Khawaab Khayaal 002 Womanhood - An evening with Tahmina Begum

KHWAAB KHAYAAL 002

WOMANHOOD

An evening with Tahmina Begum

The Day: Friday 20th November
The Hour: 6.00 to 8.30pm
The Place: Bisou Bisou, M21 9EG

Following a rather beautiful first gathering, you told me you wanted more.

More evenings offline. More conversations that linger. More reasons to make something with our hands, sit beside someone new and stay a little longer than we planned.

And I wanted 002 to celebrate you. Us, really. Women in all the messy, brilliant, complicated versions we come in.

So welcoming journalist and author Tahmina Begum to Khwaab Khayaal as she launches her debut book, Womanhood: A Love Letter to South Asian Muslim Women, felt rather fitting.

For our second gathering, we're pulling up the chairs again. This time, around Womanhood.

Three women. Eight years. A thousand little moments that make a life.

For almost a decade, Tahmina became part of the everyday lives of three British South Asian Muslim women: Noor, Khaira and Moumita.

Through countless conversations, shared meals, visits to their homes and handwritten diaries, she documented their lives as they navigated love, friendship, faith, family and all the expectations that come bundled with being a woman.

The good daughter. The good wife. The good friend. The good Muslim.

But somewhere between who we're raised to be and who we're becoming, where do our own wants fit?

Womanhood is a love letter to South Asian Muslim women, but not one that pretends being a woman is always straightforward. It's about the contradictions, the compromises, the joys, the ambitions and the quiet ways we change over time.

Tahmina, a journalist and storyteller whose work centres the experiences of Muslim women and women of colour, spent years listening to stories that are rarely given this much space. The result is an intimate portrait of three women, and perhaps a little reflection of ourselves too.

And that's exactly where our conversation begins.

We'll talk about the women who raised us, the expectations we've inherited, the friendships that shape us and the lives we're still figuring out. About belonging to more than one world, holding on to tradition while making room for change, and learning that there isn't just one way to be a woman.

Come alone, bring your mum, sister, best friend or the woman you've been meaning to catch up with.

Just bring your curiosity. We'll take care of the rest.

Keepsakes for your memory box

01 / A warm welcome, on us.

Arrive, grab a welcome drink (our treat), find your place around the table and settle in. There'll be time to meet the women beside you and let the outside world wait a little while.

02 / A little making, a little musing.

We'll begin with our hands busy, just how we like it at Khwaab Khayaal.

For 002, we're creating our very own curated keepsake tins. A pocket-sized archive of all the little things worth keeping. For the things we collect, carry and can't quite bring ourselves to throw away.

Think patterned papers, gems, charms, trinkets and all sorts of lovely bits and bobs.

We'll have plenty of supplies for you to rummage through, but you're very welcome to bring along any little treasures or materials you'd like to incorporate into yours.

No artistic ability required. Just make something that feels like you.

03 / Some secrets are best kept.

Waiting for you will be a little keepsake pouch, filled with a few thoughtful surprises.

What exactly? Well, we couldn't possibly tell you everything beforehand.

Consider it a few more additions to your memory box.

04 / A love letter, bound in pages.

Your very own copy of Womanhood will be included in your ticket.

A book to read, scribble in, reflect on and eventually have signed by Tahmina herself.

05 / Conversations worth carrying home.

Once we've finished making, we'll settle into an intimate conversation with Tahmina about the nine-year journey behind Womanhood, the lives of Noor, Khaira and Moumita, and the stories women carry.

We'll explore identity, friendship, love, faith, family, expectation and what it means to become your own person while remaining connected to everything that shaped you.

There'll be room for your questions too, consider this your safe space.

06 / Strangers, until they aren't.

And then, as always, time to linger.

Finish your tin. Get your book signed. Continue a conversation. Meet somebody new. Perhaps leave knowing a woman you didn't when you walked in.

A few hours away from the noise, the endless scrolling, the responsibilities and the rush.

Just a room full of women, a book between us, our hands making something worth keeping and conversations that might stay with us long after we've gone home.

A little about Tahmina

Tahmina Begum is a British journalist, writer and editor whose work explores identity, culture and the lives of Muslim women and women of colour.

Her debut book, Womanhood: A Love Letter to South Asian Muslim Women, is the culmination of years spent closely documenting the lives of three women. Through their changing relationships, choices, challenges and triumphs, Tahmina offers a deeply personal exploration of contemporary British South Asian Muslim womanhood.

We're delighted to welcome her to our little corner somewhere offline as she celebrates the launch of her first book.

Come curious. Leave with more than you came for.

See you somewhere offline soon.

With love,
Khwaab Khayaal xoxo