Gender and automobility in the Pakistani road movie <i>Dukhtar</i> or <i>Daughter</i> (2014)

This article claims that the Pakistani movie Dukhtar (Urdu/Persian: دختر; transl. Daughter ) demonstrates gender dynamics tied to automobility in the Pakistani tribal cultural contexts. To this end, I elaborate on the iron will of the female protagonist Allah Rakhi as a co-driver who shows courage in the most harrowing circumstances. Although the movie does not show a woman behind the wheels, it certainly affirms Rakhi's resistance and resilience. She refuses to accept her husband's decision about trading their only daughter to end a feud by marrying her off to an elderly man, escapes with her on the day of her marriage, and begs a truck driver to transport her to Lahore. The truck becomes her armour and mobile home, signalling freedom and liberty. Even though Rakhi is shot at the end of the journey, she saves her daughter from the malevolent custom of child marriage and thus wins over social and domestic injustice by sacrificing her life.