Waahi

Iqbal Mai is among the 72% women who make up Pakistan's agricultural workforce.
Published June 9, 2018

This film by Karachi based Arsalan Majid, Haris Sehgal and Ghulam Abbas won the first prize in the Dawn.com and Deutsche Welle video story contest, #ItHappensOnlyinPakistan.

Employing stellar cinematography and compelling story-telling, 'Waahi' recounts the journey of Iqbal Mai, a woman farmer shattering stereotypes with her courage and resilience. Iqbal Mai is among the 72% women who make up Pakistan's agricultural workforce.

"The film as a whole is remarkable and hits the right spot both in terms of narrative and also in for the grand cinematic appeal. Not to mention the breath-taking production design and sound design. This is done with a vision! - Babar Sheikh

The film was chosen as a winner out of more than 2,000 entries received from all over Pakistan.


It Happens Only In Pakistan is a nationwide video story contest organised by Dawn.com and Deutsche Welle (DW), Germany's international broadcaster. The contest invited filmmakers from all over Pakistan to submit short documentary-styled videos on subjects that are uniquely Pakistani. Jury for the contest included noted Pakistani documentary filmmakers Jami and Babar Sheikh. The contest accepted entries from March 23 to May7, 2018.