During the last decade, things have improved drastically for women in our country. Pakistani women have taken it into their own hands and are breaking one stereotype after one. Rubia Nadeem is one of such courageous women who have decided to go an extra mile for their families.
Rubia is a Bykea rider who rides her bike all day long on the roads of Lahore. She picks up passengers and drops them at their destination while her 7-year-old son accompanies her.
Rubia learned to ride a motorcycle in her early youth because she enjoyed it. It was her hobby and she liked to go on long journeys. After she got married, her hobby came in handy when the financial situation at her home deteriorated. Rubia decided to lend a hand to her husband and became part of a bike-taxi service called Bykea.
“When I started this job, my husband was very upset that men would travel with me. Gradually, he realized that I was not doing anything wrong, but I was helping him to improve the situation at home.” Rubia said.
When Rubia is at work, often the callers cancel the ride after hearing a woman’s voice. Rubia says that she is happy with her work but when people hang up just because she is a woman, it makes her sad.
However, a lot of people are very supportive towards her and encourage her for choosing a daring way to make a living. Rubia is still careful with her job and uses gloves, a helmet, as well as a skull-shaped face mask during her work hours.
Referring to the mask, she said that she wears it to avoid any indecent incident. She believes her scary mask makes her intimidating and the riders sitting next to her think she is a dangerous woman. Rubia also stays serious during the ride and doesn’t talk much. Her son, Abdul Rehman, often accompanies her and works as a navigator for her.
Rubia’s bike is quite old and often annoys her along the way. She is now trying to get a new motorcycle so that her work and home conditions can be further improved.
Leave a Reply