When the Muslim community of the fictional Mercy, Saskatchewan are looking for a home for their Mosque, they settle on a vacant space in the local Anglican church. This is the premise of Little Mosque on the Prairie, the much celebrated sitcom broadcast on CBC during the mid-00’s.
Welcoming Amaar (Zaib Shaikh), a young progressive imam hailing from Toronto, the small community has to fight against prejudices, most notably coming from shock radio host Fred Tupper (Neil Crone) as well as disagreements within the Mosque; between Amaar, the young progressive imam, Dr Rayyan (Sitara Hewitt), a feminist and Baber (Manoj Sood), a more conservative member of the community.
Little Mosque on the Prairie is a heartwarming story of inclusion and understanding, a topic that’s not any less relevant than it was 15 years ago. Funny, light-hearted and brave in a post-9/11 landscape, it’s not hard to understand why Little Mosque on the Prairie was such a success, and why it still holds up to this day.
