About

Hi! I am Jazbeen, host of the Her American Story Podcast. The Her American Story podcast idea came amidst chaotic days. My two babies were quite little, my baby girl was just a bit over three years old and my son was about eighteen months old. Between working full time, trying to stay afloat as a Mom, Wife, and Physician, I tried to create time for myself. In the delirium of my evening elliptical machine workouts I started listening to podcasts. It started as a way for me to have some “me time”. I had listened to podcasts in the past, I lived in Atlanta at one point in my life and had an hour commute. Back then I had plenty of time to leisurely listen to a variety of shows. This was different, I wanted to listen to podcasts where I felt like I was making good use of my free time. I found a few I really enjoyed. I realized that although I had common interests with these hosts, they were mostly White American females.

My parents were both born in Pakistan, my Father moved here when he was around 9 years old, he went back to Pakistan and had an arranged marriage with my Mother bringing her back to the States when she was 18. I was born in Colorado and grew up in Reno, Nevada. As a personal challenge, I tried to find podcasts hosted by South Asian females and  I stumbled upon a few I immensely enjoyed. I felt like I could relate to the hosts. It was the tidbits of information they shared about growing up in the States as first and second generation Americans that I loved.

Growing up in a small town as a minority I always sought out other South Asian Americans. In my town, South Asian Americans were few and far between. Growing up I did not have much in regards to representation in the media or in my community. I identified with pretty much anyone that was not White/Caucasian. I am who I am due to the environment in which I was raised but I can’t help but wonder if representation and connection with others like me would have enhanced my experience.  I am interested in having guests share a memorable story or event from their formative years when they realized they were different and how they dealt with the emotions related to this knowledge. The conversation will include a discussion regarding whether the guest had a mentor that helped lead her to where she is now as well as any advice for those looking for representation and encouragement