Just as you cannot stop the sun from shining, the rain from pouring, the tide from coming in, and the wind from blowing … you cannot stop Rosheen Khan from following her heart. Held back by her family for years, there was always a storm brewing within her until it got out of control.

“I hail from Balochistan. My family frowns upon education for women which is why I never got to go to primary school,” says the proud young woman.

“Now that I look back at my childhood, there were so many things that I yearned for. I wanted to attend school like the other little girls but I wasn’t allowed to do that. I wanted to learn how to ride a bicycle but that too was not going to happen for me; the bike that my parents did get me after much pleading was taken away by my brothers leaving me very hurt and very angry. Maybe the anger in me started building from then onwards until I just couldn’t take it anymore and rebelled,” says Rosheen.

Fighting every step of the way, Rosheen finally got permission to attend school. Despite having no primary education, her thirst for knowledge helped the girl breeze through high school, Matric, Intermediate and graduation. “But my family was extremely cross with me for pursuing my studies and I left home the moment I found a job as a hospital receptionist. I was 17 then and also escaping from being forced to marry a cousin,” she continues with her story. “I must have done so many different things, including working as a beautician, during those days but standing on my own feet was important for me. It spelt freedom!”

Life for Rosheen took a positive turn when she saw a vacancy ad for an office assistant at the Karachi Scuba Diving Centre. “Suddenly I was in a friendly new environment. My boss, the club owner, was an understanding fatherly sort who, realising my interest in water sports started motivating me into following my interests. I also became friends with his wife, who I call ‘Mamma’ now. But even though my boss is more like a father to me, I still call him ‘Sir’,” Rosheen laughs. “They are a great couple who didn’t see any harm in chasing one’s dreams. And having been adopted by them, I’m proud to be known as their daughter today,” she says.

It was Mr and Mrs Yousuf Ali’s encouragement that made Rosheen the first female underwater photographer of Pakistan in 2005. But the free spirit in her also pushed her towards exploring other opportunities.

“I got a job as a diving instructor at the Emirates Palace in Dubai. It was a fine, well-paying assignment but I missed my own waters and my own people there. Everything, even the reef, is so unnatural and artificial in Dubai. Then, I also didn’t like the way the locals treat us Pakistanis so I decided to come back home,” she explains.

“The year 2009 saw me become a specialised scuba diving instructor. Again I’m the first female to have achieved this landmark here,” beams Rosheen whose achievements have also earned her a place in the Diving Almanac & Book of Records. “Ninety-nine per cent of the people who come to learn scuba diving at the Karachi Scuba Diving Centre come to me.”

Her other projects and interests in this area include work with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) on marine listing. “We studied and prepared lists of the plants and marine life around the French Beach and Hawkesbay to run a comparison between both,” she explains.

“Then I was also part of a 15-day survey expedition to Charna, Astola and Jiwani after the discovery of fossilised corals 200 metres above sea level at Jiwani. We wanted to know if the kind that was found still existed in water today and the difference between the ones underwater and the fossilised ones,” she adds.

“I’ve been working on conservation of our coral reef since 2004. It is a project funded by our own club,” she says. “We want to turn the Charna Island into a marine national park. For this we are educating many government officials including the Governor of Sindh. We want to show the authorities how this beautiful area can be saved and developed.

“Scuba diving and work with our marine life has become a passion with me. I want to explore every nook and cranny of our incredible coast and inform others about it. It is sad to also find unexploded shells near Charna. Our exploration also resulted in our coming across Khyber, the Pakistan Navy destroyer, off Hawkesbay. It was sunk by the Indian Navy during 1971,” she says becoming serious.

Of course everyone isn’t that impressed by her work. Rosheen has also received several warnings including death threats from conservative kinds who disapprove of her different nature of work. But the Baloch rebel in her won’t let such things bog her down.

“I’m in my final year of LLB now. Getting the degree I want to practice law and fight for the rights of women in Pakistan,” concludes the determined individual.