Malala Yousafzai to guest star in season two of musical-comedy We Are Lady Parts

Nobel Peace Prize Winner Malala Yousafzai will guest star in the second season of We Are Lady Parts, a musical comedy about an all-women punk rock band, written and directed by Nida Manzoor. English actor and comedian Meera Syal is also set to guest star.

There’s no confirmation about what Yousafzai or Syal will be doing in the new season, but the official summary says “a rival band threatens their [the band’s] delicate status quo”, Vulture detailed.

The first pictures for the new season of the critically acclaimed show dropped on Instagram, announcing that it will be released on May 30 on Peacock in the United States and on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom. All episodes will be available on the release date, making it easy for fans to binge the show.

According to Deadline, the series, inspired by Manzoor’s experiences with diverse cultural collectives and artists in London, follows the Muslim punk band Lady Parts.

The band consists of nerdy student and lead guitarist Amina Hussain (Anjana Vasan), fierce front-woman and vocalist Saira (Sarah Kameela Impey), edgy drummer Ayesha (Juliette Motamed) and the calm and collected bass player Bisma (Faith Omole). Additionally, no one can forget Lucie Shorthouse’s portrayal of Mumtaz, the band’s burqa-clad, no-nonsense manager.

The show also stars Aiysha Hart, Zaqi Ismail and Shobu Kapoor.

In a statement, Manzoor highlighted that making season one of the show was immense for her, and was a process of “trial by fire”.

“But I found my voice, my style and my confidence in creating this show,” said Manzoor. “Most importantly, I found my tribe – from actors and crew to producers and studio execs. So, coming to season two, I was galvanized. The characters, the world, the tone — it was all there, established, and ready to go. Now it was time to turn things up to 11”.

She emphasised that she wanted to go “bolder, sillier, darker and deeper” in the upcoming season, which is exactly what the team strived to do.

She added, “In season two, we explore the interior lives of each of the women in more depth. Each of them facing new, existential challenges with all the silliness, pratfalls and banter of season one. The music is bigger too – more wild original tunes (penned by me and my siblings) and dare I say it, even better covers. The season overall asks the question of success. What is success? For a punk band – is fame, stadium shows and major record deals the answer?”

The writer-slash-director wanted to explore the “uncomfortable tension between art and commerce and ask how much compromise is too much”.

“I’m really proud of what we achieved, and can’t wait to share it with old fans and new,” Manzoor said.