The Real Ones

By Waleed Akhtar

Best friends Zaid and Neelam shared a dream: get away, make it as writers, build a future where they're free to be themselves. Together, always.

Years later, things are far from what they expected. Zaid's life has kinda stalled - he's half out the closet, living at home and still chasing the dream. While Neelam's has taken a completely different path as she chooses to prioritise her own happiness. As their lives pull further apart, leaving a mess of unsaid things between them, it's going to take something real to bring them back together.

Waleed Akhtar's play The Real Ones is a funny and honest love letter to platonic soulmates. It was first performed at the Bush Theatre, London, in 2024, directed by Anthony Simpson-Pike, and starring Nathaniel Curtis and Mariam Haque.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1839043865
• ISBN13: 9781839043864
• Release Date: August 2025
• Publisher: Nick Hern Books
• Length: 112 Pages
• Weight: 0.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 5.0" x 7.7"