by Soorma Bhopali __ “What are you?” “What is your race?” These are questions that are thrown at me frequently, the latter of which was only asked recently at a small family get-together. I was stunned to be asked such a personal question in front of people I had just met that day. As a…
Read More
By Zubaida Ali One question that I get asked now and again is “Are you Malay?”, and in case I missed the meaning of that, the person asking clarifies “you don’t look like a Malay.” Although seemingly innocent and often dismissed as one of the peculiarities of a multi-cultural society, this statement is loaded with…
Read More
a.k.a. Do I Look Like a Walking Information Counter? By Nur Diyana When I decided that I wanted to wear the tudung, I imagined that my father would be furious. He was. To this day, I romanticise the premise of my decision to rebel against him. That, however, is not the standard textbook answer that…
Read More
By Nurul Huda When I was a girl of age 7, understanding only a fraction of what it meant to be a woman, I attended primary school, dizzy with the possibility of learning and socializing, eager to meet other girls I could call friend. But, I was rather quiet and shy back then, and so,…
Read More
By Zarifah Anuar I’m not too fond of Hari Raya. I guess quite a lot of good things come out from it – great food, an excuse to bring out all my gorgeous baju kurungs, money from distant relatives who think I’m still schooling – but there are also so many things to dread, like…
Read More
By Nurul Fadiah Johari Over the past few years since becoming more active on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter, I started noticing a few trends. People seem to “know” about your private life without having to ask you about your day, and people form various prejudgments about you without even having met you.…
Read More
Beyond The Hijab 