Malala Yousafzai Criticises Hollywood Over Lack Of 'Muslim Representation' As Leads In TV Shows

Can you picture getting shot simply for attending school? No one can imagine the sufferings Malala Yousafzai endured at the age of 11 when the Taliban shot her in the face while she was on the bus home from school, it's horrifying to even think about it. That was a turning point in her life and since then, she has raised her opinions strongly in public.

Malala Yousafzai, an activist and laureate of the Nobel Peace Prize, recently addressed representation in Hollywood and notably brought attention to the fact that Muslim actors comprise just 1% of leading roles in major tv shows.

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Recently, Malala, the youngest Nobel Prize winner in history, unveiled the first batch of projects coming from her production company Extracurricular.

Malala Yousafzai addressed Variety's Power of Women event, to advocate for representation in the entertainment industry.

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Yousafzai¡¯s First Show To Represent Broad Diversity

Malala Yousafzai is in charge of "The outfit," along with Erika Kennair, her head of production. A broad diversity that represents Malala's determination to convey representative stories that haven't always found a home in Hollywood is at the core of her initial ventures.

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Malala Openly Spoke About Muslim Representation In Hollywood TV Shows

As reported by IANS, Malala criticized saying, "I learned that Asian people like me make up less than 4 per cent of leads in Hollywood films. Muslims are 25 per cent of the population, but only 1 per cent of characters in popular TV series."

She participates in and lends assistance to Riz Ahmed's Pillars Artist Fellowship, which assists upcoming Muslim filmmakers and screenwriters.

Regarding her professional endeavours, she is now completing her debut documentary, which will focus on the matriarchal Haenyeo culture of senior fisherwomen in South Korea. She is also working on a scripted series based on Asha Lemmie's novel 'Fifty Words for Rain,' it is based on a woman's quest for acceptability in post-World War II Japan.

With that, she would be collaborating with director Adam McKay and his production company for a feature film that will be based on Elaine Hsieh Chou's book 'Disorientation.¡¯ It will be based on a college student¡¯s life in a satire.

Malala further stated, "I know that the executives have passed on dozens of quality, equally amazing projects because they thought that the characters or their creators were too young, too Brown, too foreign, too poor. Sometimes it feels like they're saying we just don't belong here."

Malala variety power of women speech/Variety

The Changing Point In Her Life As An 11 Year-Old Kid

She discussed the pivotal incident that, at the age of 11, led her to become an activist for the advancement of creative viewpoints from different and underrepresented backgrounds in the entertainment industry while speaking at the Variety event.

The activist stated, "I know the tale of having a dream and being told to forget it. Today, I am a storyteller, activist and producer."

This year's Power of Women celebration in Los Angeles celebrated Malala Yousafzai, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton, Elizabeth Olsen, Oprah Winfrey, and Ava DuVernay.

(With Inputs From IANS)

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