From show creators Rabiya Mansoor, Nisha Khan and Marushka Jessica Almeida comes a new compelling dramedy series following the intricate life of Aisha Rehman, a Pakistani Canadian student who grapples with her compulsive need for control as she deals with depression. Get Up, Aisha follows Aisha’s story as she is diagnosed with depression after living through a suicide attempt and applies a checklist approach to curing the incurable. All episodes of the series will be available to stream beginning Wednesday, April 10th on CBC Gem. We had the pleasure to speak with the show creators.
Thank you for agreeing to catch up with Occhi Magazine and best wishes with your new dramedy series ‘Get Up. Aisha. Before we explore the project please tell us a little more about you guys. What drew you to a career in the arts?
Nisha Khan: We are a creative trio who were initially in a writing group made to exchange notes on scripts. We wanted to apply for IPF (Independent Production Fund) to create a trailer and we came up with a concept about a Pakistani girl dealing with depression who has a Type-A personality. This stemmed from our own experiences with mental health and having to “keep it all together.” From there we went on a journey to bring Get Up, Aisha to life!
Rabiya Mansoor: Nisha, Marushka, and I were all in different fields before we found the arts – journalism, accounting, and law respectively. For me, I was always interested in a career in the arts – I would tell my parents I wanted to be a writer, but they steered me into a career in law. But I luckily found my way back eventually, thanks to taking some improv and sketch comedy classes to get out of the law school bubble. And I realized that I could take the uncertainty, stress, and pressure of a career in the arts, but absolutely not in law. My worst day in the arts is still better than my best day in law. So, I know this is the career path I’m meant to be on.
Marushka Jessica Almeida: Growing up, I was a very angry kid and was put in anger management where I learned to process my feelings through journaling and songwriting. My parents being very arts-driven wanted me to pursue a career in writing or music – things that I was passionate about. They didn’t get the opportunity to choose so they wanted me to but when the time came to pick a career; I went with stability and chose accounting. Yeah, I don’t know why either. My parents were pretty surprised too, though they supported me. Eventually, I came to my senses and realized that nothing had ever made me truly happy like writing did – so I made the switch, and the rest as they say is history.
Who were your early influences and how did they impact your career?
Marushka: My early influences mostly came from books and authors like Arthur Conan Doyle, Neil Gaiman, Jane Austen, Roald Dahl and Enid Blyton. To me, these stories usually had a protagonist who oftentimes was a fish out of water – just learning to move through life (basically me). Movies like Matilda and Coraline are singlehandedly responsible for my love of strong, eccentric female characters.
Rabiya: My early influences were kids / teen TV shows – particularly 15/Love (a Canadian classic) and Avatar: The Last Airbender. To me, these were stories that I was so incredibly invested in (I still tear up at Symphonic by Emm Gryner, if you know you know). These shows really opened up my mind and heart to the power of storytelling and how stories can really, truly impact and change people.
Please tell us about the origins of your project ‘Get Up, Aisha’, and what audiences can expect.
Nisha: Get Up, Aisha is a digital series about a Pakistani-Canadian student who gets diagnosed with depression after a suicide attempt. After the diagnosis we follow Aisha’s journey in trying to “cure” her depression through methods she has researched, for example making new friends, exercising and photo light therapy. She uses these methods as research for her end-of-year thesis, which her final grade is riding on.
What we hope audiences can anticipate is being able to view a character that seemingly “has it all together” but is really struggling underneath a facade. Many of us deal with the pressures to get good grades, do well in our careers and hit certain social milestones, but all that can come at the expense of our mental health and wellbeing. The character of Aisha explores what it means to be happy and also the importance of asking for help when needed.
We hope anyone watching the series can relate to the cultural element of “Log Kya Kahenge” and how it can be detrimental. The series also touches upon things like colourism and religion when it comes to mental health and how tackling these issues can heal past traumas. We hope viewers see a bit of themselves in Aisha and enjoy the journey.
What was the casting process like for this project? How important was it for you to choose the right person to play Aisha?
Rabiya: The casting process for Aisha was a bit challenging for multiple reasons – one, the role itself is challenging. Aisha is a character that’s strong both comedically and dramatically. Secondly, it was really important for us to cast someone who is Pakistani Muslim. We knew that would be a tough challenge, but we cast our net as wide as possible to make sure we really had our Aisha. And we’re so lucky to have found Sana Asad! She played Aisha both in the proof of concept in 2020 and in the full series, and we couldn’t be happier.
What other projects are in the pipeline?
Rabiya/Marushka: We’ve really enjoyed working together and got a few things up our sleeves. Our next project, Bad Accountant, is a crime comedy series about Zubaira Baqri (30s, Brown Michael Scott), who’s a delusionally confident accountant who stumbles into a job at the homely Shyam Samosas. Just a cute Indian restaurant and totally NOT a front for the largest Indian Mafia family. We’re currently in development on it, but you can check out the proof of concept on YouTube. Besides that, we’re hoping to expand into animation and a VFX-heavy rom-sci-fi project.
Where can our readers find out more about you?
Rabiya: You can find out more about me at www.rabiyamansoor.com and I’m on instagram @rabiyamansoor.
Marushka: You can find more about me on Instagram @marushkaalmeida
Nisha: You can find more about me at https://www.nishakhan.com/
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