Actress turned writer Huma Quereshi successfully breaks the stereotypes by creating a hijab wearing superhero. The novel has some nice feminist touches along with some social themes

Recently I read a novel called Zeba (An accidental Superhero). When we hear the word superhero what automatically comes to the reader’s word is a superman or batman or even a Krrish. The term superhero is generally associated with male characters, however with Zeba Huma Quereshi has successfully broken the mould. She has created an unusual superhero with strong feminist touches.

Yes the plot troupes aren’t particularly novel especially for those who have grown on western comics but Huma’s seamless integration of serious issues like PTSD, immigration and women empowerment give the novel its own flavor.

The storyline of Zeba focuses on a protagonist who is both rich and spoiled. It is set between 1992 and 2019. Zeba is living a very fancy life in America. As the story progresses Zeba stumbles upon many secrets, one of them is loosing her parents. The second one is she possesses many superpowers and has to save a fictional kingdom called Khudir. This place of Khudir is ruled by her father, he is a big tyrant. This is the story in brief.

A strong aspect of Zeba is undoubtedly the setting of the royal harem. Through the characters of the many royal women Huma Quereshi has broken the numerous stereotypes attached with Muslim women. Here it isn’t just about Zeba fighting against the bad. But the women in harem also play a significant part. They rise above the perception of being meek victims.

One of the most special characters in the novel is that of a royal hijra called Kherun. Through this character Huma Quereshi talks about the pivotal role played by this section of people in the royal kingdoms. Huma Quereshi has written the character in a strong way empowering the role with a strong voice of her own.

Although the novel is called Zeba Huma Quereshi gives equal importance to other woman too making it a wholesome novel.

The characterization of the main protagonist is another big plus. How Zeba goes from being a spoilt woman to finding about her past and the subsequent changes have been interestingly written. A particular mention must be made of her interactions with the tyrannical father.

Through this novel Huma Quereshi also talks about religious teachings being used as a tool to spread hate. The villain called Great Khan perfectly symbolizes this theme.

The ending of Zeba is also pretty interesting. After saving the world from destruction Zeba exclaims that “I’m so tired, man. I hope this is it. This s**t is exhausting,”. Through this dialogue Huma Quereshi brings up the theme of PTSD as Zeba is now looking for therapy.

To sum it up Zeba makes for a good read particularly if you are in the mood for a female superhero.