5 ordinary women with extraordinary tales of courage

From tackling stigma to giving a voice to deaf persons, this women’s day is for the unsung heroes of Pakistan

KARACHI:

“Every day should be women’s day,” was a common refrain I caught from women around me as a child. For NGOs, media channels and many corporations, International Women's Day ushers a new host of campaigns, products and stories about women. These range from attempts to define empowerment to the chronicles of ‘inspiration and perseverance’. For others, March 8 often yields little beyond a surge in pinkwashing and curated lists of ‘remarkable women.’

The ones who lead space missions, who advocate for peace on international forums, who own their stories in art and music - to chart any list is both inexhaustive and missing the big picture. Remarkable women vastly outnumber famous women and surround us at all times, making the world possible in their ordinary ways. 

So, this women’s day, let’s look around us and celebrate the extraordinary lives of ordinary women in Pakistan who live, persist and care despite a myriad of patriarchal barriers - every day.

Javeria Raheel

“Being a model with vitiligo isn't easy; however, I also know that accepting myself is what paved the way for me in the industry,” Javeria tells me, a tad apologetic for being late in wrapping up her last class for the day. Being a full-time student of fashion, the 24-year-old has a lot on her plate: classes, modelling contracts, her Instagram blog and establishing herself as a content creator.

Javeria, who has collaborated with fashion labels such as Manto and Outfitters, knows the brunt of exclusion firsthand. Many within Pakistan’s fashion and entertainment industries have flagged its longstanding affair with colourism and other troubling measures of beauty, especially targetting women. However, Javeria is bent on creating the acceptance that is the right of every person. She adds, “I never could have imagined that embracing something society deems a weakness would bring me so much success in life.”

The pressures and discrimination are salient but Javeria is too busy winning in life to indulge stray commentators. A regular day in her life involves staying atop of multiple deadlines while ensuring time for herself. “With classes five days a week as a fashion student, there's a lot of manual work involved...Starting early to work on my Instagram blog takes up a significant chunk of my day, as I handle everything from filming to editing and blog management independently.”

So what does Women’s Day mean to her? “This day encourages me to appreciate not only the women around me but also myself, which I often overlook,” she offers. “It serves as a reminder that, given the persistent patriarchy in our nation, unity among women is important for bringing change.”

Zill-e-Fatima

Launching a fashion startup in the peak of Pakistan’s tryst with COVID-19 is impressive but the achievement is understated without a deeper look. A mother to three children, Fatima is the woman behind Salsabil, an online women’s apparel brand that entered the scene a few years before she decided to put an end to an unhappy marriage. 

“I started my own clothing brand five years ago, with a small amount of personal savings,” she recounts, reflecting on her long journey. “Now, I'm at a stage where I do things on my own, independently, always taking it to the next level.” As a single mother who must work, both for financial stability and personal fulfillment, the sheer challenge of balancing work and family is always present.

Fatima’s children, all schoolgoing, are an indispensable part of her day. “My day begins with me waking up early, sending kids to school. Then come my daily chores. I give time to my business juggling my responsibilities as a single parent and homekeeping, from cooking, cleaning to assisting them in their homework.”

Exhausted to her bones by nightfall, Fatima is adamant that “every day is women’s day.” As she looks back over the years, the 36-year-old urges women everywhere to genuinely believe in their dreams and abilities - no matter what life sends their way.

Nayyara Shah

Nayyara is a queen of many trades. “I teach at a primary school from 7 to 2,” she unpacks a usual day in her life. “I teach online tuition twice a week. I also have an online home store called De’Hogar...It's Spanish for 'The Home,'” she describes her penchant for interior design, putting her degree in the art field to practice. “I opened an outlet before but I had to close it down due to COVID-19.”

For all her creative endeavours, Nayyara shares that her “main job” is her home. Cleaning, organising, keeping a household - predominantly a woman’s labour, this work has a long history of being dismissed as the humdrum of life. “Men get more appreciation because their work is more ‘visible,’ more acknowledged, they get paid for what they do.”

She further remarks on the ‘double shift’ many working women have to pull as they return from their jobs to endless chores awaiting them. In this regard, Nayyara is grateful to her husband and her family for always extending support. “My family is the fuel that keeps me going.”

This women’s day for Nayyara comes with different levels of recognition.“Things have changed a lot now, women have better chances of working in a comfortable environment. But when my generation was growing up, we had a lot of limitations,” she says before expressing her admiration for her mother and grandmother, two inspiring figures in her life. “Woman’s day is an acknowledgment of every woman who’s trying hard for her family, her passion and herself,” she adds.

Nida Naz

“All responsibilities of my household fall on me now since my mother passed away,” Nida explains the many domestic imperatives she must take alongside her busy job as a deaf interpreter at a local NGO. Divulging the reason why she picked this profession, which has both its good and taxing days, she reminisces about her late mother’s dream.

“I have been an interpreter for deaf persons for the past 15 years…It was my mother’s dream that I become a voice for persons with disabilities despite there being no deaf person in my own family. She passed away in 2019 but I will never stop fulfilling her dreams,” she voices her determination.

Taking care of her ailing father, wrapping up chores then setting out to her job - Nida starts her day with a prayer, a lifelong ritual bestowed upon her by her mother. “I feel happy knowing that all my mother’s good traits have passed onto me,” she smiles. 

Even as she attributes her loyalty to her profession to her mother, she is keenly aware of its consequence. It’s with pride and joy that she calls herself “a voice of the deaf community,” declaring her job central to how she perceives herself as a woman. “I think of myself as a very strong woman who can do anything with courage and joy. On women’s day, I want every woman to remember: she can win the world on her own if she sets her heart to it.” 

Suman Lohana

Completing her undergraduate studies in 2023, Suman has found a joy much too rare for many: a calling that fills her heart and makes a difference while providing the baseline perks of a good job. As a research assistant attached to a local NGO, Aahung, dedicated to the reproductive and sexual health of children and women, her days are often in the Research, Learning and Evaluation department and between travels - a lot of them.

“My work involves around collecting qualitative data and analysing it and  working on impact evaluation of different programs,” Suman breaks down her job description. Responding to my questions in a telephonic conversation from a work-related road trip, she is both tired and content. “Each day in my life is very different from the other because monotony just breaks my mind…but my work and my daily walk are prominent parts of my day.” 

Working round the clock, she emphasises the importance of finding time for herself, her walks and morning yoga sessions are just some ways of grounding herself. “For me, my work is the most important and the strongest medium of advocacy for women's rights. Most days, it gives me hope to see so many people working tirelessly for women's and minorities' rights but on some days it pushes me into a sink of hopelessness, and makes me think that maybe we all are very far from sustainable and healthy lives.”

Calling herself a “feminist by heart and soul,” she attributes a festive hope to March 8. “Women's Day is like an Eid for me,” she contends. “I work and advocate for women's rights and a feminist society each and every day of the year, but on women's day, when I march with my fellow feminists, it gives me a new hope and energy to dismantle patriarchy.”

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