Half Our Deen on hold

Bismillah ar-Rahmaan ar-Raheem,

Wow! On July 11th, we launched Half Our Deen and we really didn't expect so many people to register. Honestly, it caught us off guard. Once the site launched, we realized that not only do we need a powerful server to support the number of members but we need to correct some of the issues on the backend. The quality of the website is more important to us than the quantity so for the time being, we're putting a temporary hold on the site so we can improve the experience the memebers. For those who have been eagerly waiting for the Half Our Deen, we thank you for your patience.

For those who were able to sign up with Half Our Deen early and have made successful payments, we have FULLY refunded all your money back. As Muslims, we want to be implement Islam even when it comes to business InshAllah and that is why we decided to send every penny paid for the site right back to the members. We want to give you the best possible experience for the price and InshAllah and we're going to go back to the drawing board to restructure the site so we can come back with an even more amazing product for you.

The goal is to launch Half Our Deen again but this time we'll be more prepared InshAllah. Please forgive us for any shortcommings and keep us in your du'ahs.
We apologize for any delays. Your overall experience is more important to us than the number of members we have.

Half Our Deen has launched! Finally :)

Bismillah ar-Rahmaan ar-Raheem,

I know many of you have waited a long time for the launch of Half Our Deen and jazakAllah khair for your patience. I am happy to announce that we have just launched the Half Our Deen website Alhamdulillah.

While some may think we are done with the website, we believe we have just begun. There are many more features we want to add to the site, so we’ll be working behind the scenes to make improvements to Half Our Deen, InshAllah.

Unlike the other websites, we refuse to put up fake profiles to pull in an audience. It will take a few days to have a sufficient number of profiles up, InshAllah. From day one, we wanted Half Our Deen to be different from all the other websites, and I have personally put together a special video explaining the many differences and features that makes Half Our Deen so unique.

JazakAllah Khair for all your patience and support.

Please click below to register with Half Our Deen.

www.halfourdeen.com (remember to check out the video on the main page too)

By the way, if you have any feedback, please send it to support@halfourdeen.com

New Video! Baba Ali on the steets asking questions about Islam

Bismillah ar-Rahmaan ar-Raheem,

We had some free time before the comedy show so we decided to hit up the streets and ask our non-muslim neighbors what they know about Islam. Here are some of the answers we received.

Camerman and Editor Saad Malik

Hurray for Baba Ali

Bismillah ar-Rahmaan ar-Raheem,

Its been a while since my last post. I've been busy working on numerous projects. One of the projects I was asked to help out on was for Milo Productions for a series called "Hurray for Baba Ali". The video series is aimed for kids to teach them the basic things that we learn growing up.

Unlike my normal series, I act like a little kid which was kinda of refreshing. Then again, my friends will tell you that I act like a kid all the time :)

Anyways, the series was put together by a Muslim husband & wife team in Canada and their website is www.hurrayforbabaali.com. For anyone with kids that likes the series, you can purchase the full DVD from their site.

Filing for Facebook Bankruptcy

Bismillah ar-Rahmaan ar-Raheem,

With over 1000 emails and nearly 4000 friend requests, I'm officially filing for Facebook Bankruptcy. I've tried answering emails and approving friend requests but the with number of emails/requests that keep coming in, I've accepted the reality that I just can't do it. So I started over on Twitter. Since posting on twitter is quick and easy (you can even do it via your mobile/cell), Twitter is much more realistic for me. You can follow me on twitter by going to this link:
http://www.twitter.com/ummahfilms

Baba Ali's new board game ("Kalimaat")

Bismillah ar-Rahmaan ar-Raheem,

A few years ago I invented the board game, Mecca to Medina, which was a great success. Thousands of games were made and in short amount of time, the games were sold out. Alhamdulillah. At that time, my Reminder videos had just started to become popular so somehow I transitioned from making games to making videos.

About a month ago, I decided to revisit the world of game development and I figured if I'm going to release a new board game, I might as well release my favorite one :) So I made some phone calls, tweaked the game, and now as I type this blog post, my new game, Kalaimaat is being mass produced in China. I'm really looking forward to Kalimaat because I have seen the reaction of those who have got a chance to play it so far. I have taken it all over the United States, UK, and even Canada and have had nothing but positive responses. Kalimaat arrives here in the US in mid-July InshAllah.

