Society & Culture

Nostalgic relief as beloved religious TV series returns

An Egyptian series about the lives of the prophets from Abraham to Mohamed aired daily on Television Maldives every Ramadan but was expected to be discontinued this year.

Published

6 years ago

May 18, 2018

A beloved Egyptian television series returned on the state broadcaster Wednesday, allaying fears that this year’s Ramadan would be the first in nearly three decades without the show.

Dubbed in the local Dhivehi language, Muhammad Rasoolallah, a five-part series about the lives of the prophets from Abraham to Mohamed (pbuh), aired daily on Television Maldives every Ramadan but was expected to be discontinued this year.

Islamic Minister Dr Ahmed Ziyad told the press in November that it would be replaced with a new drama series about warrior-king Salah ad-Din.

While the new show debuted Thursday night, TVM began airing Muhammad Rasoolallah on the first day of Ramadan with morning and evening time slots.

Over the years, the show has become a shared childhood memory for many Maldivians, an introduction to prophetic tales associated with the fasting month.

News of the cancellation prompted nostalgic fans to launch an online petition to bring the show to Netflix.

A cover of the theme song recently performed on an Egyptian talk show went viral on Maldivian social media groups last week.

One Facebook user wrote: “Ramadan just around the corner and I’m not even sure if we’ll see any of the episodes this year. Wonder if Egyptians know how much this song means to so many Maldivians. Ramadan Mubarak, everyone!”