![]() While Omar is an obviously Muslim name, the creators of the show used Hana for the girl to give it universal appeal.ĭigital Durian had experience with cartoons before it came out with Omar and Hana. “It took us six months of research just to think of the names.” ![]() Omar and Hana was initially launched for the Malaysian market in 2017 but the creators of the show always intended for it to go global, says Senan Ismail, the CEO and co-founder of Digital Durian. There’s the beautiful Ramadan song by the English singer Cat Stevens, there are Zaky and Friends, the animal caricatures exploring jungles, mingling outdoor hikes with Islamic subtext, and there’s Omar Esa with his catchy Jumma Mubarak song. The concept of using Muslim characters and themes in cartoons is nothing new especially in countries such as Egypt, which have a decadaes-old history of using Arabic animation for educating children.īut it’s only in the last few years that quality animated content targeting English-speaking audiences has started to come out. They have also collaborated with other big names such as Zain Bhikha and are now working with popular American scholar Omar Suleiman. ![]() Altogether, it has garnered more than 3.2 billion views across the world and is watched in more than 50 countries.įamous Zimbabwe-based Islamic scholar Mufti Ismail Menk, who has 7 million Twitter followers, has appeared as a cartoon alongside Omar and Hana. The animated cartoon about two Muslim siblings was developed by the Malaysia-based company Digital Durian. Even my 2 year-old-son who would normally watch nursery rhymes is hooked onto it.”Īlizeh's 2-year-old son Essa loves watching Omar and Hana along with other nursery rhymes. Like they use songs to put across the message. “Whenever a new episode is uploaded, I encourage my kids to sit and watch it. So when it was time for her kids to have an inevitable brush with the world of Youtube, she decided they should watch Omar and Hana, a cartoon series that largely revolves around Islamic themes. “There’s so much nonsense on Youtube these days,” says Alizeh. Much of this occurs naturally, especially as many Muslims prefer hanging out with other Muslim families that share the same customs and culture, says Alizeh.īut children in their preschool years spend many hours in front of a TV or an iPad, picking up everything from how to read, to counting and other habits. As a Muslim parent she wants her kids to greet others using the traditional Assalamualaikum, saying Bismillah before taking a bite of food, and uttering Inshallah when committing to a task. Part of that routine involves incorporating basic Arabic expressions and prayers into everyday life. It guides us in what we do in our daily routine.” It’s not like you read a few books and you are done. ![]() “In any case, I feel religious education starts from home and Islam is basically a way of life. “We have heard stories about how children in such schools grow up in a bubble and then they face problems when they go to university,” she tells TRT World. Omar and Hana infuse teachings from the Quran with colourful animation.Īlizeh Ali often wonders if she’s doing enough to teach her three young kids about Islam as they grow up in a suburb of Melbourne, Australia, where the nearest mosque is a 20-minute drive away.Ī practicising Muslim who covers her head with a scarf, she and her husband have discussed sending their seven year-old-daughter to an all-Islamic school but then decided against it.
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