Who is the Qalam Kash?
The term Qalam Kash (قلم کش) is derived from Persian and Urdu, where "Qalam" means pen and "Kash" comes from kashidan, meaning to pull or draw. Together, Qalam Kash refers to one who writes, a writer, or more literally, the one who draws with a pen. It traditionally signifies someone who uses the pen as their tool — not only to express, but to challenge, preserve, critique, and reimagine.
In the context of this space, Qalam Kash represents a thinker who writes with intention. Writing here is not a passive act — it is inquiry, resistance, memory, and creation. Whether confronting power, narrating silenced histories, or engaging with questions of justice and identity, the Qalam Kash stands at the intersection of intellect and activism — where the pen becomes both witness and weapon.
About the Founder
Dr. Tahira S. Khan holds a Ph.D. degree in International Studies from University of Denver (US); M. A. degree in Political Science from Villanova University (US) and another M.A. degree in History from Islamabad (Pakistan). Her regional specialization is in the area of South Asian politics and religion.
The main focus of her teaching and research has been on the issues of women/gender and politics in Islam. She has taught in various universities in the US and Pakistan over the period of past thirty years, mentioning a few here: Karachi University and Aga Khan University (Pakistan); University of Denver, Metropolitan State University Denver, University Colorado Boulder and Columbia University New York. Besides her teaching career, she has actively worked as a researcher and workshop facilitator with women/human rights organizations at national and international level; Asia Pacific Forum on Women Law and Development (APWLD) in Chiangmai, Thailand; Women’s World March Canada; Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, Shirkat Gah: Women’s Resources Center Pakistan. She has published a national award-winning book on the topic of violence against women entitled Beyond Honour: A Historical Materialist Explanation of Honour Related Violence. (Oxford University of Press: 2006).
Further, to her credit are numerous articles and reports published in various national and international journals. She has been on the editorial boards of various scholarly journals and publishing houses. Her on-going research project is on the topic of women’s religious and secular activism in Pakistan since 1980s.
