Yasmeen Ismail goes behind the book: Meena's Saturday

We’re excited to introduce Meena’s Saturday, a new picture book written by Kusum Mepani and illustrated by Yasmeen Ismail, published by Penguin Random House / Kokila Books. This touching story, which has been selected to be featured in the Society of Illustrators 2024 Original Art Exhibition, captures the daily life of a young Indian girl, Meena, as she and her sisters manage a bustling household full of guests on a busy Saturday morning. Full of warmth, family, and tradition, Meena’s Saturday is a love letter to community, and to a young girl’s courage to make a change.

We interviewed Yasmeen, who shares her personal connection to the story and gives insight into her illustrative process.

In your own words, what is Meena’s Saturday about?

Meena’s Saturday is about a little girl in a big family getting to grips with her place in the world, and making a big decision on how she wants her future to look.

When did you first hear about the opportunity to work on Meena’s Saturday and what were your initial thoughts and feelings?

I heard about the opportunity via email approximately two years ago. I had an immediate feeling that I wanted to work on it. I grew up in an unusual setup, with a huge family in South Africa who were Gujarati Indians, and a big Indian community in Ireland where we would all hang out together, eat, talk, and all the kids would play with each other. The immigrant Indian community was familiar to me, and I felt like the right person to illustrate it.

Meena’s Saturday has a strong feminist message; why is this important to you?

I suppose it was important to the writer, but I, of course, am a feminist, and I liked the message that Kusum was delivering in the text. Feminism is progress, and I guess no matter where you are, or where your family is from, or how things are in your community, you can’t stop progress, and there will always be push-back if you try.

Tell me about your illustrative process. How did you approach world-building for this story?

My dad’s best friend was from India, and he and his wife (Irish) had seven children, all girls. All strong and accomplished women now. I remember seeing all the girls working hard. They had a bakery when we were little, and they helped their parents there. Then they had a hotel which they ran as a family, and all the girls, from little to big, worked and worked, cleaning rooms, helping in the restaurant and front of house. And then they had a restaurant (the best food ever). I was inspired by this family of grafters, these girls and women. In addition, my family in South Africa is huge and busy. There was a patriarch (pictured in the book) and all the children around him. I built the world around this big personal family and community experience, and my characters were the girls who worked so hard. The home and the characters are all based on homes, family, and friends.

What was your favorite part of illustrating this book?

It’s a big book. More spreads than normal, and I found it a bit daunting. But despite that, my favorite bit was the dancing and fighting spread. All the girls and boys letting loose and messing about.

Is there anything specific you hope readers take away from reading Meena’s Saturday?

I hope they can feel the warmth of the big family. The pride they take in food. I hope they are inspired to make a big pot of dahl makhani!

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Meena’s Saturday is out now! Get your copy here.

To work with Yasmeen, get in contact here.