Samira Shackle's debut takes us on a fast paced journey through the streets of Karachi, a mega-city of 20 million. We are in the company of four people who live there. The first is Safdar the ambulance driver, who is compelled to help those in need. There is Parveen, a teacher and activist with a powerful sense of right wrong who courts danger by defying the gangsters who run her neighbourhood, and also Siraj who is a map maker. By marking out the neighbourhoods where the poorest live, he gives them a tool to lay claim to their lands and access mains electricity and water. Lastly, there is Zille, a hardened crime reporter, who is driven to get every scoop that he can and is rarely short of work in this crime ridden city until events take a frightening turn.

Samira Shackle debut tells the story of Karachi's recent past through the voices of several young people who have been compelled to navigate the fallout of gang rivalries and widespread corruption. She is a British journalist who writes on politics, terrorism and gender with a focus on the Indian subcontinent.

Read by Vineeta Rishi
Abridged by Penny Leicester
Picture credit - Owen Kean
Produced by Elizabeth Allard Show less