MALALA! Saturn Returns, Sports & Her Song of the Summer

When kids don't play, they grow up without imagination.

Then it's all small talk and awkward weather chats.

Good thing gushers, fruit by the foot, and fruit roll-ups are made to be played with.

You better be playing.

One thing that truly fascinates me is how you love each other more and more day by day.

I thought that wasn't true, because that's what we are told.

But if you are meant for each other, you are gonna love each other even more than you used to and nearly four years and we asra and i are more in love than before i love it i need i need to stop okay awesome you're in love malala we get it some of us over here

Welcome to House Amar, a wave original.

We have a few house rules.

Girls are magic.

Reading is hot.

And so are you.

And make sure to check out our YouTube because I actually put on naked today.

So if you want to see that because I'm glowing, go subscribe to our YouTube.

That was a gift for all of you.

Yeah.

She got on.

And I didn't want to do that thing where somebody like has, you know, put a little bit of effort in how they look and you're like, oh my God.

Wow.

But like, you look phenomenal.

Sorry.

You look so good.

Is there foundation?

What's what's your favorite?

I put a little foundation on.

I think I knew

it's more because because I knew we would be on camera and you can do it a little bit more if you're on camera, you know?

So I did a little contour.

Oh, did I blend that?

It's okay.

I did a little contouring and I did a little of this and that.

And I did some glowiness.

Wow.

The lips looked too good.

My lips.

Is that like a plumping lip?

No, that's just my lip.

Sorry, Lynn.

That's just my lips.

Me too.

In case you did not know, our darling sister Alona is a world-class award-winning athlete.

She is training hours every single day and she is flying across the world to play in the Rugby World Cup.

So for the next several weeks, we will be taking a break from our regular format to give our sister the room she needs to focus on rugby.

So there will not be a new episode next week, but wait for the rest of the summer.

Dre and I are going to take you along with us to watch Alona at the World Cup.

So make sure to keep an eye on our YouTube and all our socials at House of Marr.

We'll still see you on Tuesdays on YouTube.

And if you're listening on Spotify or Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your shows, make sure you go and subscribe over on YouTube to not miss a beat.

Coming up on today's episode of House of Marr, we're talking Saturn Returns, Love Languages, and Malala's upcoming book.

I am the eldest daughter, Olivia.

I'm the baby, Adriana.

Nowhere near 30.

That's disrespectful, but okay.

I'm the middle sister, Alona Marr.

And when this episode comes out, it will be my birthday.

Yay!

Yes!

Confetti, confetti, confetti.

29.

29!

29!

29!

29!

How are you feeling?

I feel good.

I actually almost just want to be 30 at this point.

I've heard 30s are a great time.

You really know yourself.

So I'm excited for a 30, but one last year in my 20s to have some fun.

Who knows what 29 will bring?

28 has been kookie kaka.

28, I turned 28 last year at the closing ceremonies.

And then what I've done since then, danced with the stars, played in England, Sports Illustrated.

Won an Espy.

Won an Espy, won a CLIO Award, went to Cannes.

So I've done a lot with 28.

28 was a good number, a good age.

So I'm excited to see what 29 brings.

One last year to live it up, I guess.

But when I do my birthday,

when it is my birthday, when this comes out, we will be, it'll be a day of training.

It'll be our hardest day of training.

And I was texting my team, like, hey, guys, like,

do you have a good restaurant we could go to when we're in England?

And they said there's nothing around.

So you texted like your

British teammates from when you were playing over there.

And a lot of my teammates on this team live there as well in the town we're going to.

So I was like, hey guys, is there like a nice restaurant?

Like I wanted to take everyone out to dinner or something like that.

Yeah.

But there's, turns out there's nothing really around.

Oh, and so you'll make the fun.

Yeah.

I don't think so.

I don't think so.

Just go split some G's at a local pub.

That's what 29 is all about.

So about that, I'm in a World Cup, so we don't drink often.

Fair.

Right.

So fair.

And that's on me.

And that's when you are not getting about it.

We'll have to do it for her.

