Mehwish Ekhlaque is one of the very few female motorcyclists in the city who still hold a passion for hardcore biking and track racing.
Ekhlaque lost her biggest support three years ago when her husband passed away. “When other women sat behind their husbands on motorcycles, he sat behind me, encouraging me to pursue my passion, telling me to wear the gear so that I look the part of a track motorcyclist,” she remembers fondly.
“When I bought my motorcycle and took it to a mechanic and asked him that I needed a star wheel, he said it was impossible,” she recalls. “So I did it with my uncle and then took it back to that mechanic to show him.”
Her Saturday evenings are exclusively for her motorcycle. “I make sure it looks good for the Sunday rides. After that, I take care of its every little need on my own,” she points out. “If you give your motorcycle love and respect, it will love and respect you back.”
In pursuance of her passion, Ekhlaque has not encountered any problems. “The men are helpful. They say, ‘madam aap pehle kara lain’ [madam, you go first]. I enjoy the ‘ladies first’ attitude of Pakistani men,” she says. However, getting used to being a woman riding a motorcycle on Karachi’s busy roads and alleys took her time. “At signals, people have sometimes come and lifted my helmet to confirm if I am a woman,” she says with a smile. Sometimes she also sees women asking their husbands to teach them, once they see Ekhlaque gracefully gliding on the roads. “They take selfies with me.” In her experience, she faces no harassment as a female motorcyclist as long as she exudes confidence and does not look vulnerable.
When women perch on one side of the motorcycle as usual, Ekhlaque says it is difficult for the rider to balance. “If you are dressed modestly, why should sitting in the proper position on a motorcycle be a problem?”
