Riz Ahmed, who starred in the film adaptation of Mohsin Hamid’s book ‘The Reluctant Fundamentalist’, in conversation with Hamid, right, and Kieran Yates at the 2018 London Literature Festival at the Southbank Centre. Photo by India Roper-Evans
Riz Ahmed, who starred in the film adaptation of Mohsin Hamid’s book ‘The Reluctant Fundamentalist’, in conversation with Hamid, right, and Kieran Yates at the 2018 London Literature Festival at the Southbank Centre. Photo by India Roper-Evans
Riz Ahmed, who starred in the film adaptation of Mohsin Hamid’s book ‘The Reluctant Fundamentalist’, in conversation with Hamid, right, and Kieran Yates at the 2018 London Literature Festival at the Southbank Centre. Photo by India Roper-Evans
Riz Ahmed, who starred in the film adaptation of Mohsin Hamid’s book ‘The Reluctant Fundamentalist’, in conversation with Hamid, right, and Kieran Yates at the 2018 London Literature Festival at the S


Can Hollywood repair what TV has done to Muslims?


  • English
  • Arabic

March 21, 2022

If there is one thing that religious and motivational texts have in common, it is the use of stories to convey big ideas. The heroes, anti-heroes, villains, truth-tellers and mavericks bring to life the grand archetypes of our lives and lay out universal human struggles. Through hooks in a well-told story, we are swept through dilemmas of all kinds. In the course of watching stories unfold, we pick up things and learn about life.

Our perspectives and frames of reference are shaped by stories. They help us make meaning of a complex world and even influence our actions. Stories aren’t just a bit of fun or trivia, although they can be. They are powerful and they can change lives and affect societies. Which is why the darker side is that we can be vulnerable to fake news stories and at risk of perpetuating stereotypes that can be harmful and even dehumanising.

I’m reminded of this every time someone asks if, as a Muslim woman, I was forced into marriage. Or every time an eyebrow is raised when I express an opinion. Or whenever someone asks me if I sympathise with terrorists. Even a simple but somehow ridiculous observation that "you speak English very well" is a reminder of how deep stereotypes run sometimes, of Muslim women as inarticulate or lacking autonomy.

These might sound like small discomforts in a daily life and easily brushed off, but they can be disruptive and demeaning to me as I go about my day. Now multiply that by the 1.8 billion Muslims around the world. It is not just about the numbers. It is how these microaggressions are magnified into sweeping narratives. There can be oppressive or discriminatory policies at play. The limitations on what Muslims can be, for example. In mainstream films and some fictional stories, Muslim actors are often still trapped in roles depicting the stereotype of a taxi driver who is also a terrorist and an oppressive husband, or the victim-terrorist paradox.

We need more people from more diverse backgrounds so we have more varied and nuanced perspectives

Where are the new stories and new frames of references? After all, the ones who hold the power to tell the stories hold the power to shape our societies.

When you think about it, the jobs we hold in high esteem are often service-oriented: doctors, dentists, engineers, lawyers, pharmacists. They are all so important that society would break down without them. But there are also the jobs that shape society in other ways, inform us of the world, facilitate policies and tackle stereotypes: journalists, editors, authors, producers, screenwriters, film-makers, and so on.

These callings are especially relevant in today's increasingly polarised world and can go a long way to help societies pay attention to more than one version of a story or just one story. We need more people from more diverse backgrounds to choose these vocations so we have varied perspectives and more nuance in our films, books, TV scripts, that is – in our storytelling. This would then, in the long run, make a crucial difference to how we see the world.

Hollywood actor and Oscar nominee Riz Ahmed is a rarity as a Muslim on a global stage in the arts. Ahmed has been advocating for two decades for more representative and creative Muslim stories and storytellers. “Rectifying and re-imagining Muslim representation in film means empowering Muslim filmmakers,” he said recently, and he is absolutely right.

