SISTERHOOD
Words by Danielle Pender
For the members of Speakers Corner taking up space without shrinking themselves or adapting to fit in is a radical experience; just “being” is a powerful act. This sense of freedom to exist in a space without having to justify their existence is exactly what the young women of Speakers Corner wanted to express in Sisterhood, a photographic series created in collaboration with art director Neesha Champaneria and photographer Vivek Vadoliya.
Shot in the dream-like Yorkshire dales and surrounding areas of Bradford the images capture the girls playing football, hanging out, enjoying their surroundings and each other’s company. There is a lightness to the series, the girls are revelling in their friendship and intimacy with each other, unburdened by the viewer and their expectations, this was key to the project as Sajidah of Speakers Corner explains, “Usually we have to justify ourselves but this photoshoot was just a celebration of who we are. We wanted to be unapologetically ourselves and take ownership of our narrative by producing a project for ourselves.”
Left to right Zakia wears: jacket Rose Danford-Philips, trousers Margiela, embroidered scarf and boots her own. Sajidah wears: sweater Amesh, dress Klements. Maleehah wears: dress Ashish, shirt Ahluwalia, jewellery Neesha Tulsi Champaneria. Mariyah wears: dress Ashish, head scarf her own, jewellery Neesha Tulsi Champaneria.
Mariyah wears: dress Ashish, head scarf her own, jewellery Neesha Tulsi Champaneria.
Bottom left, clockwise Sajidah wears: sweater Amesh, dress Klements. Zakia wears: jacket Rose Danford-Philips, trousers Margiela, embroidered scarf and boots her own. Mariyah wears: dress Ashish, headscarf her own, jewellery Neesha Tulsi Champaneria. Maleehah wears: dress Ashish, shirt Ahluwalia, jewellery Neesha Tulsi Champaneria.
Speakers Corner, a political, creative, cultural collective based in Bradford led by young women was founded in 2016 following Bradford’s iteration of the WOW (Women of the World) festival. The founding aim behind the collective was to create a safe space for young teenagers and women where they could openly discuss topics of mental health, body image and activism. It’s a community that has grown over the years and one that stays tight with all of its members, Mariyah explains, “At Speakers Corner we have an ideology that even if you only attend one meeting, you are a part of the Speakers Corner family. You definitely gain a family for life, a family full of positive radical energy.”
The collective organise and mobilize on a local, national and international level. In February 2020 they organised an international campaign called #JusticeInKashmirIsJusticeHere where they created an illustration that told the story of Kunan Poshpora, a horrifying incident of mass rape that took place in Kashmir in 1991. “We created a comic that marked the 30th Anniversary of Kunan Poshpora.” Mariyah and Sajidah say. “The last image from the comic was displayed on a billboard in Bradford city centre, we wanted to show solidarity with the women in Kashmir and highlight that until there is justice for women in Kashmir there is no justice for women anywhere.”
“Usually we have to justify ourselves but this photoshoot was just a celebration of who we are.”
Photographer Vivek Vadoliya and stylist Neesha Champaneria connected with the girls via an earlier project and when it came to shooting Sisterhood they all shared the vision of presenting a sense of freedom and liberation, “Ultimately,” Vivek explains, “we wanted to help the girls to tell their own stories.”
The process was collaborative with each party bringing their own expertise for a common purpose, “We all shared the big ideas of presenting young Bradford women in a positive and honest light,” says Zakia of Speakers Corner. “We knew we all wanted to focus on the collective nature of Speakers Corner as well as our individuality. Vivek and Neesha shared all the same goals and we think this really comes across the photographs.”
Maleehah wears: Simone Rocha. Salwar her own.
Zakia wears: coat Saskia Lenaerts, tracksuit Aries, Dupattas Islamic Relief.
With the styling of each outfit, Neesha wanted to extend the narrative of who the girls were, to tell their individual stories through the outfits they collaboratively chose and how the girls stories connect to Bradford’s past, present and future, she explains, “We wanted to create a set of visuals that go beyond the clichés of what you might expect it means to be a South Asian woman in Bradford. We were thinking about Bradford’s rich migration history and its connection to the textile industry that built the city's current architectural and cultural landscape. We brought in elements of gold, a South Asian tradition and keepsake saved for your child's future, we used rich embroidered sequin dresses, normally worn to weddings and birthday parties. We referenced memories of exchanging food and playing games in the back lanes, grandparents stories of the Dales and eating kebabs on BBQ’s in the Yorkshire sunshine at the weekend.”
