Hello friends.

I was born in Bangladesh and migrated to England with my family in the early Nineties when I was a toddler. I spent my years living in the North East of England, and discovered my love for poetry in my early twenties after co-hosting a poetry event with my sister. Since then I have gone on to perform spoken word at many events and festivals, I’ve presented my own radio show, curated events, delivered workshop programmes, won a few awards and set up my own spoken word night called Strictly Spoken.

Poetry gives me presence. It gives me the confidence to articulate myself in a way that catches the attention of those that wouldn’t usually hear me. There’s something about words that are spoken in verse, they seem to travel further and project larger, that’s why, my stories are more immersive, my messages are clearer and my rants get a few more laughs when I put them into a poem.

Writing has gotten me through my darkest, most difficult times. Through grief, PTSD and postnatal depression, it gave me the tools to search deep within myself and find my voice. It allows me to write about experiences I would have otherwise bottled away. My poems aren’t always written for the wider world, sometimes I write to wind down, to allow a challenging thought or feeling to leave my mind creating space for new energy.

I use my words to penetrate stereotypes and misconceptions, to create art from special moments and to celebrate them. I deliver writing workshops to share with others all the great things I’ve learnt along the way. Even if just one person is able to use the skills gained from my sessions to improve their mental health, then that’s a win for me.

My goal is to leave a legacy; poems that will resonate with people long after I’m gone, to give back by helping others discover their passion for creative writing, for my beautiful kids and all other young girls around the world to grow up knowing that their words hold weight and that they too can silence a room with the power of poetry.