There’s a new family on Hulu: the Sozahdah sisters. Secrets & Sisterhood is an unscripted series that follows 10 Muslim American sisters whose faith and bonds are put to the ultimate test while trying to navigate cultural expectations, their careers, and love in the City of Angels. The tight-knit brood’s No. 1 rule they swear by is “family over everything.” But as skeletons are exposed while filming ensues, will the TV show they thought would bring them together tear them apart? According to them, absolutely not.

It’s a dynamic reality television fans are intrigued by: 10 women from two separate generations with morals and values combine their Afghanistan culture with American life and their Muslim faith. In age order, the sisters are: Shaista​​, Halimah, Khadija, Rabya, Shakur, Muzlefa, Jamila, Siddiqa, Nooreya, and Hamida Sozahdah. Some have spouses and children, others are single and looking for their prince. All work — with their fields varying from finance to healthcare and even entertainment. In fact, Shakur, the leader of the younger sisters, has a past as a rapper. Despite her name and past profession, she is of no relation to the iconic Tupac Shakur…no pun intended.
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As they embark on this new journey in show business together, with their beloved matriarch at the helm, viewers will be opened up to a whole new world. In a recent chat with Collider, six of the sisters dished on what to expect from the show. They also had no trouble speaking about the obvious comparison to another group of sisters who have a series on the streamer: the Kardashians.

Addressing the Kardashian Comparisons
Image via Hulu

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The resemblance between the two sister groups is there: they are strikingly beautiful and curvy, and the fact that the Sozahdahs are educated and accomplished in their respective medical fields already is a bonus. Both families are on the same streaming platform, so viewers are wondering what sets the Sozahdahs apart. Others wonder if they are plotting to take the baton from the Kardashians and introduce a new dynasty to have their seat at the table of reality staples. The Sozahdahs sisters say neither is exactly true.

As for Noreeya, who is considered to be the business-minded investor of the bunch, she says they’ll be using their platform to expand their philanthropic efforts. “I think we would love to use our platform to help give back, which is why we have our charity and we hold fundraisers,” she told us. “Last year, we supported refugee women and children. The year before, we focused on victims in Afghanistan. So that’s definitely something that we want to focus on as a family: to give back. So that’s, I think, goal number one for us.”

“We are all about women empowering other women and supporting other people’s successes. They’re (the Kardashians) definitely trailblazers in this industry and paved the way. So I think it’s great. We’re excited to be on Hulu and we’re here as sisters just to tell our story, and bring a different perspective, especially from a cultural standpoint,” Jamila said.

The Sisters Say They Don’t Want to Be the Poster Children For Afghanistan American Muslims
Image by Annamaria Ward, Hulu

While larger families as the focus of reality shows have become more appealing in recent years with families like The Duggars and The Derricos, this is the first time we are seeing culture merged with religion from two worlds explored. There’s a lot of misinformation and misunderstanding about Afghanistan life and complex ideas about how a Muslim woman should show up in the world. Rabya says their family is not the prime example to represent all Muslim women Afghan Americans.

The family moved to America when the oldest sister was just 12 as refugees amid the Soviet’s invasion. From there, they worked hard to prove themselves and attain their version of the American dream. Keeping their culture intact has been important, despite struggles along the way. Secrets of sexuality are exposed, drug addiction, and an unplanned pregnancy threatens to shame the family. It’ll be interesting to see the response from viewers who share similar upbringings.

“This is our story, our journey of ten sisters. We truly are not trying to be representative of all Muslim people, of all Afghans, we just want to share our journey and our path as children of refugees,” she said. “Ten sisters are rare, as you know. So that’s not something you find every day. So we are brought out a level of uniqueness by having a variety of opinions between siblings because we do share some individual personalities.”

How the Older Sisters and Younger Sisters Differ Culturally
Image via Hulu

The sisters are split down the middle between the “elders” and the “wolf pack.” The older five were born in Afghanistan, and the younger five were born in America. While their upbringing in terms of cultural values were the same, circumstances were different. Of course, this can lead to clashing.

“We’re the Wolf pack, where they were the ones that were born in America, we’re the trifecta. And then there are the elder sisters who were born in Afghanistan. And they have a very different mentality. And we have to be a little bit more sheltered around them. And that sort of the clash comes in, as is the culture and our identity, the cultural expectations of how we should conduct ourselves,” Hamida notes.

As viewers stream the first season, they will see one stark contrast between the two packs: how they engage in dating. The older sisters rely on tradition and place a heavier emphasis on marriage, while the younger sisters are all about exploring their options.

“Oh, there’s a huge contrast there. Khadijah has been with her husband for about 18 years. He’s her first love. Muslifah, she married her husband at 19,” Noreeya explained. Siddiqa added that Muslifah’s marriage involved a “very Islamic approach,” where she met her husband only three times before exchanging vows, as did Shaista​​. With their merged American worldview, Siddiqa says they explore relationships in a different way.

“We believe in dating,” she said firmly. “But with the older sisters, it was “The guy you’re dating, first or last, is the guy you’re going to marry. And so they were dating to marry off the bat. And we date to have fun sometimes. And that’s a really big contrast.”

Secrets & Sisterhood is available for streaming on Hulu. Watch the full video interview with the cast above.