Pakistan's pioneering woman MMA fighter breaks barriers... and arms
"They said it's a men's game exclusively and a woman cannot do that one," says MMA fighter Anita Karim
Growing up in the rugged northern reaches, Anita Karim honed her combat skills fighting with three older brothers who pulled no punches.
The bruising experience prepared her for a career in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) — blending Thai kickboxing, Japanese judo and wrestling — and she is now the nation's pre-eminent woman fighter.
"The village where I come from, they support women fighters," she told AFP. "But when I started MMA, they had no awareness of this sport."
"They said it's a men's game exclusively and a woman cannot do that one," the 28-year-old said.
Eight years ago she won the right to enter the ring, swiftly becoming Pakistan's first internationally competing woman MMA fighter and appearing in Asia's biggest promotion, ONE Championship.
"Now misogynistic comments and criticisms have stopped," she said at her gym in the capital Islamabad, where she trains without heating in the octagonal "cage" where fighters face off.
It is unusual for women to take up sport in the country, where it is often forbidden by families.
But Karim's native Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) region — where female modesty codes are more relaxed — has become an incubator for women's sport.
In October, two sisters from the region, Maliha and Maneesha Ali, brought back gold and bronze from a taekwondo competition in Indonesia.
'Arm collector'
Karim's brother Uloomi, who became her coach after being on the receiving end of her blows, said support began at home.