When a fat Muslim woman did appear on screen, she was almost always relegated to a specific trope: the loud, aggressive mother-in-law; the comic relief auntie who can’t stop eating samosas; or the tragic, desexualized figure of pity in a documentary about "oppression."

| Trope | Problem | Example | |-------|---------|---------| | | Fat Muslim woman is only happy after losing weight. | A hijabi loses 50 lbs and suddenly gets the guy/job. | | The Desexualized Aunty | Fat = old, irrelevant, no romantic life. | Always the comic relief or the matchmaker, never the lover. | | The Self-Hating Fat Friend | Her only role is to be insecure and inspire the thin lead. | "You're so brave to wear that." | | The "Health Concern" Villain | Community members lecture her about diabetes – but the story agrees with them. | No counter-narrative from the character herself. | | Magical Fat Muslim | She exists only to give wisdom or spiritual advice, not to have her own desires. | Always the therapist or the saint, never the sinner. |

Perhaps the most potent arena for this representation is Instagram and TikTok. The "Modest Fashion" industry, once dominated by slim, hijab-clad influencers mimicking high-fashion norms, is being disrupted by plus-sized creators.