Anyone familiar with Marvel and the Marvel Cinematic Universe, or MCU, would have heard about the soon-to-be Disney+ produced Ms. Marvel series. Even if you’re not familiar with the MCU, if you’re Canadian, or specifically desi, there is an even greater chance that you’ve heard about Ms. Marvel because….drumrolls please…..she’s the first South Asian Muslim female superhero. Specifically, a Pakistani Muslim female superhero.

And this time, Marvel has actually cast a Canadian Pakistani for the role of Kamala Khan. For those that don’t understand why this is a big deal, here’s why:

Usually when it comes to hiring actors/actresses for the role of a brown person, they usually go with an Indian irrespective of what ethnicity the actual character is. For instance, Danny Pudi plays Abed in Community, who is a half-Arab, even though Pudi is South Indian himself. Generally in the West, brown = Indian…unless the character is a terrorist. Then they’re very particular about hiring someone with a beard and Middle Eastern features. Specificity is important in this case. 

This time, however, they were very specific about casting an actual Pakistani for the role of a Pakistani. In fact, the whole team consists of brown directors and writers to make the story and characters as authentic as possible. I can’t explain how big of a deal this is. Not only is this character a Muslim girl with a very obviously Muslim name, but she’s also a Pakistani whose parents are immigrants in the United States. And the people who are going to create her story aren’t examining her “Oriental lifestyle” through an unrelated white lens. They’re like her—they’re like me!

This is a story and a character that’s going to resonate with desi and Muslim youth worldwide. In fact, it’s already made a huge impact on me. I don’t think I’ve ever been as excited for Marvel to release something as I am right now waiting in anticipation for the release of this series. And I don’t doubt that’s the case for many, many others.

I mean, was this my dream role? Yes. Did I want Marvel to magically cast me out of nowhere? Yes. Am I distraught that I’ll never get to play Kamala Khan? Y E S. But I’m still excited for Iman Vellani because this role must be a dream come true for her. And understandably so.

(But also, if anyone from Disney or Marvel comes across this, please cast me to be your token hijabi in the show or the future movie)

However, for the time being, I’m just glad there’s at least a dash of Pakistani masala in the MCU.