Qissa, meaning 'story' in Urdu, embraces the power of art for storytelling to amplify diverse voices of women and girls from around the world. Qissa celebrates and represents women in the arts, sciences, sports, activism, Web3 and the Metaverse, as well as raising awareness about girls’ education and women’s rights.
Diverse stories of excellence and joy from various parts of the world are often left untold and, when they do get recognition in the media, they are often presented in a negative light. This creates misrepresentation of cultures, countries and people. We want to continue the work of celebrating women that Maliha Abidi (founder and artist of Women Rise) began through her art and books - Pakistan for Women and Rise: Extraordinary Women of Colour who Changed the World.
Maliha Abidi wrote in Rise; “Growing up, I rarely came across positive stories of women who looked like me or who I could identify with, culturally or otherwise. I wanted to create Rise so that other women of colour could find themselves in a book. I wanted to honour these incredible female scientists, activists, leaders and artists who have worked both behind the scenes and under public scrutiny to make the world a better place.”
This is the reason we started Women Rise and this is the motivation with which we are starting Qissa - to take back control of our own narrative.
We look forward to sharing these incredible stories with you. Team Qissa
