Yoni Ki Baat and the Woman who brought it to Madison
By Laura Salinger
Eve Ensler’s “Vagina Monologues” has garnered plenty of attention since the monologue-style
performance hit stages nationwide and dared to bring up those often taboo and uncomfortable topics of
sex, female body parts, and sexual violence in its many tragic forms. The bold performance-which began
as a one woman show and later morphed into a global sensation-got people talking and didn’t back down
from the topics that make us squirm. Yet, for Ayeshah Emon, who performed in the “Vagina Monologues,”
there was something missing.
“I found that the stories for women of color either exoticized the women or flat out victimized them,” Emon
says. “I remember thinking, ‘where are all the voices of these women?’”
A native Pakistani and Ph.D. student at UW-Madison, Emon has brought an alternative Vagina
Monologues- “Yoni Ki Baat” -to the UW-Madison campus since 2009. The most recent performances were
Eve Ensler’s “Vagina Monologues” has garnered plenty of attention since the monologue-style
performance hit stages nationwide and dared to bring up those often taboo and uncomfortable topics of
sex, female body parts, and sexual violence in its many tragic forms. The bold performance-which began
as a one woman show and later morphed into a global sensation-got people talking and didn’t back down
from the topics that make us squirm. Yet, for Ayeshah Emon, who performed in the “Vagina Monologues,”
there was something missing.
“I found that the stories for women of color either exoticized the women or flat out victimized them,” Emon
says. “I remember thinking, ‘where are all the voices of these women?’”
A native Pakistani and Ph.D. student at UW-Madison, Emon has brought an alternative Vagina
Monologues- “Yoni Ki Baat” -to the UW-Madison campus since 2009. The most recent performances were
| Laura Salinger |
on April 15 and 16 at the Play Circle Theater at UW-Madison’s Memorial Union. This will be Emon’s
last year at the helm of the performance that has touched many women (and men).
A performance exploring women’s sexuality, their bodies, their feelings, and their place in the world,
“Yoni Ki Baat” (Talk of the Vagina) was started by the South Asian Sisters in 2003 and is essentially
the South Asian response to the “Vagina Monologues.” The creators, who were inspired by Ensler’s
work, envisioned an ever-evolving monologue that would bluntly tackle sensitive topics from a female
perspective. Emon, who first saw “Yoni Ki Baat” in the Bay area, was inspired to bring the show to
Madison. Since its Madison debut in 2009, Emon and her co-directors/producers have morphed their
version into one inclusive of all women wanting to share their stories; however there is an emphasis
on women of color. The monologues are blunt and cover everything from rape to child abuse to
virginity to masturbation to the disenfranchised hijras of South Asia.
In “I am a Virgin,” issues of sexual pressure are at the forefront.
“When I was 13 I told the guy I was with that I didn't want him looking at my breasts. So he pinned my
bra above my chest and stared at my nipples, laughing, till they turned hard from the cold and I
twisted away.
last year at the helm of the performance that has touched many women (and men).
A performance exploring women’s sexuality, their bodies, their feelings, and their place in the world,
“Yoni Ki Baat” (Talk of the Vagina) was started by the South Asian Sisters in 2003 and is essentially
the South Asian response to the “Vagina Monologues.” The creators, who were inspired by Ensler’s
work, envisioned an ever-evolving monologue that would bluntly tackle sensitive topics from a female
perspective. Emon, who first saw “Yoni Ki Baat” in the Bay area, was inspired to bring the show to
Madison. Since its Madison debut in 2009, Emon and her co-directors/producers have morphed their
version into one inclusive of all women wanting to share their stories; however there is an emphasis
on women of color. The monologues are blunt and cover everything from rape to child abuse to
virginity to masturbation to the disenfranchised hijras of South Asia.
In “I am a Virgin,” issues of sexual pressure are at the forefront.
“When I was 13 I told the guy I was with that I didn't want him looking at my breasts. So he pinned my
bra above my chest and stared at my nipples, laughing, till they turned hard from the cold and I
twisted away.
