Mizz Nina's Islamic lifestyle app Qalby will appeal to all Muslims, young and old, and also those who are curious about Islam
FASHION designer, motivational speaker, television personality, singer-songwriter, hip-hop singer, rapper and dancer, the talented Mizz Nina certainly wears many hats.
After leaving the music industry, Mizz Nina embraced a more Islamic lifestyle and even came up with Qalby, an Islamic mobile application.
The former member of the Teh Tarik Crew, which she founded with Altimet, was inspired to develop the app at the end of 2018 during her tafseer Ta'leem al-Quran class on AlHuda Online.
"I'm very passionate about dakwah and the beauty of Islam. It occurred to me that such an app would help not just me but also every Muslim out there to be closer to Allah," said Mizz Nina, whose real name is Shazrina Azman.
THE VISION
Mizz Nina decided to name her app Qalby, basing it on a hadith by Abu Hurairah which talks about one's heart and actions.
"I love the name because Qalby means my heart," she said.
Through the app, she hopes that people will be able to reflect on their fast-paced lifestyle.
"These days, many of us are so engrossed in our exterior lifestyle. We are judgemental and materialistic. We do not take the time to stop, think and reflect on God," she added.
Mizz Nina hopes the Qalby app will be a good platform for people to think deeply about their daily actions.
"It can act as a 'friend' on their journey to be closer to Allah," she said.
WHAT QALBY IS
With the range of features in the Qalby app, it is obvious that much planning has gone into the platform to help people navigate its content.
Once downloaded, the app will request for the user's location to determine the specific prayer times which will be displayed on the home page.
There, hadith snippets or quotes from the Quran will also be displayed as a daily inspiration.
At the Ilm Finder section, there will be sub-sections such as Wokshop, Fiqh, Tauheed, Tajweed, Arabic, Tahfidh, Aqeedah, Mental Health, Youth, Kids, Tafseer, Foundation, Husnul Khuluq, Seerah, Quran, Names of Allah, and Ilm. All are designed to help users better understand the fundamentals of Islam.
There is also Qalby TV, which contains religious talks, dua and other religious matters from the Qalby app YouTube channel.
There is also a Facebook Community, linking app users to the Qalby Community on Facebook. One can also save, listen to or recite Quranic verses using the Qibla functions.
The Dua feature lists more than 20 different essential dua for daily use, such as when one has a nightmare or a supplication when visiting the sick. These dua can be saved on the user's account for easy access.
DEVELOPING THE APP
Despite having no knowledge of app development, Mizz Nina leveraged her 18-strong team at her company, Eternal Rewards Sdn Bhd.
"We came up with the idea in early 2019 and it took us one year to turn a dream into reality," said Mizz Nina.
She explained that four in-house developers were assigned to work on the app to ensure operational smoothness and overcome technical glitches.
"I'm not very good with numbers, so I really appreciate their work," said Mizz Nina.
"One cannot simply add or minus things. Any changes made affect other things.
"I certainly will not attempt coding because numbers and I will not have a beautiful ending," she said in jest.
"All the technical bits are left to my capable team. They have my respect and I have full confidence in them," she added.
The Qalby app is available on both Apple App Store and Google Playstore for free. It has been downloaded more than 300,000 times.
POSITIVE FEEDBACK
Mizz Nina is glad that the app has been receiving positive feedback from users.
However, she also appreciates the negative feedback too.
"There will always be haters but I'm grateful for them too. They provide a check and balance. Personally, I see it as proof that I'm on the right track," she said.
On her target audience, she said the Qalby app has everybody in mind.
"That is why the interface is simple — to make it suitable for all ages and for users from all walks of life.
"The Qalby app is for me, for you, for new Muslims and also for those who are curious about Islam. It is simple enough for the young and the older folks too.
"In fact, my father has downloaded it and uses it too," she said.
The Qalby app uses English as its main language for a wider user reach. It will soon be available in other languages too, including Malay, Arabic and Bahasa Indonesia.
MOVING FORWARD
Running an app is not a cheap endeavour. While currently self-funded and advertisement-free, Mizz Nina is thankful there is an interested investor who believes in her vision.
"Having this investor will help propel our second and third phase. We plan to have the app fully completed by 2023," she said.