The Guardian interviews Nadiya Hussain, winner of the mega-popular cooking show “The Great British Bake Off” (think “The Voice” meets “Top Chef”). The finale garnered 14.5 million viewers, the biggest television audience of the year, and the fact that a Bangladesh-Muslim woman was front and center was no small feat.
“The things that worried me were not these deep issues like: ‘I have to represent all Muslims.’ What bothered me was more that I didn’t want to go in there and sound unintelligent or get my bakes wrong,” says Nadiya. “Growing up, I didn’t see that many Muslims on TV and we don’t see many now, but essentially I am a mother and that’s the job I know best. For me, it’s important to instill in my children that they can do whatever they like, that no matter what their religion and color, they can achieve what they want through hard work.”
