A cafe giving hope to women in Pakistan’s Lyari

Karachi, Pakistan – Set up in 2017, the Lyari Girls Cafe is located on the roof of a block of residential flats on a street called Phool Patti (petal) Lane.

The bullet-poked walls of the buildings around the cafe are a reminder of Lyari’s past.

The area suffered at least two decades of conflict and almost became an adjective to describe Karachi’s violence.

But this cafe, giving hope to female residents, offers English language classes. Makeup and hairstyling lessons are delivered in Kachchi, the language spoken by many in the area.

There are computer classes in Urdu and guest lectures on topics ranging from mental health to photojournalism and cybercrime laws. 

Video by: Faras Ghani

Text by: Zehra Abid