logo
episode-header-image
Feb 2023
35m 37s

Eyes on the prize: Pakistan’s first tran...

Bbc World Service
About this episode

Rejected by family and society, trans actor Alina Khan was forced to spend time on the streets of her native Lahore as a child. Through dance, she found an escape and a living, but also encountered prejudice. Facing down loneliness, poverty and danger, she carved her own principled path to big screen fame. Now she’s won praise for her performance as Biba, a fiery and ambitious trans woman, in international award-winning new film Joyland.

Presenter: Mobeen Azhar Producer: Laura Thomas

Up next
Oct 6
Enter the new dragon: the Bruce Lee of Afghanistan
Abbas Alizada was nine when he first saw a Bruce Lee film. He fell in love with kung-fu, copying his hero’s moves and his look before an online post shot him to overnight fame.Abbas was born in Kabul in 1993, the youngest of nine siblings. His family are Hazara, an ethnic minorit ... Show More
28m 44s
Oct 2
Jane Goodall: In her own words
This extra edition of Lives Less Ordinary is to remember the remarkable conservationist and primatologist Jane Goodall, who has died at 91. The life she lived alongside great apes revolutionised the way we see them – and ourselves. It was 65 years ago that a young Jane left Engla ... Show More
24m 12s
Sep 29
Sweet surprise: I found my birth mother in my local bakery
Vamarr Hunter always felt a special bond with the owner of his favourite local bakery — but never imagined she could be his long-lost birth mother. Vamarr loved to visit the bakery in his home neighbourhood in Chicago, enjoying the cakes, pies and cookies, but also the warm compa ... Show More
40m 3s
Recommended Episodes
Feb 2024
Women at the Oscars
Datshiane Navanayagam meets two Oscars nominated directors who put women at the centre of their movies.Nazrin Choudhury is a British filmmaker of Bangladeshi descent. Her directorial debut, Red, White and Blue, follows the story of an American single mother, living paycheck to pa ... Show More
27m 25s
Oct 2019
Lupita Nyong’o: At Home with Oprah Winfrey
Oscar-winning actress Lupita Nyong’o discusses her fast rise to fame, colorism and her new children’s book, Sulwe. Sulwe tells the story of a young, dark-skinned girl struggling to discover and embrace her beauty. Lupita talks about winning the Oscar for her performance in “12 Ye ... Show More
46m 14s
Jan 2023
Cate Blanchett: My ‘dangerous’ role
On this week’s The Cultural Frontline we explore the power of music and how artists have been using it to highlight issues including politics and the #MeToo movement. Prakash Neupane is a Nepali rapper and writer who mixes hip hop and R&B with social and political messages. His s ... Show More
27m 32s
Jul 2019
How I'm using film to end honor killings in Pakistan | Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy
Film has the power to change the way we think about ourselves and our culture. Documentarian and TED Fellow Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy uses it to fight violence against women, turning her camera on the tradition of honor killings in Pakistan. In a stirring talk, she shares how she too ... Show More
12m 16s
Mar 2023
Lisa O’Neill performs live, Dance of Death from the National Theatre of Norway
Irish singer songwriter Lisa O’Neill talks to Samira Ahmed about her latest album, All Of This Is Chance, and performs live in the Front Row studio. The National Theatre of Norway have brought their production of Strindberg’s Dance of Death to the UK. Director Marit Moum Aune exp ... Show More
42m 25s
Dec 2021
The Hand of God and Dürer exhibition reviewed, Aaron Sorkin on Lucille Ball
Paolo Sorrentino’s film The Great Beauty won an Oscar. Now he has returned to his home city of Naples to make a film based on his own autobiography, The Hand of God, which shows how his passion for the footballer Maradona saved his life. At the National Gallery a new exhibition, ... Show More
42m 20s
Jan 2018
Christina Lamb
Christina Lamb is chief foreign correspondent for the Sunday Times and travels the world reporting from war zones and hot spots, speaking not just to key protagonists but also seeking out and detailing the daily impact of conflict on civilians.An only child, and brought up in Car ... Show More
35m 9s
Feb 2023
Jill Scott - European Champion; Disabled parents; Salma Hayek Pinault
Anita is joined by the European Champion and Queen of the Jungle Jill Scott. Jill is one of the most decorated footballers in the country and after announcing her retirement from the sport last year she's turned her attention to the next generation. Today she is opening a new foo ... Show More
57m 37s
Feb 2017
Vloggers
Female stars of YouTube in India and the US swap tips for success with Kim Chakanetsa.Shruti Arjun Anand was a 'computer geek' who developed a passion for make-up and beauty, and decided to vlog about it for an Indian audience. She is now a top online video star in her country, a ... Show More
26m 49s
Nov 2022
Jennifer Aniston And The Worst Thing A Woman Can Be
On the show today… The long-awaited Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is out in cinemas today, so we need to give you a (spoiler free) run-down of how the film honored the late Chadwick Boseman and how the cast beautifully came together to remember him while making the movie.And Mil ... Show More
20m 12s