Okay.

We'll split a G for you, Alona.

For your personality.

We'll split a G.

We'll split an extra G for you.

So this also, 28 is a year of great change because it's talked about as being your Saturn return.

Do you know much about this?

Do you believe in this?

What is your thoughts about this?

I only know know what is on the Ariana Grande album.

That intro?

Yeah.

Long story short, your Saturn return means that when you are born, Saturn is somewhere in the sky.

I also got to say, I'm not an astrology girly.

I don't really know, but I do love it.

All that bit of woo-woo.

Saturn is somewhere when you're born.

And it takes, it starts its return back to that place at like 27 years.

So it's completed its return come like 28, 29.

So everyone says that it's a time of great like change or realization, or you really settle into who you are.

Which I feel like you've had a fabulous Saturn return.

Everything we just listed off.

Yeah, I've Saturn's, she's doing, yeah, love that she's come back.

It's been great.

Missed you.

Missed you, Saturn.

Did you, Olivia?

Be so for real.

Did you know that, or did you just?

Are you listening off the Ariana Grande song?

Be so for real.

I knew that.

I knew that.

Okay, fine.

My Saturn,

she didn't just return.

She was gone.

She She like, she

made it entrance.

She made it entrance.

She gave it the old, like, that's show business, the old Razzle Dazzle.

Yeah, I went through a large breakup for my Saturn return.

But I mean, there's nothing more fitting than that.

And I think I am now even more so the woman I'm supposed to be.

And that was a time of great change.

Great and powerful change.

And it made me the woman that I am.

But yeah, I would say I had a,

can you say a successful Saturn return?

It doesn't feel feel successful, but it was in the for like the ultimate end goal of who I am.

Yeah, I'd say.

Yeah, you grew.

Right.

You know, your next Saturn Return is in your 50s.

Is it?

Oh, that's what they're saying.

So it grew.

I've never thought about that.

You get another one.

It's kind of like quarter life crisis, midlife crisis.

Oh my God.

That's Saturn, huh?

She's working.

What's Mercury in retrograde?

Gatorade in the microwave.

That's

when

Mercury

has decided to shake things up.

I don't know.

Dre, what's Mercury in retrograde?

I could not tell you either, but it is, people always say, like, oh, Mercury isn't retrograde.

When like something you're like,

like a lot of chaos is happening.

Apparently, it's a very unsettled time.

This just in.

Roughly three to four times a year, the planet Mercury appears to move backwards in its orbit as seen from earth and so chaos ensues right

when's that happening probably right now probably world cup probably whenever i'm ovulating because i tell you what the past couple months have been felt like going to war i am just like oh

interesting everyone always talks about that and i don't i never know what that means i to me i'm thinking about the substance mercury for so i don't think of the planet and i'm like what are you talking about mercury like the ones in thermometers is that what's in thermometers

the old-fashioned ones the old-fashioned thermometers have mercury they no longer sell those because mercury is incredibly toxic to humans and putting them in your mouth that being said in our household we still have a mercury thermometer i trust those i trust it i trust i trust mercury mom always tells a story of like growing up being at like uh her grandmother's antique store, someone's antique store, and there's just a bowl of mercury and she would just play with it because like back then you didn't know how bad mercury was.

So our mom was just like elbow deep in mercury as well.

I bet it was fun to play with.

It's

so fun.

Yeah.

I accidentally ruptured one of those thermometers in the sink when I was little because I was like, oh, let me put it under hot water and watch the,

watch it like go up and it exploded.

That wasn't fun.

Mom and dad were a bit stressed.

I got stressed.

That might be why she's the way she is, Adriana.

Explains a lot.

Explains a lot.

And now we can't even replace that thermometer because they don't see this anymore.

Thanks.

That probably would be worth some money now.

Thanks, Olivia.

Guys, what do you think it did to me?

Am I superhero?

It's probably why your ovulation cycles are crazy.

Mercury's throat flowing through you.

That was written in the stars.

Right.

Ah, well, Lo,

we wish you the happiest of birthdays.

in your 29th year and we cannot wait to see what you do.

