Haqq's strict views on gender being challenged by others. Abdul Haqq also refused to give an answer on whether it would be wrong to kill Zohra's Shia family.
Reception
There was significant debate from Muslim columnists on whether it was appropriate and representative to include a hardliner such as Abdul Haqq, although it was also pointed out that his fellow housemates disagreed vehemently with his views.
The series won Best Reality and Constructed Factual at the 2017 British Academy Television Awards.
In February 2018, a Sydney-based version of the show was shown on Australia's Special Broadcasting Service. This version included a gay man, a bisexual Sufi woman, a woman in a niqab and a non-practising Shia.
References
- ^ "BAFTA 2017 – awards for Adeel Akhtar, 'Muslims Like US and 'People Just Do Nothing' with Asim Chaudhry". Asian Culture Vulture. 15 May 2017. Retrieved 14 April 2022.
- ^ Ali, Umbreen (13 December 2016). "TV REVIEW: The best parts of 'Muslims Like Us'". Asian Image. Retrieved 14 April 2022.
- ^ Ismail, Sarah (14 December 2016). "Review: Muslims Like Us". HuffPost. Retrieved 14 April 2022.
- ^ Versi, Miqdaad; Aly, Remona; Bano, Alia (14 December 2016). "Was Muslims Like Us a helpful portrayal of Islam in the UK?". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 April 2022.
- Hamad, Ruby (22 February 2018). "Muslims Like Us was enlightening, but where were the Muslim minorities?". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 April 2022.
External links
BAFTA TV Award for Best Reality | |
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