The Halal Gap

Cannabis journalist and screenwriter Abdullah Saeed, of VICE’s Bong Appetit and HBO’s High Maintenance, joins the pod. Abdullah chats with Sofia and Sikandar about how he hooked up with Muslim punk group The Kominas, his column Weediquette, travelling to Nepal to film Mad Honey, the history of cannabis in South Asia, and much more.

Latif Nasser, the host of WNYC’s Radiolab and Netflix’s “Connected”, joins The Halal Gap today! Latif talks about studying theatre at Dartmouth in hopes of becoming a playwright, getting his PhD at Harvard, what drew him into podcasting, as well as “The Other Latif” and Abdul Latif Nasser’s recent release. Latif, Sofia, and Sikandar also discuss the best sports movies and whether or not potatoes are overrated. 

Credit: WNYC Studios for Latif’s headshot.

Professional gamer turned stand-up comedian Danish Maqbool drops in on The Halal Gap to chat with Sikandar about his unconventional journey. Tune in to hear DMaq talk about finally moving out of his moms basement, why he left gaming right before the boom, roasting people on Clubhouse, and the impact of Azhar Usman and Ramy Youssef on his career.

Artist and painter Aadil Abedi joins The Halal Gap to chat with Sofia and Sikandar. Listen in to hear about his move to India to chase his Bollywood dreams, how he turned painting from a hobby to a career, creating Islamic art, and his favorite Madhuri Dixit movie(s). The Halal Gap is a Mosquers production. You can find us on Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok at @MosquersFilmFest and on Facebook by searching Mosquers Film Festival.

illMuslims co-founders Rummi Khan and Sadaf Javaid join hosts Sofia and Sikandar on this edition of The Halal Gap. Tune in to hear Rummi and Sadaf discuss the growth of illMuslims, their definition of community, the genesis behind “Wallah She’s Funny,” and much more!

Pakistani-Canadian actor and model Daniel Malik joins Sofia and Sikandar on this edition of The Halal Gap. Daniel joins us to discuss his journey from modelling to acting, identity, surviving the year that was 2020, and where to find the best donut.

Today on The Halal Gap: Filmmaker Shehroze Khan joins hosts Sofia and Sikandar to discuss how to make it in the film industry without going to film school, why he turned down an offer to work on a Netflix show, and navigating the film industry as a Muslim. Shehroze also discusses his new short film ‘Chocolate’ and sheds light on the meaning behind the Mosquers-finalist piece ‘The Traveller’.

Today on a special episode of The Halal Gap, hosts Sofia and Sikandar are joined by Mousa Qasqas. Mousa is an Edmonton based human rights activist focused on the Palestinian community and has served in various positions with the Canada Palestine Cultural Association, most recently as their Vice President. He sits down with us to explain the history of the occupation of Palestine, what's happening currently, and why the issue is suddenly garnering more focus than ever before.Free Palestine.

Filmmaker and professor Iman Zawahry chats with Sikandar and Sofia this week on The Halal Gap. We touch on everything from her side gig as a Zumba instructor, how she got into teaching film, and her debut feature film “American-ish” - the first romantic comedy by Muslim women, for Muslim women.

This week on The Halal Gap, Sikandar and Sofia are joined by Libyan-American hip-hop artist and activist Kayem. Tune in as Kayem discusses being placed on the No Fly List, returning to his home country of Libya, and the weirdest topics he’s seen on Clubhouse so far.