“Deli Boys” creator Abdullah Saeed has built a series rife with drugs, violence, and gangland intrigue — so naturally, it’s a comedy.
The Onyx Collective series has all the trappings of a gangster drama while maintaining a comedic tone, as two Pakistani American brothers learn that their father’s business empire was really a front for smuggling drugs.
In an interview with Variety, Saeed said that the violence in the series was initially a way to stand out in a crowded field as he sought to break into screenwriting.
“I had [violence] in the script at different points, because I wanted people to keep reading,” Saeed said. “It really was initially just a way to keep people reading and stand out from the pile. But in the end, it ended up shaping the language of the show in a lot of ways. Jenni Konner was really the curator of our gore level, and with her immense experience and just brilliant comedic brain, she figured out exactly the right level of violence and gore.”
Along with “Deli Boys” co-showrunner Konner, Saeed also credits co-showrunner Michelle Nader for shaping the series into what it ultimately became, treading that fine line between violence and comedy.
“They really guided me through and I really do feel like they helped me refine my voice and the project,” he said. “I just am so thankful that they really valued my voice as part of the show. It’s humbling, honestly, to think about, but I think I’ve learned to stand up and be proud and own it. It’s incredible.”
“Deli Boys” is also unique in that it features a largely South Asian cast. According to Saeed, he was partly inspired to write the show based on the differences he perceived between generations of South Asian families in the U.S.
“I think the root of the relationship that’s represented in the show is between two generations,” he said. “And I think that the older generation of South Asian Americans is characterized by secrets. There’s a lot that we don’t know about our parents lives, and that’s sort of by design, and they feel like they’re doing us a favor, but it also creates this sort of distance between us. So with this show, I asked ‘What if the secrets just went deeper and deeper and deeper?’”
“Deli Boys” premiered on Hulu on March 6.
