Iman Vellani a.k.a. Disney+’s Ms Marvel is the latest talk of the town, especially for her spot-on brown girl representation in the show. With its first episode out this week, Ms Marvel received an overwhelming response from viewers who weren’t even brown! The show is being praised for its authentic representation of Muslim-Pakistani immigrants living in the USA, something we don’t often see in mainstream media. It is evident audiences are loving the show since it already has a 95% Rotten Tomatoes rating, making it the most liked show in the MCU presently!
Iman Vellani, being a Muslim-Pakistani living in the USA herself and then landing the role of Kamala Khan a.k.a. Ms Marvel, a Muslim American living in New Jersey, wasn’t short of a miracle! It was almost as if the role was written for her. Recently, she was invited to ‘The Daily Show’ with Trevor Noah where she spilled the beans on everything Ms Marvel! From how she got the role to what superpowers Kamala will have! Here are 5 things she revealed about the miniseries that we are stoked to share with you all!
1. She Landed Her Dream Role Via WhatsApp!
“Brown people thrive on WhatsApp … I told my aunt, … this is what a scam is.”
Iman Vellani
That’s a first, but sounds believable to us desis! Iman Vellani’s aunt is to thank for getting Kamala’s role! How, you ask? Well, in one of the brown WhatsApp group chats her aunt was a part of, someone shared the casting call for the show and Iman’s aunt immediately forwarded the message to her. At first, Iman thought was a scam! She sent them her headshot and got a callback the very next day and as they say, the rest is history!
2. She Had A Massive Crush On Robert Downey Jr.
During her interview, Iman confessed that she had “the fattest crush on Robert Downey Jr.”, and can we blame her? Iron Man is definitely one superhero we can’t get over (spoiler alert), especially after Tony Stark’s death in Avengers: Endgame.
3. The Iron Man Comics Played A Vital Role In Her Discovery Of Kamala
“It was crazy, I felt the comics were written about me, for me and only me.”
Iman Vellani
Naturally, being obsessed with the ‘Iron Man’ comics, Iman Vellani ventured on to find other, similar comics she could fangirl over. Soon, she stumbled across the ‘Iron Heart’ and ‘Ms Marvel’ comics and was ecstatic to find a brown superhero she could relate to. This was the representation she had been yearning for and she felt that the comics had been written specifically for her.
4. Iman Vellani Manifested Her Role In Ms Marvel When She Was 15
Iman dressed as Ms Marvel for Halloween when she was 15 and her grandmother helped her stitch the costume! However, classmates and friends mistook her for the superhero Flash, so she dashed to the nearest comic book store and grabbed a copy of the Ms Marvel comic so she could carry it around and reference it whenever people asked her who she was dressed up as.
5. Kamala’s Personality Isn’t Just Being Muslim & Pakistani
Iman Vellani explains that Ms Marvel’s personality is so much more than just being Muslim and Pakistani. It is indeed Kamalas’ religious and ethnic background that directs and influences her moral code which uplifts and elevates her and Iman thinks ‘it’s cool’.