Ayeshah Emon
“And the funny thing is that I stayed with him, and every week he'd convince me to meet him behind the locked door of our church
bathroom, and I'd lie on the dirty floor, and I'd suffocate under the thrusting weight of what I almost believed was love.”
In “Child’s Play,” sexual abuse and the resulting trauma are tackled.
“I was sexually abused as a child. I don’t remember the first time it happened. I don’t remember the last time it happened. I am not
even sure if I imagined most of it. All I remember is a crushing agony in my chest all through my growing up years.
“I have worked hard all these years to get rid of that agony and I believe I have. But now all of a sudden I realize I am 27 and the
scarred child I was trying to heal all these years is gone. She is just gone. She just tumbled out of childhood and fell in a bottomless
pit. And she died.”
The monologues of “Yoni Ki Baat” are sometimes hard to sit through and they are brutally honest in their exploration of the female
experience. For Emon, who grew up in Pakistan, this honesty is in direct opposition to her upbringing.
The idea of women as property is still very much a part of Pakistan,” Emon says. “I was always told don’t be seen, don’t be heard, do
what your elders tell you.”
bathroom, and I'd lie on the dirty floor, and I'd suffocate under the thrusting weight of what I almost believed was love.”
In “Child’s Play,” sexual abuse and the resulting trauma are tackled.
“I was sexually abused as a child. I don’t remember the first time it happened. I don’t remember the last time it happened. I am not
even sure if I imagined most of it. All I remember is a crushing agony in my chest all through my growing up years.
“I have worked hard all these years to get rid of that agony and I believe I have. But now all of a sudden I realize I am 27 and the
scarred child I was trying to heal all these years is gone. She is just gone. She just tumbled out of childhood and fell in a bottomless
pit. And she died.”
The monologues of “Yoni Ki Baat” are sometimes hard to sit through and they are brutally honest in their exploration of the female
experience. For Emon, who grew up in Pakistan, this honesty is in direct opposition to her upbringing.
The idea of women as property is still very much a part of Pakistan,” Emon says. “I was always told don’t be seen, don’t be heard, do
what your elders tell you.”
Yoni Ki Baat performers Kathryn Lederhause, Ayeshah Emon,
Claire Staley, Nathalie Cheng, Borna Ghosh, Megan Raquel
Diaz, Karen Perez Wilson, Sarah Hasan
Claire Staley, Nathalie Cheng, Borna Ghosh, Megan Raquel
Diaz, Karen Perez Wilson, Sarah Hasan
After obtaining her undergraduate degree in French and
Psychology in Pakistan, Emon came to the U.S. At UW-
Madison, she struggled to break free from the sexist
oppression she was reared under.
“When I first came here, I was quiet and I wouldn’t make eye
contact with my male professors.” Emon says she was
painfully shy and unsure of herself in her new environment.
That is the part that makes Emon’s role in “Yoni Ki Baat” so
special. As a performer and producer/director, Emon not only
found her voice but dared to touch on the very issues that are
stigmatized and hushed away, even in the United States. She
maintains that struggles of women and women of color are far
from over. But it is performances like “Yoni Ki Baat” that bring
important issues to the forefront.
Psychology in Pakistan, Emon came to the U.S. At UW-
Madison, she struggled to break free from the sexist
oppression she was reared under.
“When I first came here, I was quiet and I wouldn’t make eye
contact with my male professors.” Emon says she was
painfully shy and unsure of herself in her new environment.
That is the part that makes Emon’s role in “Yoni Ki Baat” so
special. As a performer and producer/director, Emon not only
found her voice but dared to touch on the very issues that are
stigmatized and hushed away, even in the United States. She
maintains that struggles of women and women of color are far
from over. But it is performances like “Yoni Ki Baat” that bring
important issues to the forefront.
She now wants to pass on the “Yoni Ki Baat” torch
to others to carry forward as she prepares to
graduate this fall.
“I would like the younger people to come forward
and carry it forward,” she says.
to others to carry forward as she prepares to
graduate this fall.
“I would like the younger people to come forward
and carry it forward,” she says.
| (R) Sisters Dalian and Jong May Urbonya performed two excellen tly choreographed dance numbers that reflect the theme of Yoni Ki Baat. |