A photo posted by Riz Ahmed / Riz MC (@rizahmed) on
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 Riz Ahmed shined as pilot Bodhi Rook in Rogue One, and an Instagram he posted today is an amazing testament to what Star Wars symbolizes to him.
The actor began by recounting what an incredible year he’s had with his essay in The Good Immigrant, nominations for his role in The Night Of, and Swet Shop Boys. “None of this felt real,” Ahmed writes, “Now I’m back home I just saw these pictures I drew at age 7 of Darth Vader & Luke.” The actor discusses how since he drew these images, “the constant message that someone like me couldn’t ever belong, or shape the world around them, had taken hold. I had no road map or template to follow in trying to prove those messages wrong. I started believing them.”
Ahmed then refers to “some really tough moments” he faced a year ago, and how rediscovering “a sense of childishness, and of play” helped him stop working towards proving himself. He expresses gratitude, celebration, and the finals words, “Keep your inner child alive. Keep dreaming.”
When reading this post, I thought about how comedian and actor Kumail Nanjiani recently tweeted about how Rogue One was an emotional watch for him, as he “thought of kids watching this movie & seeing ppl that look like them kicking ass.” Ahmed has always been very outspoken about representation, you can read his powerful essay for The Good Immigrant here , where he discusses typecasting at auditions and airports as an actor of color. It’s incredible that now there are other 7-year-olds likely drawing version of him for their own collections, preparing to kick ass themselves.
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Published: Dec 19, 2016 05:28 pm