It’s our 50th episode!

Anees and Foz discuss the journey from being complete giggling novices to interviewing high-profile and inspirational guests.

The conversation is open and honest. They talk about the incredible growth of the podcast, the highs, what went wrong, the struggles of maintaining the podcast and what lies ahead for One Foot In The Sink. 

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Zahra Shah is from the UK and is on a mission to grow Iraq’s tech ecosystem and build talent among youth, so that they can solve local issues using technology.

She is a Program Manager for Re:Coded, whose purpose is to provide opportunities for young people affected by conflict to enter the tech industry and become entrepreneurs.

Zahra is a ‘tech humanitarian’. She has previously worked at Gaza Sky Geeks, Gaza’s first accelerator and coding school, the UN, and various startups based in London and Amsterdam, including Groupon.

In this episode we speak to Zahra about her mission in helping displaced and conflict affected youths to enter the digital economy and become entrepreneurs. We talk about her work with the UN, how technology can help in solving many humanitarian issues, Gaza Sky Geeks, living and working in Iraq, women in tech, her tips for entering the tech industry and so much more!

We really enjoyed our chat with our fellow Londoner. We learnt a lot about how technology and a startup ecosystem can greatly benefit a generation of conflict affected youth to step in to the digital space, something that we didn't know existed before we spoke with Zahra

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Tez Ilyas is an award winning British comedian and actor who started comedy in 2010 as a hobby. He is regarded as one of most celebrated rising stars in British comedy.

After studying biochemistry at university, Tez went on to work as a civil servant for a decade. He was told by his friends that he was quite funny, so he started to speak at open mic events in London and soon discovered that he was quite good at stand-up comedy!

Tez left his job to pursue show business full time and achieved phenomenal success with his debut tour, Tez Talks, followed by his own series on BBC based on his show.

In 2016, his highly anticipated follow up show, Made in Britain, debuted at the infamous Edinburgh Festival Fringe and went on to sell out every performance.

In 2018, Tez toured with his latest show, Teztify, which he also performed at the prestigious venue, Live at the Apollo. Tez also appears on the hit BBC show, Man Like Mobeen, where he plays the character ‘Eight’.

On the show today, we talk about how Tez stumbled into comedy, dealing with nerves on the stage, transitioning from stand-up to acting, and so much more!

Please excuse our giggles and laughter but it was too hard to resist laughing at Tez’s jokes throughout this episode. 

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Original broadcast date: 11th June 2018

Nazia Nasreen is the founder of Ibraheem Toy House, the world’s leading online Islamic toy store. She’s also a mum of 2 children, a wife and an audiologist.

In 2014, Nazia founded Ibraheem Toy House whilst on maternity leave for her second child. She always struggled to find good quality Islamic toys for her daughter to make religious education fun. She decided to create her own online toy store and via word of mouth, this quickly spread and ending up being a full-time business.

Nazia shares her story on how, as an introverted and a shy person, she would attend networking events and, whilst being the only Muslim woman, she would volunteer to present her business and really throw herself outside of her comfort zone. She talks about running out of money and going back to her old job to raise cash, how her product inspired someone to accept Islam and why she wanted to quit and sell her business but instead Allah had other plans!

Nazia has an inspiring story. From selling toys on a single Facebook page to now having a team of people working for her.

We were inspired by her and proud to see a Muslim woman on top of her game!

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Original broadcast date: 1st October 2018

Peter Gould returns to share his reflections from his recent journey to Hajj in 2018 (1439).

Peter provides a powerful reflection based on his experiences , encounters with diverse pilgrims, looking at Hajj from a designer’s perspective and talking about some of the gadgets he came across.

He also shares his views on the importance of creating a community, how he created a community of global creative Muslims, and the power of creativity within the youth and what we can do to empower it.

We had a great time hearing Peter’s Hajj stories. We think this episode may inspire you to start thinking about planning your own journey to perform the Hajj insh’Allah!

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For feedback, banter or any business enquiries, e-mail us at [email protected].

Zara Choudhary is a travel blogger and the founder & editor of Sacred Footsteps.

Sacred Footsteps is an online publication dedicated to spiritual & alternative travel, history and culture from a Muslim perspective.

Sacred Footsteps provides articles and guides that aims to highlight aspects of history and culture that are often overlooked. It also looks at trends within travel and the ‘halal travel’ industry.

