NO MATTER YOUR racial, ethnic, spiritual, or geographic background, or where you fall on the gender spectrum, a vital part of adulthood is determining your identity—particularly in relationship to the community you grew up in. At some point, we all diverge from others’ opinions of us. Hopefully, we also find people who help us in our quest to define ourselves.
The Peacock series We Are Lady Parts, about an all-female, Muslim punk band, shows a group of characters who support each other on their individual journeys of identity, with their religion and larger community playing central roles. The series, created and written by Nida Manzoor, presents a diverse look at modern-day Muslim womanhood. Its themes also carry over into the broader experience of maturing alongside your faith, and what happens when your expression of belief conflicts with cultural expectations.
Lady Parts is fronted by the fierce feminist Saira (Sarah Kameela Impey). Earthy mom Bisma (Faith Omole) plays bass, and aggressive Ayesha (Juliette Motamed) is on drums. Momtaz (Lucie Shorthouse), often shown vaping through her niqab, is their manager. Saira decides the band needs a lead guitarist, eventually selecting Amina (Anjana Vasan), a painfully shy, tightly wound Ph.D. student.
Amina is the show’s main focus. Initially, she’s more interested in finding a husband than singing punk anthems like “Voldemort Under My Headscarf.” Her favorite artist is Don McLean, not Bikini Kill. The bigger problem, though, is her stage fright. Amina is talented, but put her in front of a crowd and, in her mom’s words, “her nervy disposition induces diarrhea and vomiting.” However, Amina is determined not to let her bandmates down, even when it means defying the expectations of her conservative, overbearing best friend Noor (Aiysha Hart).
Amina is emboldened by Lady Parts’ approach to Islam. She dresses in subdued pastels; they wear bold colors, band shirts, and flannel. Amina is soft-spoken and demure; these women curse with abandon, smoke marijuana, and talk about sex. Bisma’s husband supports her art. Saira has commitment issues. Ayesha comes out as gay. These characters are also faithful in prayer, involved in their community, and devoted to each other. None of these factors are considered conflicts. When a journalist calls them “the bad girls of Islam,” the band is infuriated: They aren’t rebelling against their faith—their expression of it is just unorthodox.
We Are Lady Parts is delightful and funny, but its biggest triumph is a universal message that crosses cultural and religious barriers: Faith takes many forms. Your understanding of it may be different from your neighbor’s, but the feelings and experiences that inform your beliefs are nonetheless valid. Community and supportive relationships help us make our faith our own.
Abby Olcese is a freelance film critic and writer based in Missouri. You can find her on Twitter @abbyolcese.
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