Beyond the Mountains – By: Uswa Binte Hadi
I come from a place where the mountains seem endless, where green valleys carry stories of generations, and where nature speaks louder than words. Surrounded by the Hindu Kush, Chitral is one of the naturally blessed places in Pakistan. Our heritage, traditions, languages, and culture give this land an identity of its own. Yet there is a contradiction in growing up here: we may be surrounded by beauty, but opportunity does not always reach us with the same ease.
To say that Chitral has remained unchanged, however, would be unfair. Over the years, the region has made meaningful progress. We have better schools than we did before and greater access to education. Most importantly, we have a generation of students who have refused to let their geography define their ambitions. Many Chitrali students are now studying in some of Pakistan’s most renowned institutions, and seeing them succeed is a matter of genuine pride for all of us. Their achievements prove that the problem is not a lack of talent. Chitral has talent in abundance.
The challenge is the kind of education and exposure available to that talent.
Our education system still tends to make students good at remembering rather than questioning. Too often, education becomes the process of reading a passage, memorising it, and reproducing it on an examination paper. There is less space for experimentation, discussion, creativity, and critical thinking. Our examination system can reward what a student remembers more than how a student thinks.
This matters because the world beyond the classroom demands more than memorisation. It demands curiosity, confidence, problem-solving, communication, and the courage to ask, “Why?” A student should not only be taught what to think, but how to think.
The difference becomes even clearer when students begin thinking about their futures. In larger cities, students may encounter career counselors, mentors, internships, professional networks, entrepreneurship programmes, and people who can introduce them to opportunities they did not even know existed. In remote areas, sometimes the first challenge is simply knowing that such opportunities exist.
The same applies to employment and entrepreneurship. Chitral has young people with ideas, skills, and ambition, but access to mentorship, investment, professional networks, and wider markets can still be limited. For young women, these barriers can be even more difficult. Many have the ability and determination to build careers and businesses, but opportunities for guidance and exposure are not always available close to home.
Still, I do not see Chitral only through the lens of what it lacks. I see it through what its people have achieved despite those limitations. Every student who leaves Chitral for a renowned institution, every young person who builds something new, and every woman who steps into a field previously considered beyond her reach is quietly expanding the boundaries of what is possible.
As Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote, “What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” The quote reminds me that circumstances can influence our journey, but they do not have to define its destination.
This is perhaps the most important lesson for students from remote areas. We should acknowledge the opportunities we lack, but we should not allow that acknowledgement to become an excuse to stop moving forward. Sometimes, opportunities have to be searched for; sometimes, they have to be created. Our students have already shown that distance does not have to mean defeat.
Chitral has improved, and we are proud of that progress. But we should continue asking how much further we can go. We should want schools that create thinkers, not just examination takers; opportunities that reach beyond the major cities; and an environment where a student’s birthplace does not quietly decide the size of their dreams.
The mountains of Chitral will always be part of who we are. They shape our identity, our culture, and our sense of belonging. But they should never become walls around our future.
Where we are born is not a choice. What we make of our circumstances can be.
