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Austin South Asian | April 2019
On Route To Reaching The Stars - Friends Meet Annually At SXSW By Sumaiya Malik
who has not missed a single year
who attend SXSW and also makes
What started as mere acquaintances who happened to meet while taking part in panel discussions or attending sessions at SXSW have become closer associations and loyal friendships over the years. Such is the nature of the connections formed in Austin.
That year, Amanullah also won the SXSW Community Service Award. He has spoken at a total of 7 SXSWs since then and keeps coming back “because there is a sense of community and respect in what is otherwise a competitive technology space.”
Muslims at SXSW, the small WhatsApp group I am referring to, is a prime example.
Gilani and Amanullah came to know litigator turned actor, Fawzia Mirza (@theFawz) in 2016 when she came to showcase her film, Signature Moves, a film she co-wrote and starred in.
Its members keep coming back as they move up in their careers, finding a positive energy that gives their professional and personal development an impetus. Over the years, 5 active admins run the group: Lila Igram (@lilaIgram), founder of crowd-funding website, Connecther, along with Chris Blauvelt (@arblauvelt), founder of LaunchGood, Shahed Amanullah (@shahed), founder of Affinis Labs, Zabiha and AltMuslim, Aziz Gilani (@texasvc) and Eman Aly (@EmanHAly). Aziz Gilani, an infotech professional from Houston, is a regular attendee at SXSW. “My first SXSW was in 1998 when I was a freshman at the University of Texas [at Austin],” said Gilani
Since then she has come every year with new things she has worked on and reconnects with them.
since 2009. He was also a part of a panel in 2012. Every year, he plans ahead, attends panel discussions, learns about innovation, connects with others in the field like him, reconnects with old friends from all over the US
Embassy of India - Washington DC Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale called on Ambassador John Bolton, National Security Advisor to the U.S. President on 13 March 2019. Both underlined the importance of Pakistan taking tangible and ir-
on a panel to talk about it,” reminisced Amanullah.
reversible action against terrorist groups based in territories under its control and denial of safe haven for these groups to launch cross - border attacks. Other issues including Afghanistan and bilateral matters were also discussed. Foreign Secretary also met Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and leaders of the House Foreign Affairs and Armed Services Committees.
new contacts. SXSW is his annual jam, and Gilani is not alone in being passionate about SXSW. The forty or so in the group are in Austin every March, during the week long conference and festival which offers three main tracks although many new ones keep getting added every year. Interactive, Film and Music remain the top three. They attend talks by keynote speakers, listen to panel discussions and try to catch those in the group nearby. All this happens in the heart of downtown Austin with the Convention Center at its vertex. Gilani always reconnects with Shahed Amanullah who first came to SXSW in 2007. “The Austin-American Statesman ran an article about my work (mainly about my website Altmuslim) and Hugh Forrest (who ran and continues to run SXSW Interactive) reached out to me to get me
Fawzia believes in the power of comedy to tackle divisive issues. Her web series of Kam Kardashian and Muslim Trump took the internet by storm. This year she came as a screenwriting mentor and celebrated her birthday with friends she meets at South By. One of her friends from the group, Amanda Qureshi (@ImTheQ), a digital media strategist, writer, public speaker and activist gifted Fawzia, a birthday crown, which Fawzia wore throughout the day at the festival. Qureshi is also a regular. In 2017, she had a panel of her own called “American Muslim Media: Taking Back the Narrative,” with NY Times Op-Ed Wajahat Ali. Incidentally, Wajahat Ali was here in Austin again with his panel discussion, “Can we fight fake news without killing the truth?” Each one in the group is a bundle of energy and trying out new ideas. Acclaimed writer, director, producer, Nia Malika Dixon (@niamalikadixon) who founded #BlackMuslimGirlFly is a part of the group and is generous with
sharing the knowledge in her field. With numerous awards and recognition for her work and screenplays, she is part of an ever-growing list of African-American Muslims who are making their voices known in the creative community. She launched her media production company Audaz Entertainment Inc. in 2006. Young member Rim-SarahAlouane (@RimSarah), a Ph.D candidate at University Toulouse-Capitole in France, has come three years in a row. She calls SXSW ‘priceless’. “Coming here reboots me, allows me to discover new movies, shows, & bands, and meet new people that I would have never met. SXSW is my yearly much-needed intense getaway!” Rim-Sarah’s excitement is only a reflection of the sentiments of everyone else. The group seems to be getting bigger and covers a diverse age group and background. Zeena Alkurdi (@zeenakurdi), Nida Khan (@ nidakhan) of Yaqeen Institute and Sana Saeed (AJ+) came to be a part of a panel, Combating Islamophobia with Marketing and Design. Sunia Arif (PepsiCo) was an attendee. All were invited to join the SXSW Muslims Whatsapp group. “We all feel like we are working together… by collaborating our efforts we can move the ball forward on all of our projects,” sums up Gilani about what is the common thread and adds, “We want to help each other because we believe that everyone is working for the same goals.” SXSW is known to draw famous people, but it is also a haven for those who are on their way to reaching for the stars. These are the people we care to mention this year. The members are easy to find through their Twitter handles and are here in Austin every year.