In this episode we talk to Zara all about travel! We discuss trends amongst Muslim travellers, uncommon destinations which have a connection with Islam and we also talk about some of their articles like origins of coffee and Islamic history of Jamaica!

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In part 2 of our episode with Shabbir, we talk about his other endeavours outside of being an Imam such as starting the Nikkah Co., his love for poetry, embarking on a UK-wide tour with other notable artists and on how to deal with conflict between your faith and pressures of the modern society and trends he sees at Muslim weddings!

If you liked this episode, please leave us a review on Apple Podcast.

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For feedback, banter or any business enquiries, e-mail us at [email protected]

Shabbir Hassan is an Imam, a spoken word poet and a presenter

At the age of 15, Shabbir completed the memorisation of the Qur’an. He eventually went on to graduate from the Ebrahim College in London as an Alim (Islamic Scholar).

Shabbir is a young Imam who is looking at ways to change the role of the Imam in order to adjust to modern day challenges and engaging with the youth.

In addition to his usual Imam duties, Shabbir recites poetry which has led him to tour major cities in the UK, alongside renowned artists and influential speakers. His poetry has been featured on different platforms including the Transport for London & BBC News. He also hosts the Ilmfeed podcast.

Shabbir is the founder of the Nikah Company, a bespoke Nikah service provider, ensuring that the religious parts of the wedding day are done in a proper and professional way.

We had a wide-ranging conversation with Shabbir about matters that relate to a young Muslim.

In part 1, we talk about why Shabbir chose to be an Imam, the journey towards becoming an Alim, tips on memorising the Qur’an, the job of an Imam and the financial rewards of the occupation, issues with how mosque are run and why Shabbir is trying to make a change to attract youngsters to the mosque, common issues he encounters when speaking with the youth, and so much more!

We really enjoyed this conversation. It gave us an insight in to the life of an Imam, how mosques are run and the need to become involved to have our views heard

If you liked this episode, please leave us a review on Apple Podcast.

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For feedback, banter or any business enquiries, e-mail us at [email protected]

Zain Bhikha is a world-renowned singer and songwriter who performs Islamic songs. He began his illustrious career 25 years ago and since then he has released 13 Albums, collaborating with numerous artists such as Native Deen, Outlandish, and the legendary Yusuf Islam (formerly known as Cat Stevens). Zain was one of the first to start performing Islamic nasheeds in English.

If someone were to search for Islamic song on YouTube, Zain’s songs would come up top. His songs inspired and continues to inspire many generations of Muslims.

In 2005, Zain created his own label, Zain Bhikha Studios, based in his native South Africa. The label aims to provide a platform for local and international talent.

Zain also engages in talking to the youth to motivate them to utilize their creative talents for the benefit of society.

In this episode, we talk to Zain about his journey as a performing artist, the tragic event that lead him towards a singing career, the impact his music on the Muslim Ummah, the challenges of creating new music and staying fresh and how he has been able to spread a message of peace with the platform he has been given.

This was an exciting episode for us since we both grew up listening to Zain’s songs. Sometimes we ask ourselves why we preserver with the podcast with the sheer hard work and little gains but listening to Zain’s story has reignited our why!

If you liked this episode, please leave us a review on Apple Podcast.

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For feedback, banter or any business enquiries, e-mail us at [email protected]

Melanie Elturk is the founder of Haute Hijab, one of the leading US modest fashion brands.

In 2010, she set out with the vision to bring hijabs into the mainstream and to empower hijab wearing women worldwide. She is a regular contributor to Elle.com and has appeared on many mainstream media outlets in the US.

Melanie shares how at a young age, her close friends had a big influence in her becoming close to Islam. She describes her early experiences at school whilst wearing the hijab and how she was determined from a young age to show wearing a hijab did not change people. Her story starts in Detroit and moves to Chicago, Dubai and New York.

We enjoyed speaking with Melanie. Her brand echoes her loud and colourful personality. Her passion for empowering women is infectious. Not only has she created a leading modest fashion brand, but she has built a tribe of loyal supporters who she interacts with on a regular basis. She’s not one to shy away from tough questions and compassionate to give time to all those who contact her.

With the modest fashion industry picking up steam, we picked her brains on her thoughts about the tone of the message that brands put out and being mindful of the ‘halal’ boundaries.

If you liked this episode, please leave us a review on Apple Podcast.

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For feedback, banter or any business enquiries, e-mail us at [email protected]