Zarqa Nawaz created the world’s first sitcom about a Muslim community living in the west. Little Mosque on the Prairie premiered to record ratings on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) in 2007. It was also an international hit, airing 91 episodes over 6 seasons and is broadcast in over 80 countries.
Journalist, filmmaker and show-runner of Little Mosque on the Prairie, Zarqa Nawaz talks about the origins of show, the challenge of being the first of its kind, comparisons with Citizen Khan and the show’s enduring legacy.
Zarqa holds a B.Sc from the University of Toronto and B.A.A in journalism from Ryerson University. In addition to Little Mosque, she made the ground-breaking documentary Me and the Mosque, about Muslim women’s battle with patriarchy in the mosque, and released a comedic memoir Laughing All the Way to the Mosque in 2014.