“They don't even see me as a human being. They just see me as a shadow wearing a scarf. That's it.” Imane, or Sheikha Safran as she’s better known, is talking to us about the racism and Islamophobia she faced when living and studying in France. “They don't even think that women wearing the hijab could have dreams, a life just like anyone else.” These honest reflections on being a visibly Muslim, Arab woman have served as fuel for her scarf brand, Safran World, and its latest campaign, Veil the Veiled. “The hijab ban in France originates from what happened under colonial rule in Algeria, when the French authorities forced Algerian women to remove the haik. They wanted to prevent Algerians wearing anything that was related to their Islamic faith and to assimilate as ‘French’,” she adds.

As you can tell, Safran World is much more than a fashion brand. Rooted in faith, spirituality and the ache of displacement, as well as hope for the future, it’s a rallying cry for Arab and African pride. There’s a saying that Algerians bow only to Allah and this phrase perfectly embodies Sheikha Saffon’s forthright and intelligent approach. Now based in Dubai, this young talent founded the brand in 2018 and it officially launched in 2021 with a collection of djellabas. The next drop was a T-shirt that acted as both a tribute to martyred Rai legend Cheb Hasni and as a fundraiser for Ghardaia-based NGO Forem El Golea. Fellow Algerian Marwa Mezaguer joined in 2023. 

More of a community than a fashion label, you’ll often spot it being worn by like-minded Algerian creatives such as musicians Losez and Elias. And this latest campaign was itself born out of collaborations across three continents with shoots happening in Dubai, Algiers and Paris. Better together, talents like these are increasingly being heard on their own terms. “Algerians have always been very creative. We’ve done a lot for music and can be proud of our achievements,” she says. “But now social media allows us to see that we all love and want to pay tribute to our country, even though we express it in different ways.”

Imane’s own creative expression is influenced by her daily life and meditations, as well as the strong Algerian women she looks up to. “Inspiration can come from thinking about the present, the past, the future in Africa, and what life is like for immigrant communities in France. It, of course, also comes from things that I think are beautiful, and by people who have purpose, a message and values, like Michèle Lamy. My mother is also very creative – if something happens to me and I can’t continue making clothes, she would be able to take over!”

Ultimately, it’s her family’s personal connection to the Algerian resistance – her grandfather was a mujahideen – that has grown into an appreciation for the country’s spirit and solidarity with all oppressed people. “I read a lot around anti-colonialism movements and philosophies, which makes me reflect on those countries that have had their sense of identity broken by the West. But when it comes to Algerians, even though we went through complete hell for over 130 years, we're still proud. It’s a mystery how we’re so fierce like that. It’s the same as with the Palestinians, no matter what Israel does to them, you can't break them. You can't break their dignity.”