» In the heart of Islamabad’s sector G-9/2, a ‘Modern Mohalla’ emerges as a site of feminist agency and resistance, challenging patriarchal norms through everyday communal practices. This talk explores how subaltern women in Islamabad’s Government Housing Quarters have shaped their neighborhoods through informal, communal acts of ‘Mohalla-making’—raising a unique socio-spatial fabric amidst modernist structures. Using critical historiographic and ethnographic insights, Sidra Khokhar will discuss the intersection of formal and informal environments and how these spaces reflect lived experiences, feminist resilience and communal bonds in Pakistan’s evolving urban landscape.
● About the Speaker:
» Sidra Khokhar is a researcher, architect, and lecturer at the School of Art, Design, and Architecture at NUST, Pakistan. With educational background spanning Pakistan, Australia, and the UK, she explores the intersection of feminist spatial practices within Pakistan’s architectural and urban contexts. Her research investigates the representation of women in both contemporary and historical architectural settings, focusing on the informal communal structures within Islamabad’s modernist neighborhoods. Her work uses drawing as a research tool to uncover and document the overlooked socio-spatial contributions of women in these communities. She aims to create a platform to celebrate and preserve these practices and the role of women in sustaining Pakistan’s urban communal heritage.
● About the Moderator:
» Qasim Ovais, a theater and improv pioneer, has vast experience in both professional theater and applied improvisation. Also, he is certified mental health professional and a Visiting Professor for Industrial Design & Architecture School of Art, Design and Architecture – NUST.