“We wanted to create a set of visuals that go beyond the clichés of what you expect it means to be a South Asian woman in Bradford.”
The series is just as much a celebration of their home city and the environment they grew up in. In the images, Vivek captures Constable-esque scenes with a painterly light that illuminates the Yorkshire dales, mills and railway bridges. “I really wanted the images to be an ode to the mills that were historically the beating heart of the city, as well as a celebration of the beautiful Yorkshire landscape.”
Sajidah wears: Suit Ahluwalia, Shirt Rose Danford-Philips, Jewellery Neesha Tulsi Champaneria.
Looking at the images of Sisterhood and thinking about the aim of Speakers Corner to unburden themselves of expectations I’m reminded of Tyler Mitchell’s body of work, I Can Make You Feel Good. In the opening statement of his exhibition at New York’s International Centre of Photography and the introduction of his book by the same name he writes, “Growing up with Tumblr I would often come across images of sensual, young, attractive white models running around being free and having so much fun… I seldom saw the same for Black people in images. My work comes from a place of wanting to push back against this lack. I feel an urgency to create a body of images where Black people are visualised as free, expressive, effortless and sensitive.”
South Asian women often find themselves falling under a narrative imposed on them by others, their images, bodies and outfits are politicised. In Sisterhood, the girls of Speakers Corner are freeing themselves of the boundaries that have never served them. Like Mitchell, they are offering an optimistic insight into who they are and what they stand for away from restrictive and diminishing falsehoods. On this Zakia says, “We would love to see more projects like ours being created and shown in the media, projects that use different art forms to express the diverse personalities of young South Asian women. We think that having a more truthful representation of who we truly are would create radical social change.”
“Through our shoot, we wanted to present ourselves to the world, no justification, just us having fun.”
While feeling misrepresented and carrying the burden of having to justify their experiences the members of Speakers Corner also spoke of the contradiction of being invisible yet at the same time hyper-visible. This was something they were keen to address through the project, “As young women from Bradford and in the majority, South Asian women we are invisible most of the time and then suddenly hypervisible when there is a story in the mainstream media about the community we belong to. Through our shoot, we wanted to be visible, but in a good and honest light. We wanted to present ourselves to the world, no justification, just us having fun and expressing ourselves freely through art.”
In his book, Mitchell talks about photography’s power to present a utopian vision, “People say utopia is never achievable but I love photography’s possibility of allowing me to dream and make that dream become very real.” For the girls of Speakers Corner, this series absolutely brings their utopian vision to life.
In March 2021 as part of Bradford Council’s celebrations for International Women’s Day month programme, Speakers Corner will share a unique photography collection Sisterhood, on billboards and public spaces throughout Bradford as part of the Art in the Park series.
Main header image: Left to right - Mariyah wears - Knit sweater and skirt -Matthew Duffy, headscarf - Neesha Tulsi Champaneria, shoes her own. Sajidah wears - Wool sweater - Matthew Duffy, Skirt - Toga Pulla, headscarf - Neesha Tulsi Champaneria, shoes her own. Scout wears - Jacket and shorts - Angel Chen, shoes - Camper, shoe jewels - Neesha Tulsi Champaneria. Taiba wears - Wool coat and trousers - Matthew Duffy, kameez - Nila Champaneria, shoes and scarf her own. Maleehah wears - Shirt - Toga Pulla, wool trousers - Matthew Duffy, head scarfs - Nila Champaneria, shoes her own.
Team Credits
Creative Direction and Styling: Neesha Tulsi Champaneria @neeshatulsichampaneria
Photography - Vivek Vadoliya @vivekvad
Beauty - Grace Ellington using Lancome @gracemariaellington
Speakers Corner Collective - Mariyah Kayat @mariyahkx Sajidah Shabir @sajidah.ss Maleehah Hussian @maleehah_bh Taiba Qayyum @jor.laska Scout Grace Worsley @scout_worsleyx Zakia Jabeen @zakia.explores
Special Thanks to:
Photography assistant: Meghan Mechelle Dalton @meganmechelledalton Reshma Tia Champaneria @reshma_champaneria Rema Vadoliya