What’s it like to be a 2nd generation migrant to the United Arab Emirates who is also a social media star? How can you express your identity within the constraints of its legal and political system? My guest today Sonali Pahwa, Associate Professor of Theatre Arts & Dance at the University of Minnesota, looks at the examples of two famous content creators in Dubai… an Egyptian woman and a Syrian man.

Through their comic performances, argues Pahwa, they practice “belonging” in a nation where they lack a path to citizenship. While doing so, they also challenge conventional perceptions on national and gender identity.