Introduction

about

I am a writer, multidisplinary artist, and activist, currently based in Houston, USA. I move between the city of my birth, Karachi, Pakistan, where I spent the first half of my life in a home filled with artists, activists and educators, and my adopted city, Houston, where I am surrounded by the same kind of community I knew while growing up. My writings have appeared in anthologies, newspapers, and magazines in India, Pakistan, and the US. My work (writings and video) explores displacement and women’s issues, straddling two continents, moving between South Asia and the USA.

Though I exploring a variety of genres, my first love is fiction: My novel Black Wings was published in 2004 (Alhamra Publishing, Pakistan); my most recent short story “Soot” is included in Muneeza Shamsie's 2008 anthology of Pakistani women writers, And The World Changed (Feminist Press, New York); and my story “A Sandstone Past” appeared in another anthology of Pakistani women writers, Neither Night Nor Day (Harper Collins, India). In recent years, my essays have appeared in publications including The News on Sunday, The New York Times’ Sunday Magazine, and Chowrangi. My poetry has also been published in Pakistan and the USA, and I have performed my work in both countries. I also post images, video and words on my blog, Daily Noise.

In Houston, I serve as founding director of Voices Breaking Boundaries (VBB), and am an active voice at KPFT Pacifica Radio 90.1 FM and at anti-war rallies. I continue to teach writing and multidisciplinary arts workshops for young women and teachers in both Pakistan and the US. Currently, I'm working on a variety of projects including my second novel, a collection of essays, and Pakistan Live Broadcast a video installation project that aims to present an alternative image of events unfolding in Pakistan.