'A dream come true': Mehwish Hayat praises Ms. Marvel's 'accurate' representation of desi culture

Disney+ and Marvel's upcoming show Ms. Marvel has been the talk of the town for desis all over social media, be it our very own Pakistani celebrities representing on the red carpet in Hollywood, or some snippets from the show that left many demanding correct representation. But for Mehwish Hayat, Ms. Marvel is an "accurate representation" of Pakistani culture.

On Sunday, the actor shared photos from the premiere event of the show held in Los Angeles. In her post, she wrote, "Working on Ms Marvel and being part of the MCU is a dream come true for me! You cannot believe what it means to finally have the first brown Muslim superhero that we can all relate to and who speaks for us. Words can't describe how happy my inner child is to see my culture being so accurately represented on screen, in a mainstream Hollywood production."

She also wrote that it means a lot that Marvel made an effort to cast Pakistani actors in key roles. "I hope that this will not only show actors in Pakistan that they need to look beyond their own borders but also give Hollywood the confidence to cast talent from Pakistan."

In her post, Hayat credited show creator Sana Amanat, executive producer Jenna Berger and director Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy and the rest of the team's "attention to detail" that made Ms. Marvel something really special. For her, the proud moment was seeing the Oscar winning filmmaker directing the upcoming show. "Couldn’t think of anyone who would have been better," she wrote.

She also complimented the main lead, Iman Vellani, who plays Kamala Khan. For Hayat, Vellani is a "real firecracker" who is destined to be a big name in Hollywood.

Hayat bumping into Kevin Feige, president of Marvel Studios, and Louis D'Esposito, film producer, was the "icing on the cake" of her trip. She also wrote that Marvel needs to be applauded because they have made every little girl, not just brown, believe that they are special and can achieve their dreams if they believe in them enough. "Look at me… a girl from Karachi walking the Red carpet in Hollywood shows anything is possible."

In the show, Vellani plays 16-year-old Kamala, a Pakistani-American teen who lives in Jersey City. Kamala is an aspiring artist, an avid gamer, and a voracious fan-fiction scribe. She is also a huge fan of the Avengers — and one in particular, Captain Marvel. But Kamala has always struggled to find her place in the world — that is until she gets super powers like the heroes she’s always looked up to.

Earlier last month, Chinoy had announced that Disney and Marvel have created a special theatre format for Ms. Marvel. The six-episode show will be split into three parts according to the filmmaker.

Episodes one and two will debut on June 16, three and four on June 30 and five and six on July 14.