Description

Khan’s eloquent minimal style and architectural page design illuminates her experiences of growing up as a second generation Azad Kashmiri migrant in East London.

The Roles We Play is Sabba Khan’s debut graphic memoir collecting a series of short essays that explore themes of identity, belonging and memory within the East London Pakistani Muslim diaspora.

Together the stories paint a vivid snapshot of contemporary British Asian life and the complex generational shifts experienced within migrant communities today. Issues of race, gender and class are brought to the forefront in a simple and personal narrative.

The title of the book nods to the questions Khan explores: can religion and secularism, tradition and trend, heritage and progression move beyond a limited binary definition and toward a common space of love and understanding, and ultimately toward a pluralistic approach?

An extract from The Roles We Play was shortlisted by the Myriad First Graphic Novel Competition 2018.