This MBM conversation is with Nausheen Khan, an independent film-maker based in India, whose documentary Land of My Dreams is a retracing of her journey as an Indian Muslim woman as she covered the Shaheen Bagh protests in 2019-2020.

In this conversation, Nausheen shares her introspection around her identity growing up, the effect of stereotypes on her, and reclaiming her Muslimness in more ways than one. We discuss the myriad forms in which being a woman in the present times challenges us to show up with more clarity and confidence in every space we choose to be in.

We also discuss the impact of friendships and the need for bonds that allow one to express the vulnerabilities one lives with, as a woman, an artist, a Muslim, among others. For Nausheen, living with joy is the biggest act of resilience and this conversation is a snippet of that.

About Nausheen Khan

Nausheen Khan is an independent filmmaker based in India, working on gender perspectives amid conflict and political unrest in contemporary times. Land of My Dreams is her first self-financed feature-length documentary film. It won Best Long Documentary at the International Documentary and Short Film Festival of Kerala, in 2023, and the Citizens' Prize at the Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival, in 2023.

Episode notes:

* [Trailer] Land of My Dreams | Nausheen Khan | Documentary | Monthly Film Screening | April 2024 (Peoples Film Collective, YouTube, April 2024)

* Nausheen Khan’s Land of My Dreams wins Best Long Documentary Award at IDSFFK (The Hindu, August 2023)

* India: Tennis player Yadav killed by her father — reports | Tanika Godbole with DW sources (DW, July 2025)

* Systems are crumbling – but daily life continues. The dissonance is real (Adrienne Matei, The Guardian, May 2025)

MBM visual identity design by Shazia Salam || Music by Jupneet Singh

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