29.

Dre, it's coming for you.

Actually, now that Alona's 29, I'm like, 26 is even younger.

I got ID'd twice at the same bar the other day.

And I get mistaken for both of their twins.

Oh,

in DC.

Yeah.

I had people being like, I love curl dinner.

You're like, me too, bitch.

What does that have to do with me?

Thank you.

Wrong one.

Hey, not me.

I'll take it, though.

I'll take it a run.

Time to touch some grass.

This is when we like to slow things down and

take a chill, Phil.

Look around.

See what's actually going on.

Let's analyze things.

So in news of women's empowerment, there's a new app on the dating scene called T.

It's a women-only app that allows users to anonymously post reviews, stories, and advice about men they've dated or even just met.

This is kind of similar to like the Facebook groups of Are We Dating the Same Guy?

Which Olivia, I know that you've been a part of.

Do you think that this app is needed?

I think so.

I mean, I think it's definitely caused a bit of a stir.

Men don't like it.

But to that, I say, if you're a good dude, you literally have nothing to worry about.

So if you're nervous and scared about this app,

is that a red flag?

I don't know.

I think it's another way for women to protect one another.

It's that thing that you hear that's like gossip was made to be, seem evil by men and the church because it was how women would communicate and help one another.

It gave power to women, right?

And so instead, men tried to take that away from them and saying gossip is evil, gossip is ungodly, it's not good when actually it's a very healthy, natural part of communication and helping your community.

And I think that an app like this is exactly that.

As we mentioned earlier, I went through a breakup and

after that, I went and joined one of those Are We Dating the Same Guys?

I was nowhere near wanting to date, but I am nosy.

It's always funny when I do see a post where somebody's like, started to talk to this guy.

Any red flags?

And it is the scariest human being I've ever seen in my life.

Spooky.

Like they snuck onto earth.

Scary.

You know what I mean?

Like, I don't know.

So I think it's a great resource.

I don't know exactly how to feel about this app and things because on one hand, I do absolutely understand like

that

there's a high female mortality rate from men and like you need to protect yourself and this is such a great step to do so.

But I also think about like the men's privacy.

And like what we've kind of talked about before in this of like what if you flipped it like what if it was like guys being like any red flags from this girl like we would hate having all of our information out there of like especially like be like this like it would be like my picture Adriana and be like where I live ah yeah I love the sentiment but I worry about the execution.

I also think

you know men are there's a lot of not good men for sure.

I know some kukikaka women.

I do.

I know some women that I wouldn't, I don't know if I'd want my guy friends to be dating.

So I think that you know, it is interesting.

There's it's it's almost okay for just the women to say all this about the men.

But

I mean, if we create an app, we would also, if we create this app tea, would then, if a male were to create it, would there be an uproar about it?

You know, would people be so mad that he's created an app like this?

One thing that recently happened is that a a bunch of the new users on Tease, all their information got leaked.

So like what was supposed to be such like a safe place for women is now putting them in more danger.

Can women just exist?

No.

But apparently a man did create the T-app because this man was catfished.

And why would a man be there?

True.

You're for an app made for women.

I don't know how to feel about that.

That a man made the app?

Yeah.

Because it's like, it's how I feel about male gynecologists.

I'm sorry.

Why would a man be there?

Without a male gynecologist, Audrey, we would never have the Broadway play Waitress.

And most of the plot makes me uncomfortable.

What is the plot of Waitress?

Oh, you don't know the plot of Waitress.

You've never seen Waitress?

No, I just like the songs.

Okay, well, don't spoil it for her.

Nobody in the comments spoil it for her.

She's not going to watch it.

Actually, you might watch it on a plane.

The pro shot.

Is it with Sarah Morella's?

Yeah.

Or we'll watch it at home.

Yeah.

I hope you're intrigued now.

What's the slight premise of it?

So she obviously gets impregnated by her shitty husband.

Obviously.

Obviously.

Well, you've listened to She Used to Be Mine.

I don't know if I even know what she's saying in that.