This week, along with his production company Left Handed Films, the Pillars Fund and sponsorship from Netflix and Amazon Studios, 10 upcoming Muslim filmmakers was announced as the Pillars Artists Fellowship.

In addition to an unrestricted award of $25,000, each fellow will be mentored by industry experts – on topics such as how to navigate the business of Hollywood, professional development and creative guidance in their fields, along with access to Muslim actors, directors, producers and writers, including Riz Ahmed himself, screenwriter Bisha K Ali, actor Mahershala Ali, the comic book editor Sana Amanat, film director Lena Khan, TV writers and director Nida Manzoor, the comedian and writer Hasan Minhaj and actor Ramy Youssef, film directors Nijla Mu’min, Jehane Noujaim and Bassam Tariq.

On an individual level, we all tend to be rightly aggrieved when we don’t get to tell our side of the story. Because the people who tell stories hold power. And conversely, the most powerful are those who get to tell their own stories. I wish our new cohort of storytellers the very best.

ELIO

Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett

Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina

Rating: 4/5

Sreesanth's India bowling career

Tests 27, Wickets 87, Average 37.59, Best 5-40

ODIs 53, Wickets 75, Average 33.44, Best 6-55

T20Is 10, Wickets 7, Average 41.14, Best 2-12

Labour dispute

The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.


- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law 

Temple numbers

Expected completion: 2022

Height: 24 meters

Ground floor banquet hall: 370 square metres to accommodate about 750 people

Ground floor multipurpose hall: 92 square metres for up to 200 people

First floor main Prayer Hall: 465 square metres to hold 1,500 people at a time

First floor terrace areas: 2,30 square metres  

Temple will be spread over 6,900 square metres

Structure includes two basements, ground and first floor 

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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20HyperPay%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202014%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Muhannad%20Ebwini%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Riyadh%2C%20Saudi%20Arabia%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20FinTech%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%20size%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%2455m%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20AB%20Ventures%2C%20Amwal%20Capital%2C%20INet%2C%20Mada%20VC%2C%20Mastercard%2C%20SVC%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Chatham House Rule

A mark of Chatham House’s influence 100 years on since its founding,  was Moscow’s formal declaration last month that it was an “undesirable
organisation”. 

 

The depth of knowledge and academics that it drew on
following the Ukraine invasion had broadcast Mr Putin’s chicanery.  

 

The institute is more used to accommodating world leaders,
with Nelson Mandela, Margaret Thatcher among those helping it provide
authoritative commentary on world events. 

 

Chatham House was formally founded as the Royal Institute of
International Affairs following the peace conferences of World War One. Its
founder, Lionel Curtis, wanted a more scientific examination of international affairs
with a transparent exchange of information and ideas.  

 

That arena of debate and analysis was enhanced by the “Chatham
House Rule” states that the contents of any meeting can be discussed outside Chatham
House but no mention can be made identifying individuals who commented.  

 

This has enabled some candid exchanges on difficult subjects
allowing a greater degree of free speech from high-ranking figures.  

 

These meetings are highly valued, so much so that
ambassadors reported them in secret diplomatic cables that – when they were
revealed in the Wikileaks reporting – were thus found to have broken the rule. However,
most speeches are held on the record.  

 

Its research and debate has offered fresh ideas to
policymakers enabling them to more coherently address troubling issues from climate
change to health and food security.   

 
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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDeveloper%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Sucker%20Punch%20Productions%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Sony%20Computer%20Entertainment%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EConsole%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20PlayStation%202%20to%205%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%205%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
BORDERLANDS

Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis

Director: Eli Roth

Rating: 0/5

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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Dust and sand storms compared

Sand storm

  • Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
  • Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
  • Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
  • Travel distance: Limited 
  • Source: Open desert areas with strong winds

Dust storm

  • Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
  • Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
  • Duration: Can linger for days
  • Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
  • Source: Can be carried from distant regions
Things Heard & Seen

Directed by: Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini

Starring: Amanda Seyfried, James Norton

2/5

Updated: March 21, 2022, 8:00 AM`