While art serves as an inspirational catalyst, motivating individuals to take action and contribute to positive change, by promoting local arts, and empowering small artists, community centres offer a platform for growth beyond their communities, an expansion that enables these artists to amplify their voices to raise awareness about local issues. Community-driven promotion of arts and cultures becomes a key driver for awareness and progress in a society
Earlier this month on International Human Rights Day, Mehrdar Arts and Production hosted an exhibition and film screening to spark a conversation on gender violence against women in Pakistan. The exhibition titled Dazgwar-e-Tawar — The Voice for Sisterhood’ aims to highlight the violence faced by Baloch women in local communities of Karachi, through a survivor-centric approach.
Mehardar Arts and Production is a community space and a studio in Lyari that has been hosting cultural events, taking social development initiatives and leading community engagement among the youth of Lyari. In the last few years, they have taken over 300 social initiatives and told 100 meaningful stories.
The art exhibition presented a group of young artists who brought together a strong visual story to speak against gender violence in Pakistan. An oil painting by Anushah Khowaja was a commentary on child marriages in Pakistan. This issue is still widespread in Pakistan despite all the measures and laws taken by the governments, non-governmental organisations and individual levels. Almost 19 million girls in Pakistan are child brides, which means that 1 in 5 girls fall victim to this vice.
These statistics are disturbing since child marriages often coincide with high levels of domestic abuse reports. As these girls are not allowed to continue their education and it leads to them becoming completely dependent on their husbands. In cases where the marriages turn abusive, these women cannot escape their marriages because of financial dependency. Also, when these girls remain uneducated, their children often become part of the illiteracy cycle.
Anushah’s painting uses strong colours with dark contrasts to bring attention to the dark reality of child marriages in Pakistan.