Meet Bak! From her love of makeup to her strong devotion to her culture and roots this girl is as versatile as it gets.
Name: Bakhtawar Mirjat
Year: Freshman
Major: SIS
Hometown: I have two homes, Burr Ridge in Illinois, and Karachi in Pakistan
Celebrity Crush: Fawad Afzal Khan (a Pakistani actor)
Favorite Spot on Campus: I really love the little garden area outside (the amphitheater), right behind Leonard Hall. It’s so gorgeous in the warmer months.
Three Things I Can’t Live Without:
1) I absolutely cannot live without my hijab because at this point I would literally would not know what to do with my hair out and all over my face.
2) I also cannot part ways with my little golden journal that I write down my entire life in. If you know me, you know that I’m kind of all over the place at times so my journal is the one thing I know will be organized even when I feel scattered.
3) I also cannot live with out my Adjrak. This is a piece of clothing that I own that exemplifies my Pakistani Sindhi heritage that I have pinned up on my wall. Without it, I feel like my room and my life would not be as filled with my culture as I would want it to be.
Favorite Song: I love Kanye’s new album COMPLETELY AND UTTERLY. My favorite song on the album would be “Real Friends,” followed closely by “Ultralight Beam.” I think “Real Friends” is a great song, which summarizes my first semester of college, and “Ultralight Beam” is just a chill jam. Shout out to Chance the Rapper who is also featured in “Ultralight Beam,” which makes it almost tied with “Real Friends.”
Dream Job: I would love to work with anything related to the development of Pakistan, the culture, the infrastructure, or the government. I feel it is extremely important to help people back home, because as they say, charity starts in the home, and my home is Pakistan.
Social Media Preference: I don’t have one! I am starting a makeup Instagram for the makeup looks I do on my friends, though, and also to review products that I love! If you’d like to keep up with that please do! @beauty.by.bak – help a fellow AU homie out!
Why I Chose AU: I chose AU because when I visited I felt an overwhelming sense of belonging. This might sound cheesy, but I walked down into the Kay Spiritual Center, I felt that I was at ease and that I was definitely going to be returning back to AU in the fall. I also met one of my best friends during Admitted Students’ Day, which was completely by chance. I am so glad to be going to AU. I truly do not think that there is a better school for me.
Favorite Quote: “Extremism can flourish only in an environment where basic governmental social responsibility for the welfare of the people is neglected. Political Dictatorship and social hopelessness create the desperation that fuels religious extremism.”– Benazir Bhutto
Ultimate Party Song: “Sexy Back” – Justin Timberlake. Mostly because my nickname is Bak, but it’s pronounced “back” so that song is just my anthem!
One Thing on My Bucket List: I want to go to Second City (a comedy club in Downtown Chicago) on Tuesday night during Amateur Night and make a couple of people laugh. It could go really well or also really terribly, but the fun is in trying! I would have to go completely alone though so it’s either a secret failure or secret victory.
My favorite place in DC: I don’t think I have quite found it yet. That’s not to say that I haven’t explored DC, because I have, it’s just that I don’t think I can narrow it down to any one thing before going to almost everywhere I can go. But, with my limited experience I would have to say that I love Adams Morgan.
Ideal Friday Night: Spending it with a couple of my close friends, going out to a nice dinner and then coming back to the dorm to watch a movie over some ice cream and probably a lot of saltines and Nutella.
Favorite Place To Eat in DC: My favorite place to eat in DC, so far has been Rasika. I love South Asian flavors because I grew up on them, and it’s the best Indian food I have had outside of Devon Street in Chicago, and…well, India.
Fun Fact: I took a Fashion Design course at Columbia College Chicago going into junior year, because I was really into fashion and I thought it would propel my career in the fashion world. I was wrong. Sorry Mom and Dad, for making you drive me in and out of the city for two months just for me to realize that I should stick to international stuff!
Favorite Makeup Brand: In terms of drug store makeup my favorite brand would have to be NYX. The quality of their products is amazing, and their soft matte lip creams are a great alternative to any other expensive lip product. My favorite higher end makeup brand would be MAC, mostly for their lip products. And my high end absolute favorite brand would be Nars. I don’t think I have tried any other makeup brand that has a more versatile blush shade like “Orgasm.”
Favorite Makeup Artist on YouTube: Tati. That’s her YouTube channel – just her name. She’s great!
Emoji That Describes Me: Probably the Brown Turban Man emoji. Mostly because they don’t have a woman with a hijab, sadly.
Photo Credit: All photos belong to Bakhtawar Mirjat