Milestone – My Writing is being Performed on Stage by Young Muslim Voices

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Just under a month ago, I submitted a short piece to Young Muslim Voices not knowing whether it would be accepted or not. I was quietly confident, but, at the same time, worried that my piece would be thought as perhaps a tad too controversial and taboo to be performed on stage. It was my truth though, and a truth concealed and shared by more Bengali Muslim women than we could imagine. I felt trapped by my silence, suffocated by my untold story. I realised that I’d been waiting forever to tell my story and perhaps from the moment my story began. Releasing my story into the world… I felt like Alia Bhatt in Highway. It was a stunning moment of catharsis. Like screaming into the sky, hands outstretched, in the pouring rain, every fear, pain, hurt, rage, sorrow washed away.

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Also, I was shitting my pants. I didn’t submit it anonymously. My name is there for everyone to see. What if nobody could separate me from my story… ever? Or what if they gave me sympathetic nods like I’m not the bravest person I’ve ever met? But I can’t be bound by their feelings. I’ve got things to do. If I dare to even dream of achieving change then I can’t be shackled to the “what will other people say?” dogma.   

I kept a close watch on my emails, searching for a confirmation or getting ready to brace myself for a rejection – and unconvincingly graciously at that reminding myself that it would be God’s plan. And, finally, I received an email. My story had been accepted and would be performed on stage. I can’t remember what I was doing or seeing or feeling. I couldn’t process anything.

The first person I told was my sister. Now that I think about it, it makes me smile knowing that my story is, after all, for my sister, my half-sisters and all my other Bengali and Muslim sisters.

Okay, so now that I’ve dealt with my feelings, let’s get right down to business – you know, the whole *first imma cry, then I’ll boss up* shebang. The first performance was last Monday, 30th of September, at the Streatham Space Project. I received complimentary tickets for the show, so I went to watch straight after work.    

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Shazia Mirza opened the show and I – gosh, okay. Okay. Do you know how relieving it is to watch stand-up comedy centring on the British Muslim experience? I felt included and heard and, most importantly, I got the jokes. I felt safe and content knowing that other people, in that very room, understood too. It was an experience to share with my community and there’s nothing quite like the feeling of belonging, that feeling of unity; all that I had felt and took for granted in my youth and only realised that I missed in the past few years. Right there and then, I completely empathised with first-generation Bengali Muslim immigrants… support is a beautiful thing, and love, understanding, and compassion are wrapped underneath it’s familiar covers. I will never forget my roots ever again; the fabric of community is now forever embedded into my very being. In short, I was Sansa Stark when she won Winterfell back, bitches. They are my people, and I can never abandon them.  

I can’t reveal too much about the content of the performances, but I can say that they were all breath-taking, each story uncovering layer under layer of what it means to be Muslim, how our culture intersperses with identity, the challenges and the strengths and all the things that we’re thinking that we don’t talk enough about, or at all, but dearly need to be talked about.

‘Your perfect girl’ made me cry, and I was trying to hold a tight rein on my tears, barely succeeding for the other performances, but I just… could not stop it. I was crying before I knew it. I felt as though it was being addressed to little anxious and frightened 11-year-old me. Wonderful poetry, words of affirmation that we can read aloud to ourselves every day.

And then came the performance of my piece and my heart was beating wildly, I didn’t know how to be… I literally clutched my heart which had somehow plunged and lodged itself into my stomach and I was trying, miserably, to pick it up and drag it back up where it belonged. You know, like when a guy tries to move out of the friendzone, and you attempt to push him back in, closing the door like he’s an overflowing wardrobe. I was panicking. I’m only human!

A huge shoutout to Noof McEwan who read my piece like he was Daenerys Targaryen addressing the Unsullied in Astapor. I wrote it, I know, I read it, but hearing my writing performed, I felt even more empowered. Slowly, the surety of my words instilled a sense of hope in me; it reaffirmed my purpose. And, also, Noof McEwan *whew* very hot. Served everything. Thank you.

Sanah Ahsan, poetess, queer Muslim, and mental health advocate closed the show, her poetry a sudden reminder for the audience to pause and reflect, to challenge our thinking and broaden our perspectives.

I will never forget this night. It was an honour to see my writing performed on stage. I had always dreamt of this day and I don’t think it’s even completely sunk in yet. I know that many young Muslim people will feel represented by the work that Young Muslim Voices do. I know I felt represented that very night. I know you will too. 

