If you’ve ever found yourself craving real, unfiltered conversations that feel like you’re hanging out with your best friends, It’s Fareel is the podcast for you. Co-hosts Saleel and Farah bring humor, honesty, and a whole lot of personality to the mic, discussing everything from pop culture to personal growth. We sat down with them to talk about how their show came to life, what keeps them going, and why staying real is their number one priority.

Farah and Saleel, have been besties since highschool despite having completely different personalities. During college they were separated, but the distance and time had nothing on these young ladies, and when they reunited years later, their friendship was just as strong.

Despite being remarkable podcasters, neither of them works in or studied something related to media. They’re both engineers by education, Saleel works in the Oil and Gas private sector, while Farah has built a career in the wellness industry as a freelance yoga instructor and owner of the wellness brand OG Apothecary.

They both always wanted to start a own podcast, separately, but kept pushing it and postponing, because of life, COVID and everything going on for both of them. In 2023 they went on a trip to Bahrain, and Saleel’s husband noticed them endlessly talking about everything and nothing while bickering in good fun, mentioned it and the idea of starting a podcast together was born. Farah decided that 2024 was the year, on New Year’s Eve and within two weeks she had already found and booked the studio to film their first episode.

The podcast’s name is both their names combined, Farah and Saleel = Fareel while they always do keep it “for real”. Episodes are mostly in English but do contain some Arabic and the besties start off on a topic, forget that the camera is there and keep going. We’ve learned that Saleel is very nonchalant and hates socks with slides while Farah loves pranks.

Saleel, despite never having hosted a podcast before, always found herself drawn to interviews or appearing in front of the camera, often dreaming of being on Marina FM 88.8. Farah, on the other hand, delved deep into the world of podcasting back in 2019, learning everything there was to know about the medium, though she didn’t put those skills to use until now. Both women had spent a significant amount of time in front of the camera, which is obvious in how comfortable they look in every episode.

Farah and Saleel decided on a diverse format for their podcast to avoid limiting themselves to a specific topic. They talk about anything and everything while keeping it real, light, and relatable. When deciding on guests, they look for talented individuals, pioneers in their fields, or simply interesting and cool people. The preparation for episodes varies depending on whether they have a guest. With guests, they require more preparation, whereas episodes with just the two of them are more casual and involve chatting about topics or trending subjects they find interesting, such as news, music, food, and more. They never use a script and aim to keep their conversations as real and authentic as possible.

Their audience’s feedback has been positive but viewers have greatly enjoyed the carpool edition episodes, the Interesting Animal Facts segment or as Saleel would call it Omariya segment and there is a growing fanclub for Farah’s laugh.

It’s not always fun and games though, they have had to deal with many mishaps, whether it is the mics not working or bad lighting, they have learned to adapt, find solutions and keep going, because the show must go on after all. Their advice to anyone who’s on the fence about start their own podcast is to not wait for the right time, just start. It doesn’t have to be perfect. According to Farah and Saleel, you just need to establish a location for your podcast with good lighting and equipment and to ALWAYS CHECK THAT THE MIC IS WORKING!!!

Saleel loves podcasting because it allows her to experience and get exposed to many new things and people. Farah, on the other hand, always looks forward to filming days as they get to discuss a wide range of interesting topics and meet amazing individuals. She particularly enjoys that the podcasting atmosphere is always casual and conversational, whether it be just the two of them or with a guest.

Not all podcasts include video, but the ladies chose to film their episodes because they want to show their audience real reaction. Saleel explains that she is a visual person and loves Farah’s facial expressions while Farah loves seeing host’s reactions and wanted their audience to be able to have that. The medium helps show their dynamic and personalities more.

The duo appreciates the growth of podcasting in Kuwait, which spans medical, social, cultural, and spiritual topics—truly offering something for everyone. Looking ahead, they believe podcasting will continue to thrive if it remains genuine, entertaining, relatable, and engaging. Their dream guests include the Saleel’s CEO, who she says is talented and humble, while Farah has a secret long list of global figures that she would love to collaborate with.

If you’re not sure which episode to start with, they both mentioned the third episode as their favorite. It’s the third one and they both get to experience some interesting and exotic fruits together.

Exciting plans are also on the horizon for their podcast, aimed at achieving greater global reach. So, add them to your favorite podcast app and stay tuned!

Find ItsFareel on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube to join in the fun and see some of the shenanigans that they get into.