Zenith Irfan

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Zenith Irfan resting on her motorbike

Zenith Irfan is the first Pakistani female motorcyclist to ride across Pakistan.[1] Her father dreamt of traveling around the world on his motorbike, but when he died young at age 34, Zenith decided to fulfill his dream.[2] "I did this for my father and I still do it for him. For me, going and riding across Pakistan is a spiritual endeavour," Irfan says.

Career[edit]

In 2013, Sultan, Zenith's younger brother, bought a motorcycle, and Zenith started taking motorcycle lessons from him, practicing in their hometown. "I would just ride in the city and only knew the basics of riding," she says.[3]

In August 2015, Zenith Irfan rode for 3,200 kilometers from Lahore through North Pakistan up to the Khunjerab Pass which borders China.[4]

Zenith Irfan on her bike - in front of Khunjerab Pass

She is thought to be the first female motorcyclist to travel across Pakistan.[5][3] She has taken two trips since then, riding into Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit Baltistan, completing 20,000 kilometers on her motorcycle.

She now keeps a photoblog by the name of “Zenith Irfan”, on Facebook to document her journeys.

Popular culture[edit]

Adnan Sarwar has made a biopic about her journey called Motorcycle Girl, which was released on 20 April 2018.[citation needed] Sohai Ali Abro portrays Irfan and the cast also includes Samina Peerzada and Ali Kazmi.[6] Irfan commented that it should not be considered as just a film but rather a "dream my father saw and how he hoped to ride across the world on a motorcycle".[7]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Ali, Halima. "Her motorcycle diaries: Pakistani woman's boundary-breaking journey". CNN. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  2. ^ Diwan, Maliha (6 December 2015). "Footprints: Ridin' down the highway". DAWN. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  3. ^ a b Stein, Lucia (4 August 2016). "Pakistan's female biker". ABC. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  4. ^ "Uncovered! Madhya Pradesh's Bollywood Connection". The Quint. 5 February 2018. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  5. ^ Mustefa, Zab. "Meet the Female Motorcyclist Riding Solo Across Pakistan". Broadly. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  6. ^ "Adnan Sarwar's next film is a biopic of Zenith Irfan aka "Motorcycle Girl"". Dawn Images. 20 April 2017. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  7. ^ "Zenith Irfan says Motorcycle Girl is about more than just traveling". The News International. 18 April 2018. Retrieved 19 April 2018.