Get your Spiritual High

​If you like it or not, the popular medium of today’s entertainment world is TV, Movies, Internet and Music. You cannot avoid it, and if you think you can unplug from it, then you are isolating yourself from this generation and the next, might as well live in a cave. Few people have come up to us and said that what we’re trying to do with BURAAQ is “Haram”, and showing animated characters is not permissible in Islam. To them, I say good luck raising your children! These are the people who will stop you from doing it, but when Frozen 2, Kung Fu Panda 3, Zootopia, Good Dinosaur etc… comes out, they will be the first ones standing in line to take their kids to the theatre. You know why? Because their kids are growing up in this society, where reading less books and being glued to your smart devices is a reality. By 2020 there will be 6.1 Billion smartphones in the world, and you want to unplug? Good luck!

The key is to find a balance, that is the prophetic way. Even our prophet PBUH had an expert poet at his side, because that was the medium of that time. Poetry was so powerful at that time, that Arabs use to go to war based on it.

Today the battle is between the ears, and more than ever, we need leaders who are spiritually sound, and firm in their faith to lead the effort in these areas. Islam teaches us balance, there is good and bad in everything, and we still need to be careful with what our children watch and listen.

When I was growing up in Pakistan, there were only 2 paths for our future, either a doctor or an engineer. If we talked about being a musicians or artists, the society would look down upon you and simply mark you as someone who doesn’t have a future. Now the times have changed. I would go further and say it’s the opposite. We don’t need more doctors and engineers. We need more Media representation, Artists, politicians and lawyers. These are the areas that are shaping our society, brainwashing the masses and taking over our narratives. It time for us as an Ummah (community) to counter it, and take back our narrative.

We need to support our artists and individual who are on this spiritual journey. They are struggling to change the narrative. These are the people who are going against the mainstream current, and trying to save what’s pure and clean.
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Here is the list of 10 artists, personalities, producers, writers and musicians I admire and follow. They boost my Iman (faith) every day. I hope it benefits you too In sh Allah (God willing):

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1- Sami Yusuf

​A true musician who produces music from the heart. There are very few gifted people that can touch your soul with their voices, and he is one of them. His latest Album "BARAKAH" is a spiritual journey and a masterpiece. I hope we get to work with him in the future. 
​www.samiyusufoffical.com

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2- Peter Gould

​A creative mind. His passion for the arts and his deep rooted faith shines in his art. He is a leader in his space, and trying revive the creative side of the Ummah. He also helps organizations with branding and digital marketing. An award winner and a true artist.
http://peter-gould.com/

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3- The Message

The classic movie released in 1976. And to this day gives me goosebumps, every time I watch it. Mustafa Akkad the director, may Allah grant him Jannah… I hope one day we have a remake of epic proportions.

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4- The Omar (RA) Series

This series will make you go back in time. High budget TV series (70M) based on the life of Omar (RA). The quality and attention to detail is just amazing. If you are going to watch TV this ramadaan, I would recommend watching this series. Beautifully done!

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5- Bilal The Movie

​Finally, a game changer production. The first high budget (30M) animated feature film produced completely in Dubai UAE. The plan is to release it globally in Feb of 2018 and I cannot wait. I hope this is a huge success, and opens up doors for other creative projects, especially in the world of animation in sha Allah.

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6- DEEN TV

​Halal Entertainment 24/7. This is the place where you go to watch music videos that will give you an instant Iman boost. This Internet TV, has great content and the producers are also members of a popular Islamic musical group called "Native Deen". I have it on my ROKU.

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7- Noor Kids

​Amazing Children's Book. They  inspire 4 to 8 year old Muslims across the world to become strong and confident through our children's book series, which features:

• Colorful characters that make Islam fun and exciting
• Gentle stories that instill Islamic values in way kids love
• Activities that help parents engage children about faith

I hope they come up with an app soon!

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8- ILYAS and the DUCK

Young Kids book written by Omar for his kids, is now an award wining book. This is comparable to Curious George and the artwork is industry standard. This is must have for every household. He also does children book reading events all over the nation. He is trying to inspire young minds and teaching them to stay firm in their identity, especially in these troubled times.

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9- Nouman Ali Khan

​Amazing Motivational speaker and entrepreneur. Is knowledge of Quran and the Arabic language amazes me Ma Sha Allah. He produces videos of the highest quality, and is trying to produce great documentaries. His vision is grand, and we need visionaries like this to lead the way. Despite all the controversy, he continues the spread the message of truth, and thats what matters the most.

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10- Our Humble Effort - "BURAAQ"

We at SplitMoonArts are trying to produce a high quality superhero animated feature film BURAAQ - The Awakening.. We want to join the list of  many Muslim artist who have the same vision. To increase the level of awareness about Islam, promote clean content and tackle Islamophobia head on. Visit us at www.splitmoonarts.com and support us achieve this goal.