Fiza Nazir: A Warrior In And Out Of The Ring | Women's Day Special

Twenty-four-year-old Fiza Nazir from Srinagar is an international Mixed Martial Arts (IMMA) fighter. She won a gold medal in the senior women바카라�s -56.7 kg weight class at the Asian MMA Championship 2023 in Bahrain. She also competed in the 2024 International Mixed Martial Arts Federation (IMMAF) World Championships in Uzbekistan.

Fiza says her father, Nazir Ahmad, a former football coach and an athlete himself, understands sports. But what he struggles with is the nature of her sport - the punches, the bruises, the injuries. 바카라�My parents visit me, spend months with me, but never once come to see me train,바카라� Fiza says. 바카라�My father always tells me, 바카라�I don바카라�t care if you win or lose, I just want you to stay safe.바카라�바카라�

For every woman who fights in the ring, there is always a battle to fight outside the ring. 

Fiza바카라�s journey into martial arts began when she was just six, an eager schoolgirl drawn to the thrill of competition. She won tournament after tournament. But in a place like Kashmir, sports - especially combat sports - is not seen as a career. It's not even an easy option for boys, let alone a consideration for girls.

At home, her parents made it clear: martial arts could be a hobby, not a career. Like most Kashmiri parents, they dreamed of her becoming a doctor. 

바카라�It바카라�s not only the parents; even the relatives of your relatives, from here to the farthest branches of the family tree want to know what a teenager is up to," Fiza says. 바카라�Most of them don바카라�t want you to waste your time on passions when you could have a successful career.바카라�  

Between her love for the sport and her family바카라�s expectations, she did what many would do. She tried to do both. She was convinced that she would become a doctor for her parents, so she took up science in Higher Secondary School. But even as she studied, she never let go of the ring. 

At the same time, Fiza바카라�s elder sister and her only sibling, Tansheema, was everything she was not. Tansheema was calm and followed a conventional career path. An engineering student by then, she was the 바카라�perfect바카라� daughter, one who buried herself in the books. Fiza was constantly compared to her. For years, she harboured frustration toward her sister, who, much like their parents, constantly told her that sports wouldn바카라�t take her anywhere.  바카라�I grew up hard-hearted, and for most of my teenage years, my sole purpose in life was to prove my sister wrong,바카라� she says.

It was in 2018 that Fiza finally found a sense of direction when she won the 'Best Fighter Woman' title after she clinched gold in an International Thang-Ta Championship at Imphal in Manipur. That was the moment when she knew she wanted to give her all to this sport. And that바카라�s also when her parents realised that 바카라�while they could take her out of sports, they can not take sports out of her.바카라� While many of their relatives said it wouldn바카라�t be appropriate to send their daughter across countries for a sport that 바카라�didn바카라�t suit girls,바카라� Fiza바카라�s father stood by her. He let her chase her dream.

Today, Fiza is part of Thailand바카라�s Bangtao MMA team.바카라�I wake up, pray, train; that바카라�s the cycle daily,바카라� says the dedicated sportswoman. Once or twice a year, she visits home in Srinagar. The rest of the time, it바카라�s all work, 14 hours a day, 98 hours a week. 

바카라�I바카라�ve always been aggressive, but this sport reshaped that energy. It taught me discipline, restraint, and self-control,바카라� she says. And it shows. She carries a quiet intensity. When she speaks, her words are measured and precise.

바카라�Martial arts is more than just a sport,바카라� she adds. 바카라�It바카라�s self-defence. You don바카라�t need a man to protect you when you can do it yourself.바카라�

Fiza is one of the few Kashmiri women making a name in sports. Across the world, as women continue to fight against the stereotype that combat sports are only for men, for a female athlete from a conservative place like Kashmir, the battle isn바카라�t just in the ring. It is a constant clash between passion and propriety. 

바카라�It바카라�s easy for people here to dismiss you, to say what you do is against religion,바카라� Fiza says. A hijab-wearing athlete, she recalls how someone once told her, 바카라�Her hijab doesn바카라�t make her work halal (lawful).바카라� Her response? 바카라�Okay.바카라� She refuses to let random men define her faith. 

바카라�바카라�바카라�It will never happen that everyone likes what you do. There will always be criticism,바카라� she says. 바카라�But sports builds the mental toughness to rise above it. You just keep working hard - until people grow tired of judging you.바카라�

While some see her as 바카라�too modern바카라� in Kashmir, she says, when she travels abroad, she바카라�s admired for holding on to her roots. 바카라�When people see me in hijab, they바카라�re curious to know what keeps my faith and my sport so closely tied.바카라� In fact, one well-known sportswear brand customised a hijab for her - designed exactly the way she wanted - and later added hijabs to their collection.

As she proves herself, the less her career choice is questioned and the more she is celebrated. Recently, her aunt gave birth to a third daughter. On video call, as Fiza바카라�s mother admired the newborn, she offered words of comfort, saying, 바카라�The little angel is beautiful. Don바카라�t take it to heart that it wasn바카라�t a son this time.바카라� To Fiza바카라�s surprise, her aunt said: 바카라�Of course not! May God make her another Fiza Nazir.바카라� It wasn바카라�t the first time Fiza had heard something like this. In her neighbourhood in Downtown Srinagar, she once saw small girls pretending to be 바카라�Fiza didi,바카라� while play-fighting. Some have her portraits pinned to their walls for motivation. While some send her messages - 바카라�We want to be you.바카라� 

Looking back, as Fiza makes a name for herself in the sport she once had to fight to pursue, she has realised that her sister is her biggest supporter. "Everything I do now, in some way, is for her. I just want to make her proud, and the joy in her voice when she hears I've done well means everything to me." Of all the 25 countries she has competed in so far, she now follows a routine - one souvenir for herself, two for her sister.

Currently recovering from an injury to her right shoulder, Fiza is ready to fight her way back and qualify for the IMMAF World Championships 2025. 바카라�It바카라�s only my right arm that바카라�s hurt; everything else is good to go,바카라� she says.

Toibah Kirmani is a sub-editor at Outlook, based in Kashmir

(This article is a part of Outlook's March 11, 2025 Women's Day special issue 'Women at Work', which explores the experiences of women in roles traditionally occupied by men. An excerpt appeared in print as 'Women, Uninterrupted바카라�)