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The second show is taking place on Monday the 14th of October at the Rich Mix in Shoreditch at 7:30pm. My fellow Muslim brothers and sisters, and my fellow Londoners, if you’re interested, then please buy yourself (and a friend) a ticket to the show via this link. The proceeds will go to Muslim Hands UK, a charity dedicated to tackling the root causes of poverty around the world and delivering long-term support to communities.

I hope to see you there.

Love,

Sophia

Connect with me:

-Let’s talk all things books on Goodreads
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53 Comments

  2. Firstly, your writing is beautiful and I’m sure the performance was amazing.. secondly, congratulations, what an awesome experience!! This was a really lovely piece and I’m super happy for you!

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  3. Mashallah congratulations! I’m sure the preformance was amazing because who are we kidding it was written by one of my favourite bloggers ❤️

    Again congratulations xo amazing post!

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      1. Thank you 🙂 💛
        But honestly I adore reading your posts because they’re so interesting and you say things clearly and you don’t confuse anyone.
        Something I’m working on😂

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        1. Pahaha, I’ve always wondered if I should use more fancy words, but sometimes it can take away the emotional notes I’m trying to hit and it’s… not my voice and we should try to nurture individual voices instead of demanding academic language. There’s nothing wrong with it, I can do it, but it’s just not me. Do you ever experience these thoughts when you blog or write? If we should embrace our own unique voice?

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          1. I do experience these thoughtd but I’ve kinda come to the conclusion that you know what, it’s my blog I can write it the way I want and if others don’t like it, deal with it, you chose to read it!

            I think it’s important that we write our blogs the ways we want to and not the ways we expect people to want us to write it… if you get what I mean?

            There are also certain posts that require certain tones, if it’s quite a happy and upbeat post it’s most likely going to be informal than a very serious and controversial post that would probably be written using formal language.

            But yeah I agree with you

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            1. Your brand is you after all, it’s your voice and as you’re writing about personal experiences, it would be bizarre to move away from your own raw voice. I do sometimes use sales techniques though Paha but only as an undercurrent and having worked in sales, I try to argue from others points of view if need be.

              Yep. That’s the beauty of writing, it’s so multidimensional and it really requires a lot of feeling and thought to be put into every aspect of our tone of writing. Fun!

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              1. It’s freeing to be able to write down whatever you want.

                It’s a way for your voice to be heard without you having to speak out of your comfort zone and still have many people hear you.

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                  1. I hope you do!

                    You’re an amazing blogger and without a doubt one of my favourite since I started my account here on WordPress!

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                    1. Thank you, I really appreciate it. 😭 You are one of my favourite bloggers too and I love that we can talk about Islam, being a Muslim Brit and regular stuff (but important – family)!

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                    2. Thank you 🙂
                      I love discussing things with you! I always enjoy our discussions because they’re so informative and interesting!

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  4. If your piece was as beautifully written as this post, I’m not surprised it was selected. And I’m glad Noof McEwan accurately portrayed your fire and confidence! Congratulations!

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      1. I am well. I May have told you already but I was asked to be in a documentary about foraging in the Appalachian Mountains by a PBS ( Public Broadcasting service ) producer. It won’t air until next fall but it’s a start and I got to plug my blog during the interview.

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          1. I will. I was also tipped off about a part time reporter position with their team. If I get the position it’s only 1 or 2 stories per year but I’ll get formal training on higher grade equipment than I normally have access to.

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            1. That’s great news and such an exciting role! I’ve always dreamt of being a reporter myself, my first real career aspiration was a journalist, but life happened. But it looks like I want to do more reporting through blog format first.

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    1. It’s back and I’m rearing to do more, this has given me a lot of hope and confidence in my ability to write (and write well). Not so humble brag, but I think you would have related a lot to what I wrote about, but you probably have no idea what I’m talking about because I don’t even talk about it, definitely not as much as I should be. But I will be… as scary as it is. ☺️

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      1. Go for it! First time is always the scariest, I guess! I’m sure I would have related, I feel so bad I couldn’t be there and actually watch it myself. I know you’ve got this! Hit me up any time if you need someone to talk to privately or a pep talk! You’re stronger than you think, girl!

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        1. You’ve spoken about it before, if I recall, so I think it’d be something that we both have experienced. You know what, I’m going to edit this post by the end of the month and add in what I wrote about. It can be my new year goal to be more open about what’s happened, we need more voices after all, thank you for inspiring me. I will do. 💛

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