This Being Human

Nothing Good Happens in Wazirabad on Wednesday is a darkly funny novel about daily life during wartime. The action is not about the war itself; it's about the interpersonal relationships of a rich cast of characters living in a small town. It is the debut novel of Jamaluddin Aram, an Afghan writer currently living in Toronto. The Museum wishes to thank The Hilary and Galen Weston Foundation for their generous support of This Being Human.

FURTHER RESOURCES:

You can find links on where to buy Nothing Good Happens in Wazirabad on Wednesday here: https://www.simonandschuster.ca/books/Nothing-Good-Happens-in-Wazirabad-on-Wednesday/Jamaluddin-Aram/9781668009871

Watch Buzkashi Boys, a short film Jamaluddin worked on that was nominated for an Academy Award:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2sYUtzxRBQ

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mokhtar Alkhanshali is a coffee historian, entrepreneur, and innovator. After several years as a community organizer working on civil rights issues affecting immigrant communities, Mokhtar began focusing on his family’s roots as coffee farmers in Yemen. Seeking to reverse Yemen’s nearly lost art of coffee cultivation, he started his own coffee company, Port of Mokha. His work has been described as the spark that ignited the Yemeni coffee revolution. Mokhtar’s life and journey was immortalized in Dave Eggers’s book, The Monk of Mokha. In this episode, he talks to Abdul-Rehman about this journey, which continues ten years on.

The Museum wishes to thank Nadir and Shabin Mohamed for their founding support of This Being Human, and The Hilary and Galen Weston Foundation for their generous support of This Being Human Season 3.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the award-winning podcast, King of the World, Shahjehan Khan reflects on his history with music, addiction and identity in post-9/11 America. He talks to AR about his time with the seminal Muslim punk band The Kominas, mental health, his attempt to find himself in Pakistan, and where he stands today, as an ageing punk rocker whose acting and producing career is starting to take off.

The Museum wishes to thank The Hilary and Galen Weston Foundation for their generous support of This Being Human.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Humaira Abid gathers ordinary objects from everyday life and transforms them into something extraordinary. Her wood sculpture and paintings — known for their intricate details — depict human relationships and contain strong social messages around topics like motherhood and the plight of refugees. In this episode of This Being Human, Humaira talks to Abdul-Rehman about why she chose the male-dominated craft of wood sculpture to tell stories about women and how she uses her art to encourage conversations about taboo topics.

The Museum wishes to thank Nadir and Shabin Mohamed for their founding support of This Being Human, and The Hilary and Galen Weston Foundation for their generous support of This Being Human Season 3. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Zakir Hussain’s name is practically synonymous with the tablas. His work ranges from classical Indian compositions to Hollywood film scores, to collaborations with rockstars like George Harrison and Van Morrison. His latest albums are Shakti’s "This Moment,” and “As We Speak” – a collaboration with Béla Fleck and Edgar Meyer.

Zakir Hussain talks to AR about what he continues to learn about his craft at the age of 72; his father Alla Rakha, who introduced tablas to the West; his mother’s crucial role in his career; and what prevented him from becoming a rock drummer.

The Museum wishes to thank The Hilary and Galen Weston Foundation for their generous support of This Being Human.

FURTHER RESOURCES:

You can see Zakir Hussain’s upcoming tour dates with Shakti and Béla Fleck here:

https://zakirhussain.com/tour/

Watch a performance from As We Speak here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTsE_8JNhqE

If you enjoyed this episode and want to learn more, go to: agakhanmuseum.org/thisbeinghuman

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jamaluddin Aram is a documentary filmmaker, producer, and writer from Kabul, Afghanistan. He is the associate producer of the Academy Award-nominated film Buzkashi Boys, and his debut novel, Nothing Good Happens in Wazirabad on Wednesday was published in June, 2023. On this episode of This Being Human, Abdul-Rehman and Jamaluddin discuss how he fell in love with writing, the complexity of war stories, and his experience growing up in Afghanistan.

The Museum wishes to thank Nadir and Shabin Mohamed for their founding support of This Being Human, and The Hilary and Galen Weston Foundation for their generous support of This Being Human Season 3.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Shahjehan is a voice-over artist, actor, and musician based in Boston. He is the current host of the award-winning King of the World Podcast, where he explores his life as a Pakistani American Muslim. In this episode of This Being Human, Shahjehan Khan reflects on his history with music, addiction and identity in post-9/11 America. He and Abdul-Rehman talk about his time with the seminal Muslim punk band The Kominas, mental health, his attempt to find himself while living in Pakistan, and where he stands today, as an aging punk rocker who’s finding a new path in acting and producing.

The Museum wishes to thank Nadir and Shabin Mohamed for their founding support of This Being Human, and The Hilary and Galen Weston Foundation for their generous support of This Being Human Season 3. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dr. Deqo Mohamed spent her teen years coordinating with NGOs, teaching, and arranging breakfast for thousands of displaced people. That's because her mother, Dr. Hawa Abdi, was the founder of a sanctuary in Somalia called Hope Village. At its peak, the village provided health care, education and more to 90,000 people. It earned Dr. Habdi a nomination for a Nobel Peace Prize.

In this episode, Dr. Deqo Mohamed speaks candidly about growing up in Hope Village, sharing her mom with thousands of others, and how she and her sister are carrying on the family legacy.

The Museum wishes to thank The Hilary and Galen Weston Foundation for their generous support of This Being Human.

If you enjoyed this episode and want to learn more, go to: agakhanmuseum.org/thisbeinghuman

FURTHER READING:

Read more about Hope Village and the Dr. Hawa Abdi Foundation here:
www.dhaf.org

Read more about the Hagarla Institute here:
hagarlainstitute.org

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Zakir Hussain’s name is practically synonymous with the tablas. His work ranges from classical Indian compositions to Hollywood film scores to collaborations with rockstars like George Harrison and Van Morrison. His latest albums are the collaboration As We Speak and Shakti’s This Moment. In this episode, Zakir Hussain talks to Abdul-Rehman about how his craft continues to evolve at the age of 72, his father Alla Rakha who introduced tablas to the West, his mother’s crucial role in his career, and what prevented him from becoming a rock drummer.

The Museum wishes to thank Nadir and Shabin Mohamed for their founding support of This Being Human, and The Hilary and Galen Weston Foundation for their generous support of This Being Human Season 3.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dr. Deqo Mohamed spent her teen years coordinating with NGOs, teaching, and arranging breakfast for thousands of displaced people. That’s because her mother, Dr. Hawa Abdi, was the founder of a sanctuary in Somalia called Hope Village. The village provided healthcare, education and more to 90,000 people during its peak. It earned Dr. Habdi a nomination for a Nobel Peace Prize. In this episode, Dr. Deqo Mohamed speaks candidly about growing up in Hope Village, sharing her mom with thousands of others, and how she and her sister are carrying on the family legacy.

The Museum wishes to thank Nadir and Shabin Mohamed for their founding support of This Being Human, and The Hilary and Galen Weston Foundation for their generous support of This Being Human Season 3.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.