Documentary: Women Under Siege

Edited by Yunuen Perez Vertti; Directed by Sehba Sarwar Filming by Philomena Bradford and Marc Furi
Edited by Yunuen Perez Vertti; Directed by Sehba Sarwar Filming by Philomena Bradford and Marc Furi
Mission To cross borders, sustain dialogue and incite social justice through art. Voices Breaking Boundaries (VBB) is a nonprofit arts organization open to artists, individuals and organizations of multitude perspectives, backgrounds and countries. From a humble start in 2000 as … Continue reading
Held on May 12th at Diane Barber & Karen Niemeier’s residence in Houston’s East End neighborhood, from 8PM onwards. This open and free event featured community conversations about issues unearthed in Women Under Siege, Part 1. More photos can be … Continue reading
by Laaltain Performing Arts Society Nantanki is an excerpt from a longer performance offered by Laaltain Performance Arts Group, based in Karachi, Pakistan. Its students enacted a play in the village of Sujawal, where Indus Valley Trust is offering education … Continue reading
Location: Study Edited and produced by Haya Fatima Iqbal with support from Geet Chainani Haya Fatima Iqbal: When VBB came up with the concept of the repercussions of terrorism threats and security checks in our daily lives, I decided to … Continue reading
Location: Hallway Edited and produced by Sehba Sarwar Sehba Sarwar: Women Under Siege was inspired by metal detectors. In 2009, when I joined the board of Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast, I was surprised to have to go through a metal … Continue reading
Anna Scott (b. Feb. 5, 1920) Houston TX Edited and produced by Sehba Sarwar with support from Sally Russ Sally Russ: My mom’s personal history and clarity on women’s choice issues has always been an inspiration to me. When Sehba … Continue reading
Location: Dining Room Installation by Mary Margaret Hansen Mary Margaret Hansen: The concept of installing Women Under Siege in a home, a domicile where a family lives the real, the mundane, the joys and upsets of family life gave urgency … Continue reading
Location: Kitchen Edited by Yunuen Perez Vertti; directed by Sehba Sarwar. Sehba Sarwar: In fall 2011 when I was visiting with Linda May, she mentioned that she had saved a 1972 series of six stories that were written by Miriam … Continue reading
Location: Laundry Room / Home Entrance Edited and produced by Tazeen Hussain; video accompanied by installation piece Tazeen Hussain: The Abdullah Shah Ghazi shrine and its surrounding bazaar, has served as a landmark for Karachites. It is a place people … Continue reading
Location: Driveway by Nritaal This rehearsal practice features singer/musician Ahsan Bari and dancer Suhaee Abro. ABOUT THE ARTISTS: Nritaal (Karachi, Pakistan) is a performing arts group consisting of young and aspiring artists. The aim of Nritaal is to promote performing … Continue reading
Location: Driveway by The Sketches Awal Allah, Hamd The Sketches were featured in Haya Fatima Iqbal’s video Mullahs, Metal Detectors and Music, a short documentary that played in the study. About the artists: The Sketches (Karachi, Pakistan) is a Sufi … Continue reading
Location: On Loop by Anonymous The video was edited and produced by an anonymous artist and was launched at the Women Under Siege production.
Location: Art Car, Large Screen by Tentative Collection A Pakhtun Memory was directed and produced by the Tentative Collective, an arts collective based in Karachi, Pakistan and Niskayuna, NY. Yaminay Chaudri: I love the idea of living room as a … Continue reading
Location: Art Car, Street by Eric Hester & Sehba Sarwar VBB’S award-winning art car was parked in the driveway and exhibited two videos, Pakhtun Memory by Tentative Collection and Untitled by Anonymous
Fabric / Shoe / Story Installations* Location: Between Living and Dining Rooms collaborative project by On-Site Artists (broken down to different installations) The space between the dining room (stories room) and the living room (parachute room) was divided by beads … Continue reading
Fabric / Shoe / Story Installations* Location: Dining Room collaborative project by On-Site Artists (broken down to different installations) The home’s living room was converted into a “parachute room”, a space where stories were shared throughout the night. White silk … Continue reading
Fabric / Shoe / Story Installations* Location: Dining Room collaborative project by On-Site Artists (broken down to different installations) In the main dining room, participating artists with help from the hosts, hung up fishing lines across the room from which … Continue reading
Rehearsal for LAMBI UMAR Location: Driveway body movement by Autumn Knight, Megan Jackson, Abijan Johnson
Collective Narratives From a Bowl Location: Dining Room Open Conversation Led by Jennifer Palermo The parachute room was a space for audience members and artists to gather and share their stories. Jennifer Palermo led one session.
Timeline Location: Bedroom by Jacsun Shah Poet and VBB co-founder Jacsun Shah performed a poem. An excerpt of the piece is part of the overall documentary about the production. “Timeline” The year is 1966. I live with two roommates, … Continue reading
Waiting Room Location: Dining Room Body Movement by Autumn Knight, Megan Jackson, Abijan Johnson Autumn Knight: I went forward with the project because Planned Parenthood and the work they do are generally critical, and I personally support their mission. This … Continue reading
How the Show Began Location: Driveway by Sehba Sarwar & Autumn Knight Sehba Sarwar and Autumn Knight introduced the show. Sarwar, who conceived the show, talked about her experiences in Karachi and in Houston and how religious extremism is escalating … Continue reading
Opening Ceremony Location: Driveway by Danza Azteca Taxcayolotl The opening act for Women Under Siege was a dance performance by Danza Azteca Taxcayolotl, a group of women and men who perform Native American dance around Houston and beyond. The evening … Continue reading