Muslims Like Us
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.[1]
Synopsis
[edit]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.[2][3][4]
Events in the series included the housemates going to feed the homeless, with Baig responding to anti-immigrant sentiments from some of them;[2] Bara hugging a member of the English Defence League in an attempt to change his views;[2] and Abdul Haqq's strict views on gender being challenged by others.[3] Abdul Haqq also refused to give an answer on whether it would be wrong to kill Zohra's Shia family.[4]
Reception
[edit]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.[2][3][4]
The series won Best Reality and Constructed Factual at the 2017 British Academy Television Awards.[1]
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.[5]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "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.
- ^ a b c d Ali, Umbreen (13 December 2016). "TV REVIEW: The best parts of 'Muslims Like Us'". Asian Image. Retrieved 14 April 2022.
- ^ a b c Ismail, Sarah (14 December 2016). "Review: Muslims Like Us". HuffPost. Retrieved 14 April 2022.
- ^ a b c 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.