Has the constant grind of the school-work-life routine ever seemed too much? So many of us function as per routine on a daily basis without wondering too much about the greater picture or what it would mean to not be a cog in the machine. In today's episode host Anmol Irfan is joined by Mehak Irshad Razaque, an early childhood educator and host of Ta'luq, an education services platform providing holistic educational workshops for children and adults. For Mehak, Ta'luq fills a gap in society that allows us to move more towards working on our Tarbiyah as a whole rather than just learning what makes the system work. Follow Echoes Media for more stories and slow news in the Global South

With conversations around menstruation still being so taboo, we often forget those that are even more vulnerable within these situations. Women with disabilities often face a much higher amount of shame and lack of access when it comes to menstrual hygiene management. In today's episode, host Anmol Irfan is joined by Hourab Din, Pakistani gender and social development professional, feminist, and digital journalist focusing on the rights of women and children. Hourab has specifically been working on empowering women with disabilities to gain greater access to menstrual hygiene products and challenge shame and stigmas around them particularly in vulnerable communities. She dives into how these communities and their needs are often ignored, and the work that still needs to be done to create a more equal footing. Follow Echoes Media for more stories and slow news in the Global South

Who gets to tell our stories? Who wants to listen to our stories? And where do we as Pakistanis draw the line between staying true to ourselves while also staying relatable to all the diverse experiences our community faces, at home and abroad In our latest episode host Anmol Irfan is joined author Safinah Danish Elahi to celebrate the launch of her third novel Chasing Shadows in Borrowed Light, which follows 4 friends across the world, bound by a secret they'd rather forget. As the founder of Reverie Publishers, Safinah delves into what it's like to be on both sides of the publishing industry and how her own stories and voice have evolved through her work. Follow Echoes Media for more stories and news on the Global South

Pakistan may be making progress in its legislation around sexual violence, but what's more important is how that change impacts survivors. In our latest episode, host Anmol Irfan is joined by advocate Sahar Bandial, who authored Equality Now's recent report on the implementation of this legal response to sexual violence in Pakistan. Sahar, whose legal work has long revolved around access to justice for women alongside a broad range of other areas, breaks down the findings of the report, and how survivors in Pakistan can use such work to better empower themselves in their own journey for justice You can access a range of helplines here. Follow Echoes Media for more news on the Global South

It feels weird when we say we can buy babies. But in many parts of the world, surrogacy - which allows prospective parents to pay a woman to have a baby for them is still allowed. Of course it's not as simple as that, so we dove into the complex world of surrogacy in our latest episode In today's episode, host Anmol Irfan is joined by Lexi Ellingsworth of Stop Surrogacy Now UK, an advocate campaigning against the legalisation of surrogacy and calling for protections for both mothers and babies. We dive deeper into what people still misunderstand about surrogacy, the story the media puts out and why it matters so much to prioritise the right voices Follow Echoes Media for more slow news on the Global South

What is food for Pakistani's if not a companion in joy, grief and memory? How do we truly see food when it encompasses so many of our relationships and defining moments beyond just the act of eating itself? With Masterchef Pakistan back, amidst a slew of criticism and support, host Anmol Irfan sat down with finalist Muhammad Zain for today's episode to take a deeper look at what food means to him as a self taught chef and why emotions and exploration play such a huge role in his journey. From his creative fusion creations to his background in Astrophysics, Zain takes us through his culinary inspirations, his Masterchef experience and what it means to him when he steps into the kitchen Follow Echoes Media for more stories and slow news.

Does the best writing come from rage? Pakistan's latest debut author seems to think so. In our latest episode, host Anmol Irfan speaks to author and writer Arslan Athar about his debut book, 40 days of mourning, writing and publishing in Pakistan's rocky literary industry and the difference between fiction and non fiction writing. Arslan gets deep into how writing is impacted by his emotions, what this journey has been like personally and professionally and what it takes to "make it" as a writer. You can order 40 Days Of Mourning directly from Run On Press here.

What does it mean for tech solutions to actually be made for diverse global communities of survivors? When the tech available genuinely caters to the needs of some of the world's most vulnerable communities?

In this episode, host Anmol Irfan is joined by Hera Hussain, founder of Chayn, an organisation developing tech led survivors for, and by, survivors of abuse. As a Pakistani based the UK, Hussain developed a truly global approach to an initiative that started out aimed at Pakistanis and the Pakistani diaspora - after helping friends escape from abusive situations. This is the final episode for our latest project Echoes Unmuted: Navigating TFGBV. Echoes Unmuted is a two part educational and awareness initiative in collaboration with WOW Pakistan, ahead of the upcoming WOW Festival being held from 24-25 January in Karachi You can be part of Chayn's work through their current survey, where they are mapping out what image based abuse can mean within global contexts. This series is being delivered with support from the British Council as part of the WOW Pakistan Creative Gender Grants