فَلَا تُطِعِ ٱلْكَـٰفِرِينَ وَجَـٰهِدْهُم بِهِۦ جِهَادًۭا كَبِيرًۭا

Translation: “So do not obey the disbelievers, and strive against them with it [i.e., the Qur'ān] a great striving.”

— Al-Furqan:52

In this verse Allah is telling us to strive against the disbelievers with the Qur'an. So what exactly does the Qur'an have that we can use to strive against the disbelievers? In our context of film production the following verse and Surah would apply:

Allah says:

نَحْنُ نَقُصُّ عَلَيْكَ أَحْسَنَ ٱلْقَصَصِ بِمَآ أَوْحَيْنَآ إِلَيْكَ هَـٰذَا ٱلْقُرْءَانَ وَإِن كُنتَ مِن قَبْلِهِۦ لَمِنَ ٱلْغَـٰفِلِينَ

Translation: “We relate to you, [O Muḥammad], the best of stories in what We have revealed to you of this Qur'ān although you were, before it, among the unaware.”

— Yusuf:3

Surah Yusuf holds the key to understanding and mastering story telling. If story telling was not crucially important then why did Allah reveal an entire chapter of the Qur’an dedicated to this subject? Will you not think?

We live in a world in which we are being told hundreds if not thousands of stories on a daily basis. Muslims consume films, songs, documentaries, books and all forms of content just as non-Muslims do. With the rise in social media, greater internet speeds and cheap smartphones it is now easier than ever to access digital content across the globe. We find ourselves in a new era in which our hearts and minds are fully entrenched into the digital world.

“62.3% of the world's population uses social media. The average daily usage is 2 hours and 23 minutes (January 2024).” - GWI

Many Muslims in the west and across the globe grew up watching films and TV shows which were produced by organisations that may have prioritised their revenues and pushing a particular political agenda over seeking truth and presenting it to the world. Without realising it these programmes have had an effect on many Muslims who carry baggage from these past and present productions which display horror, violence, nudity and other vices whilst simultaneously replacing real heroes with fictional characters such as Batman and Spiderman. At the same time Muslims have constantly appeared on mainstream platforms as evil, backward and uncivilised. This has left a deep imprint on the hearts and minds of millions of Muslims. Muslims have also been cut off from their past heroes on-mass and many cannot even recall their names and stories. This has all resulted in a deep identity crisis wherein many Muslim youth in particular now feel isolated, without any role models and under the spotlight.

Using the analogy of warfare, Muslims have been cornered and their hearts and minds are being attacked from all directions without a shield to defend themselves or a weapon to fight back. Some hearts have been severely injured, some minds have fallen into a deep comma due to the trauma and others have died altogether and left Islam. So whilst we continue to strive by donating towards emergency aid appeals we must now realise that we need to also defend our faith and fight back where possible.

Islamic Ancestry productions are here to fight the corner on behalf of the Muslims. We are arming Muslims around the globe with the best of stories that they can proudly narrate to others, the best role models from our respective communities that they can learn and gain inspiration from, and with narratives that will naturally appeal to the disposition of all sound-minded human beings. We are doing all this whilst meticulously researching and fact-checking our information to ensure a true story is presented to our respected audiences.

We Muslims must realise that there are multiple fronts that must be fought in order to free ourselves from oppression and to raise the flag of Islam around the world. Presenting the stories of our righteous ancestors in a film/ docu-drama series format is just one of them. We must support ALL such causes and unite to defeat those that wish to oppress us.

Finally you are not obligated to give anything. However, if you wish to participate in our Jihad and gain a great reward in the hereafter then why not support our cause?

“Allah said: 'Spend, O son of Adam, and I shall spend on you.'”

— Bukhari/ Muslim

“He who fights to raise the word of Allah is in the way of Allah.”

— Bukhari/ Muslim

Abu Bashir reported: Al-Hasan al-Basri, may Allah have mercy on him, said, “Verily, the servant may wage jihad for the sake of Allah, a jihad as is due to Him, without ever striking anything with a sword.”

— Tafsīr Ibn Abī Ḥātim 29:6