With political drama over, let’s bring back our high-achieving women to the fore

A swift-ish removal, followed by an even quicker replacement. The end of as we know it for now at least, collusion and political agendas.

Holding steady-ish as well is the Rupee against the US Dollar.

But the ruling coalition has a tall task ahead. Staying together would be one, agreeing on policymaking and effectively implementing them is the second.

But first things first.

Earlier this month, Pakistan celebrated a win on the global national front - that of musician Arooj Aftab’s very first Grammy win, adding to Pakistan’s repertoire of global cultural accolades, brought home by another woman.

And yet here we are, with all eyes turned towards the circus and nothing but political turmoil dominating our headlines both at home and abroad.

Having resided in New York for the last 15 years, Aftab’s style of music has been described as neo-Sufi, bringing traditional strains of folk music to blend with Jazz , creating new genres and pushing traditional sounds to the forefront. That she wins for one such song is not shocking given her vast talent and ability to bridge barriers.

Suffice to say, this isn’t the first time we have seen something positive come out of or at a time of political strife or upheaval.

Take for example filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy. Tackling veritable taboo topics such as acid attacks, honour killings and more, her courage to shine a light on these topics on the global stage have earned her not one but two Academy Awards – as far as the Holy Grail of cinematic accolades go. All this, in addition to her seven Emmy Awards, a Hilal-i-Imtiaz and a mention as Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world. Not to mention the countless minorities and communities and their stories her lense has brought to light, even to local audiences.

Her latest triumph now includes a role as director on a new Marvel Studios series to be aired on Disney+ about a Muslim superhero nonetheless - a first for the series of course. How’s that for mighty.

Another local powerhouse bred out of abject tyranny is none other than Malala Yousufzai. Catapulted to fame as a survivor of a Taliban-led shooting of young girls attending school in northern Pakistan, she has managed to parlay that success onto the global stage by fighting for womens’ rights, more specifically, their right to an education no matter what their surroundings. Of a few, she is the youngest Nobel Peace Prize recipient, has been named as Time’s Person of the Year, attended and graduated from Oxford, sat down with the Obamas and much more.

We also witnessed the demise of humanitarian and philanthropist Bilquis Edhi, wife of Abdul Sattar Edhi. A nurse by profession, herself along with her husband set up Edhi Foundation, providing medical services along with establishing an orphanage. She too, was a Hilal-i-Imtiaz recipient.

As we turn our eyes towards these women and their many accomplishments, the thought-provoking ideas they put forth, the issues that they courageously take on and encourage us to discourse with, the might and mettle with which they charge forward, breaking glass ceilings against plenty odds. We must ask this existential question of the men and those too the politically inclined ones.

Truly haven’t such self-serving and underperforming antics now become obsolete? Are the ruling few truly committed to putting forth and providing a conducive environment for business and the economy to thrive, the arts to flourish and the general populace to survive?

In this tall discourse of political chess coupled with sweeping home crises, nobody wins, not the citizenry, not the politicians, nor the foreign political forces. Nobody, except for well, the loudest mouthpieces.

The article does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Business Recorder or its owners