Neelofar Sherazi hopes Pakistan govt would support her to get international recognition
Zubair Qureshi
Neelofar Sherazi, hailing from Khyber Pakhtunk-hwa (KP) Battagram district made history once again on Saturday, by breaking her previous record of smashing 1,000 bricks.
This time she succeeded in breaking 1,160 bricks in less than 50 minutes which is not only a personal achievement but also a world record.
Earlier in February, this year Neelofar had made history by smashing 1,000 bricks in just 27 min-utes.
It was a rare treat and privilege to see Neelofar clad in her traditional tribal dress, a white gown and a head scarf smashing bricks one after another with a strike of her right hand.
I have been waiting for this moment all my life, said she as there is nothing impossible for you if you are resolved to do something, she said.
Neelofar achieved the landmark in cheers of her friends, family members and sponsor. Fit-Wit a local fitness centre announced PKR 50,000 for her singular achievement.
Last time it had sponsored the event as well but this time, Neelofar saved money out of her own salary to buy the bricks and break them (she is an online teacher).
She had to spend Rs16,800 on 1200 bricks, had to pay Rs 2,000 rent for cement blocks and Rs11,000 for labourers and transportation. In this way, it cost her Rs30,000 in total.
A large number of park visitors had also gath-ered at the site and broke into cheers of applause when Neelofar crossed the 1,000 bricks milestone.
We shall send the complete video footage of her performance to the international federation so that her name could be registered in world record cate-gory, said Imtiaz Ahmed of Fit-Wit.
This is for the first time that a female martial arts champion has achieved this number in less than half an hour.
With each strike of her right hand, the bricks came down splitting into four as there was a long row of two bricks arranged on two parallel rows of cement blocks.
As the number raised her supporters and family members cheered loudly to boost her morale.
With the 550th strike of her right hand, came down apart the 1100 bricks and the whole stadium echoed with thunderous applause.
It is a great moment for Pakistan, said Imtiaz Ahmed CEO of Fit-Wit. Last time too, Fit-Wit had announced Rs50,000 for Neelofar. We have re-corded the entire event and we will send it to the International Breaking Federation so that they could include it as the world record in brick breaking category, Imtiaz further said.
No one in the world has broken even 1,000 bricks in a row, he further said. By doing 1160 bricks in less than half an hour, Neelofar Sherazi has set an example for the girls who are reluctant to follow their passion and feel scared in this male-chauvinistic society.
While talking to media, Neelofar, 32, said she has not been approached by any government offi-cial, however, she hoped her talent would be recog-nized at national and international levels.
I wish my talent would be recognized at the na-tional and international level woth support of the government, she said.
Sherazi is currently living in Islamabad. She is Masters in Chemistry and is working as an online teacher. However what makes her different from others is her passion for learning the art of brick breaking. She can break bricks with a swift strike of her right hand.
She started formal training in 2018. Daily, Nee-lofar spends around two hours to practising this art, which is less common in Pakistan particularly among women.
About Pakistani women, Neelofar said they have great talent to make their mark in the world, we only need to support and recognize their talent.
Neelofar spends Sundays in kitchen preparing various dishes, helping her mother. She is also a volunteer and works for social service and commu-nity development.
