Umera Riyaz
Pakistani actress Mahira Khan has featured in the recently announced BBC’s 100 Most Inspiring Women.
“In a year of incredible change, it is only fitting that we acknowledge the female leaders who have helped us weather the storm,” BBC stated.
The British Broadcasting Corporation said that the actress has been raising awareness about the plight of Afghan refugees in Pakistan by being the national Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
“Mahira Khan is no ordinary actress – she is outspoken against sexual violence, refuses to endorse skin-lightening creams and supports the fight against racism. She wants to tackle social issues in her native Pakistan by changing the narrative in films and on TV,” BBC said in a statement.
Earlier this year, Mahira Khan had raised her voice and remained vocal about the gruesome motorway rape case in Lahore. She had said ‘’Hang them! Kill them! Publicly shame them! – It won’t change a thing. The problem is so deeply ingrained within our society, so deep-rooted that even the officer said that the victim shouldn’t have been out at that time.”
“This is the way our society is. We are immune to it. We are ok with it. Why should we accept this mindset? Why should we question the victim yet again and not those who commit the crime?’’ she said.