''The Taqwacores'' is a 2010 film adaptation of the 2003 novel ''

The Taqwacores ''The Taqwacores'' is the debut novel by Michael Muhammad Knight, depicting a fictitious Islamic punk rock scene. The title is a portmanteau of taqwa, an Islamic concept of love and fear for Allah, and Hardcore, the punk rock subgenre. Som ...

'' by

Michael Muhammad Knight Michael Muhammad Knight (born 1977) is an American novelist, essayist, and journalist. His writings are popular among American Muslim youth. The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' described him as "one of the most necessary and, paradoxically enough, ...

. The film was directed by Eyad Zahra and stars Bobby Naderi,

Dominic Rains Dominic Rains (; born Amin Nazemzadeh, fa, امین ناظم زاده, label=none, March 1, 1982) is an American actor, best known for his roles in independent films, including '' The Taqwacores'' (2010) and '' A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night'' ...

, and Noureen Dewulf. The film imagines a fictitious Islamic punk rock scene through characters living in a punk house in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Sou ...

. It was filmed in Cleveland, Ohio.

Plot

A sophomore majoring in engineering, Yusef (Bobby Naderi) seeks living quarters with fellow Muslims after a year in the godless dorms. He moves—rather improbably, given his conservative nature—into a building inhabited by various punky misfits (it is unclear whether they are also students) wrestling with their cultural and religious identity. Or, as red-mohawked guitarist Jehangir (Dominic Rains) puts it, their "mismatching of disenfranchised subcultures." Others include ever-shirtless skateboarding wild man Amazing Ayyub (Volkan Eryaman), spike-haired stoner Fasiq (Ian Tran) and brawny, glowering Umar (Nav Mann), the would-be moral enforcer in a houseful of rebels against Koranic strictures. Sole female in residence is Rabeya (Noureen DeWulf), who wears a head-to-toe burka yet is full of ideas that might be considered blasphemous.

Cast

(in alphabetical order) Full cast and crew for The Taqwacores (2010)
at the

Internet Movie Database IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...

, Retrieved September 6, 2010 *

Noureen DeWulf Noureen DeWulf ( née Ahmed) is an American actress and comedian. She is best known for her film roles in ''West Bank Story'' (2005), ''Ghosts of Girlfriends Past'' (2009), and '' The Back-up Plan'' (2010). She also starred as Lacey on the sitco ...

as Rabeya * Jim Dickson as Gas Station Bully * Volkan Eryaman as Amazing Ayyub * Denise George as Dee Dee Ali * Marwan Kamel as Himself (Cameo) * Anne Leighton as Lynn * Nav Mann as Umar *

Rasika Mathur Rasika Mathur is an American actress/ comedian best known for her recurring role on the original version of ''Wild 'N Out''. Early life Mathur was born in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, to Hindu immigrant parents from India, but grew up in Houston, Te ...

as Fatima * John Charles Meyer as Hamza * Bobby Naderi as Yusef *

as Jehangir Tabari * Nicholas Riley as Harun * Ara Thorose as Lead Singer of The Ghilmans * Ian Tran as Fasiq * Tony Yalda as Muzzamil

Music

''The Taqwacores'' features an original score by Los Angeles composer, Omar Fadel, as well as licensed music from

The Kominas The Kominas are a punk rock band formed in 2005 by two Pakistani-Americans from Worcester, Massachusetts. In over ten years, the band has experienced a number of line-up changes and self-released albums. Musical style Their dance-oriented so ...

, Sagg Syndicate and

Al-Thawra Al-Thawra ( ar, الثورة, meaning "The Revolution") is an experimental metal punk band with rhythms and modes that draw heavily on Middle Eastern influences. Band member Marwan Kemal describes a "third identity" between the "false dichotomy ...

References

External links

Official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Taqwacores 2010 films Films about LGBT and Islam Taqwacore Films set in New York (state) Punk films 2010s English-language films