Nadiya Hussain, the beloved winner of The Great British Bake Off (GBBO), has shared an emotional revelation about the “micro-aggressions” and “unconscious bias” she has faced since the launch of her new Ramadan-inspired cookbook, Rooza.
The 40-year-old British-Bangladeshi author, who is a practising Muslim, released the highly anticipated book last week, which she describes as a “journey through Islamic cuisine inspired by Ramadhan and Eid.” Featuring 30 meals from 30 countries such as Mauritius, Nepal, Yemen, and Singapore, Rooza showcases the diversity and richness of Islamic cuisine and culture.
While fans celebrated the cookbook, calling it “life-changing” and “wonderful,” Nadiya was disheartened to discover that she had lost over 1,000 followers on Instagram after announcing the book. In a heartfelt video, which quickly garnered over 500,000 views, Nadiya expressed her disappointment, acknowledging the possibility of controversy due to the faith-based nature of the book. She said: “Deep down inside of me, I knew that this book would cause some controversy because there’s faith attached to my food.”
She went on to reveal the emotional toll of creating the book, sharing that as a British Bangladeshi Muslim woman, she often feels she must “work 10 times harder for 10 times less” and face the added difficulty of being misunderstood. Nadiya added: “Writing a book like this did not come with ease. It was not easy, it was not handed to me on a plate. I had to convince people that it was a valuable book, that it was needed.”
Despite the disappointment, Nadiya remains proud of her work, saying, “I am deeply proud of this book. It is filled with delicious food that is centred around millions of people’s lives during a deeply important and special month of the year for Muslims.” In an empowering message to her followers, she urged those who disagreed with the book to “please unfollow me” as her space is one of “love, comfort, food, and honesty”—not one for “narrow minds.”
The cookbook offers a comprehensive look at meals for each day of Ramadan, which holds significant cultural and spiritual meaning due to the long hours of fasting. It includes recipes for dishes such as Maldivian tuna curry, stuffed butterfly lamb, salmon biryani, and banana spring rolls, as well as celebratory meals for Eid, the festival marking the end of Ramadan.
Speaking about the title Rooza, Nadiya explained that growing up, the word meant “fasting” in her household, and it was a term she used for Ramadan. The book is currently available for £18.09 on Amazon, reduced from its original price of £25, and holds a 3.6-star average rating.
In her Instagram post, Nadiya also pointed out a recurring trend she has observed over the years. “What I noticed last night after about 15 hours after announcing my new cookbook is that I’d lost 1,000 followers,” she shared. “I’ve seen myself lose followers over this period of ten years that I’ve been doing this. This loss usually happens when I talk about anything like culture, faith, or current affairs.”
Despite the hurt, Nadiya has continued to break barriers since winning GBBO in 2015, becoming one of the most successful contestants from the show. Since her rise to fame, Nadiya has authored multiple best-selling cookbooks, appeared on numerous cooking series, and even baked the late Queen Elizabeth’s 90th birthday cake.
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Her passion for food is matched by her determination to tackle the stigma surrounding mental health. Nadiya has been open about her struggles with anxiety, which have plagued her since childhood. In a 2019 documentary, she revealed that her anxiety was triggered by the bullying she faced at school. “There was constant pressure to prove how British I was, how Bangladeshi, how Muslim,” she said. “And then I realised that by trying to please all these different groups, I was just displeasing myself.”
Despite the challenges, Nadiya remains unapologetically herself. “People are going to say I’m not British enough to do a trifle, or not Bangladeshi enough to do certain curries, but I just don’t really care. I’m quite happy in my grey area.”
Nadiya’s latest work, Rooza, is just one example of her unwavering commitment to sharing her cultural heritage through food. As she continues to create and inspire, her resilience and authenticity serve as a reminder of the importance of embracing one’s identity, no matter the challenges or biases faced along the way.
