Artist Changemaker in Residence
MRU Institute for Community Prosperity & Trico Changemakers Studio. Interdisciplinary arts practice with immigrant women and girls.
Curriculum Vitae
Resume
Residencies & Appointments
2025
2025 to 2026
2026
Lead Spoken Word Facilitator & Artistic Director, Third Culture Futures
CADA-funded performing arts residency for immigrant youth, Calgary.
2024
2024 to ongoing
Lead Facilitator, Spoken Word & Leadership Workshop
Pathy Foundation Fellowship annual workshop for the national competitive cohort.
2023
2023 to 2024
Pathy Foundation Fellow, Arts & Mental Health Education
Designed and led an arts-based mental health literacy program reaching 500+ participants across Pakistan, including Pakistan's first ringette program for a majority-female cohort in remote mountain communities.
2022
Lead Designer, Tett Centre Refugee Art Installation Project
2022
Research Fellow, University of Central Asia
Researched traditional music, interviewing master musicians across Dushanbe, Tajikistan.
Performances & Productions
2026
Artistic Director & Spoken Word Facilitator, Third Culture Futures
Patricia A. Whelan Hall, Calgary.
2025
Co-Producer & Spoken Word Artist, Beyond the Postcard: Untold Stories of Cuba
Spanic Arts, Calgary Culture Days.
2023
Dancer, Passages: Stories of Migration
National dance production on Muslim diasporic stories. Shot at the Aga Khan Museum, Toronto; Canada-wide release May 2025.
2022
Spoken Word Performer (commissioned), Queen's University Human Rights Office
Commissioned piece for a new study-abroad curriculum.
2022
Choreographer & Dancer, Isabel Bader Performing Arts University Showcase
2022
Spoken Word Artist, A Thousand Words
SEEN Virtual Exhibition, Aga Khan Museum.
2021
Spoken Word & Singing Performer, Queen's University Showcase
Isabel Bader Centre for the Performing Arts, Kingston, ON.
2020
Writer, Director & Storyteller, Severing Roots
Spoken word production with six Muslim women exploring Islamophobia.
2020
Dancer & Choreographer, Queen's University Dance Battle
2nd place.
2019
Classical Dance Choreographer, Kingston Ismaili Muslim Association
2019
Dancer, Aga Khan Museum Open Mic Opener, Toronto
2018
Choreographer & Dancer, UK National Jubilee Arts Festival & Competition
London, UK.
2018
Actor, 12 Angry Men (Juror #2), Bader International Study Centre
2017
Dancer, Calgary Indian Folk Festival Competition
1st place, Kala Bhavan of Calgary.
2016
Dancer, Devdaasi
Theatrical production by Kala Bhavan of Calgary.
Artistic Leadership
2024
2024 to present
Co-Founder & Artistic Director, The Fourth Space, Calgary
An arts-based nonprofit creating spaces of belonging, creativity, and well-being for youth and immigrant communities. Selected projects: What I Have Learnt (a seniors' home art installation), Third Culture Futures (2026), Beyond the Postcard (2025), Bridges (2025, a City of Calgary-funded series across henna, sensory storytelling, hip hop, alcohol ink, and mosaic lamps), and Pakistan-based arts and mental health programming.
Poetry Publications
2022
Perpetually Lost in Translation
Gender & Development, Vol. 31, Issue 3.
2022
Freeze Frame of a Market
Perspectives on Gender, Equity and Politics, Vol. 2.
2022
SELF_ESTEEM
Collective Reflections, Vol. 10 (Print).
2021
The Sexual Body Is a Site of Spiritual Battle
Perspectives on Gender, Equity and Politics, Issue 1 (Print).
Teaching & Facilitation
2026
Art for Social Change Facilitator, Calgary Girls Charter School
International Women's Day workshop.
2025
Workshop Facilitator, Blue Sky Series, MRU Institute for Community Prosperity
Art for Social Change Network.
20242024 to present
Movement Workshop Lead & Storytelling Instructor, Jube School
Workshops for 500+ youth using movement, storytelling, and South Asian henna traditions. Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditoriums.
2024
Using Arts As a Tool for Empathy Building, Kiran Foundation
2024
Poetry Workshop Facilitator, Global Encounters Youth Leadership Program
Pakistan.
2023
Arts and Trauma Aware Facilitation, Aga Khan University Institute for Education Development
2023
Spoken Word & Music Facilitator, Al-Ummah Canada
National youth retreat for Muslim youth aged 15 to 17. (2023, 2024)
20222022 to present
Spoken Word Facilitator, Aga Khan STEP, Calgary
Recurring workshops with Ismaili youth; a recent cohort of 55 students performing in the program's June 2026 production.
2022
Arts Facilitator, Parindey
Storytelling workshops across Pakistan.
2022
Bollywood & Indian Classical Dance Instructor, Kingston School of Dance
20202020 to 2021
Bollywood & Salsa Instructor, various online programs
2020
Program Director & Workshop Lead, CONNECT International Leadership Summit
Week-long storytelling-through-movement workshop for 70 participants across 15 countries.
20172017 to 2020
Choreographer, Queen's Indian Students' Association Dance Team
Classroom Teaching
20232023 to present
Guest Teacher, Calgary Board of Education & Foundations for the Future Charter Academy
Instruction across all elementary grade levels and 20+ schools, including lesson planning, assessment, and targeted literacy interventions.
Speaking & Public Engagement
2026
Panelist, Artist Changemaker in Residence Final Celebration, Calgary
2024
Guest Speaker, Master Trainer & Mental Health Literacy Through Arts Consultant
Right To Play, The Kiran Foundation, Notre Dame Institute for Education.
2021
TEDx Speaker, Combatting Islamophobia in Canada
Training & Education
2023
Post-Graduate Certificate, Pathy Fellowship
St. Francis Xavier University.
2017
Bachelor of Education, Queen's University
Specialization in Arts in Community Education.
2017
Bachelor of Arts (Honours), International Development Studies, Queen's University
10+ yrs
Bharatanatyam, Contemporary & Bollywood Dance
~10 years across various studios, including 3 years at Kala Bhavan of Calgary.
2023
Hindustani Vocal Training, Gayatri Indian Music Academy (GIMA), Calgary
2020