In a nutshell, the game is word game played in teams of two. It's really fun and quite different than anything that is out there. I honestly believe that the best way of marketing is word of mouth and people are only going to tell their friends about quality product that they enjoy (no matter how much you try to advertise it). So in order for this game to be a hit, it really has to be good InshAllah. I have spent countless hours to put this baby together. Just like my first game, Mecca to Medina, the game can be played by both Muslim and non-Muslims and doesn't require previous Islamic knowledge to enjoy it. My problem with other Muslim board games is that they have ALL been the same (trivia-based). I mean there isn't anything wrong with trivia games but if one doesn't have the knowledge of the questions asked, then they have zero possibility of winning. Plus, if you're not Muslim, the game is basically pointless because you don't have the background to answer the questions. The funny thing is that every Muslim game developer has basically made the exact same board game which explains why so many of those games are played just a few times and then sit on the shelf to gather dust.

When I made Mecca to Medina, I wanted to make something different and unique. One of the vendors that played the game said he really liked the game but was doubtful that his customers would buy it because it wasn't trivia based. Not only did they buy it but the game quickly became the number one Muslim board game on the market. At one point, about 1/2 my games were sold to non-Muslims. Alhamdulillah.

I hope to repeat the same success with my new board game Kalimaat InshAllah. I'll keep you guys posted as we get an exact date on the shipment of the game.

Baba Ali in Melbourne (3rd city in Australia Tour)

Bismillah ar-Rahmaan ar-Raheem,

Just got back from Atlanta yester and had a great time. Everyone there was awesome Alhamdulillah. Tomorrow, I leave for the land down under InshAllah. I think I'm doing a total of 6 events during my stay in Australia and I think its all going to happen in like 3 days :). Add a 14hr flight each way and you're going to have a very exhausted Baba Ali. It is all good though because this is my first time in Australia so I think the excitement will balance everything out. If you're on twitter, you can follow me by going to http://www.twitter.com/ummahfilms

Baba Ali On Tour! Australia next week (this weekend Atlanta)

Bismillah ar-Rahmaan ar-Raheem,

I'm performing for the first time in Atlanta this Sunday at the Islamic Relief Fundraiser inshAllah. Next weekend, I'm doing a 3 city tour in Australia InshAllah (first time in the land down under too). Above are two of the events in Australia that I'll be in (I think I'm doing a total of 5 events there)

At this rate, I think I'm getting burned out. I think by the end of this year, I'm going to retire for doing live events and just stick with the videos. I miss making them. I work during the week and travel basically ever weekend so it leaves little time to make the Reminder clips. At the same time, I'm trying to get the new Half Our Deen site out (ETA 20 days), produce my new board game (ETA 7/14/09), and start writing the short film I've been wanting to do (ETA Allah Alim)

Anyways, here are some of the shows coming up:

04-26-09 | Atlanta, GA
IR Fundraising Dinner for Orphans

05-01-09 | Australia
Baba Ali Australia Tour

05-02-09 | Australia
Baba Ali Australia Tour

05-03-09 | Australia
Baba Ali Australia Tour

05-04-09 | Australia
Baba Ali Australia Tour

05-05-09 | Australia
Baba Ali Australia Tour

05-09-09 | Santa Barbara, CA
UCSB Event

05-16-09 | Columbus, OH
Noor Cultural Center

05-23-09 | Hartford, CT
ICNA-MAS Convention

05-30-09 | Houston, TX
Tour with Zain Bikha

06-06-09 | New Jersey
Tour with Zain Bikha

06-07-09 | New Jersey
Tour with Zain Bikha

06-20-09 | Fredrick, NJ
ISOF (in talks)

08-08-09 | Santa Clara, CA
Great America Theme Park (MUD)

08-15-09 | Tulsa, OK
Fundraiser (Peace Academy)

09-26-09 | Fresno, CA
California State University Fresno (in talks)