Physicality and health inequalities in British Pakistani Muslim women: analysis of a participatory theatre-based play

The chapter provides a detailed account and analysis of a participatory arts based research project in the form of a play with British Pakistani Muslim women living in Birmingham. The process of engaging with British Pakistani Muslim women to become involved in developing a script and enacting in a play is explained in the context of the research. The analysis of the play which documents the British Pakistani Muslim women’s journey from migration in the 1960’s to their current lives provides an insight into the connections between the process of migration, and settlement and subsequent health concerns that began to arise. Lack of physicality, isolation and loneliness are drawn out as confounding factors contributing to poor health and resulting health inequalities. The too often narrative of inaccessible and closed off communities deemed as “hard to reach” is pushed back to researchers and policy makers with a stance taken that there needs to be a move away from a generalist “one size fits all” approach to research designs that are ground up, co-produced and culturally appropriate which enable the engagement of communities in research in a manner that is acceptable and appropriate for them.