Final Year Project

Project Title

The Trolley Culture in Karachi: Power Dynamics Sustained Through Rishta

Description

The rolling out of the tea trolley is a common occurrence in young women’s lives as they try and impress a prospective groom and his family. It is the traditional and vastly acceptable way of finding a spouse. Even though there is significant research on arranged marriages, there is a dearth of information about the process of finding a spouse, particularly in Pakistan. The primary objective of this research is to understand the power dynamics and final decision maker in finding spouses. The secondary objective of this research is to determine how individuals conform to or subvert these traditions; the diverse subgroups involved; and how different variables impact the power dynamics. It takes into account the role of age, class, education, effects of the trolley culture, how it reproduces patterns of inequality and inequity, as well as understand how the stakeholders involved negotiate between tradition and non-tradition. Lastly, the project discusses the agency of marginalized stakeholders, such as LGBTQ or sexually/gender-nonconforming individuals, within the rishta culture.