I was born and raised in Calgary, Alberta, where I also attended university, at the University of Calgary. I taught myself to code young, and it was a hobby I was extremely passionate about as a child. I studied university-level Com Sci in high school and decided to broaden my horizon a bit by studying Electrical Engineering in university. After I graduated, I went on to work as a Software Engineer in Calgary's Oil & Gas industry for two years, then left home for Ottawa, for a telecom company in the hopes of trying something closer to my degree. I decided I didn't quite like it though and was happy with a purely Software Engineering career, and so I accepted first offer I got, which  was in the US. I've resided here since 2015, and currently work for Bloomberg in New York.

In terms of Islamic education, I'm extremely grateful to have been able to go to Islamic School for elementary and a part of junior high, while also attending Saturday classes for extra Qur'an recitation and memorization. In university, I volunteered for the MSA and Al-Maghrib, and attended most of the classes they had. I'd also heavily listen to Islamic lectures on my commute.

My family is from Punjab, Pakistan. I'm the fifth of seven kids, with three brothers and three sisters. All of my elder siblings are spread apart in different countries or cities in Canada. My mom, dad, younger sister, and younger sister still live in Calgary. My extended family is all in Pakistan. I can understand Urdu perfectly fine but can hardly speak it, though I've gotten fairly decent and lost most of my accent when I was learning it in earnest a few years ago. I can also understand some Punjabi.

I don't have any hobbies I'm very passionate about. I've just been trying different classes and activities around the city, from learning Japanese to ice skating and swimming. Otherwise, if I'm at home I'm usually reading (fantasy almost exclusively), watching TV, or working on my own personal projects. I've lately also spent a lot of time reading on historical linguistics and following news on ancient genetics. I do enjoy traveling, though most of my vacation usually gets spent visiting family and going for Umrah.