I just like it.

She's talking about

the vibe that's inside me.

Grows stronger each day.

until it finally reminds me to fight just a little to take that

i hear it now i hear it now i just gave myself chills

i'm putting on the pro shot after this

so she is a a pregnant waitress who is in a relationship or married to a dirtbag mean is he abusive i can't remember probably

um she goes to the gynecologist

male brings him a pie, and falls in love with him.

Okay, I'll watch this one because I'm not convinced on that plot line.

That seems a little crazy.

The plot, maybe it's not for me, but the songs.

Oh my God.

The songs are good.

The song, It's a Very Bad Idea, Me and You.

Hello.

Oh, those dope.

It's so fun, though.

Interesting.

But now you'll really understand the music.

As a nurse alone, you're going to fucking hate that plot.

It's the same thing as like athletic books.

You're gonna be like, that's not right.

Yeah, you should not probably watch.

Already, I'm just kind of freaking me out.

But he's like cute, tall, and nerdy, so it's all good.

Is that against HIPAA?

Probably.

I don't know.

It don't feel right.

It don't feel right.

Like, you should get your license taken away at that point.

What we are trying to say here is a space that was created for women to

protect one another and be safe,

getting hacked by these men who feel threatened by this.

they need to touch some grass.

If you didn't already know, I'm training for the Rugby World Cup.

I'm working hard every day, working up a sweat in the middle of nowhere.

When I'm reaching for a hydrating pick-me-up at practice, I'm reaching for Propel Fitness Water.

So, I'm not in the middle of nowhere, but no matter where you are, it's always the right time and place to grab a nice cold Propel with Gatorade Electrolytes, zero sugar, and vitamins.

Talk about the drink of the summer.

Hello!

Whether you're playing Mermaids in the Pool or headed to your Pilates class, Propel helps you get the most out of your workout so you continue to be your best best self.

With a huge range of exciting flavors to choose from, I know I'm always making a good choice when I reach for Propel.

So ladies, what flavor is calling your name today?

I've said it before.

I'm such a grape girl.

I've always been a grape girl.

It just tastes like purple and it's beautiful.

And I love peach as well right now.

Tastes like purple.

Yum yum.

It's still insanely hot here in New York, but the evening is perfect for my summer strolls across the High Line or Riverside Park.

And I know I always need a little bev for my walks.

And that summer bev of choice is Propel, and I go classic lemon.

Okay, I'm going black cherry, that or maybe a strawberry lemonade.

Propel helps you get the most out of your workout.

Grab a Propel Fitness Water wherever you shop to help you get the most out of your next workout.

What propels you?

Everyone loves a good hack, like warming up your mascara in your bra or convincing your sister to buy a pair of pants because you want to borrow them.

You can steal that one from me.

That's a really good tip.

But what if I told you there was a wireless hack?

Wireless that lets you live in the know?

Well, there is, and it's called visible.

I love a good hack, especially the ones that involve me barring live in Alona's clothes.

But visible is the ultimate wireless hack.

If you're not plugged in, you won't be able to message me that cute sweater you just saw.

So to be stylish and in the know, you got to be smart and plugged in, but you also need great wireless.

Visible is wireless that lets you live in the know.

Visible is the ultimate wireless hack.

You get unlimited data and hotspot, so you can stay connected on the go.

Since I'm always traveling, I love knowing I always have a hotspot.

And it's powered by Verizon.

Visible runs on Verizon's 5G network, so you know you get great coverage.

I don't have to think twice if I'll be able to share my photos from Alona's Rugby Games on the road because I know Visible has a reliable connection.

Level up your wireless with new Visible Plus Pro Plan.

It's premium wireless without the premium cost.

Visible gives you access to 4K streaming, which makes it easy to watch my upcoming match against Canada on August 1st, anywhere you want.

The best part?

Visible is an all-digital wireless service, so you can literally just use the phone you have, then activate and manage your plan all in the app on your phone or online.

Terms apply.

See visible.com for plan features and network management details.

Ready for wireless that lets you live in the know?

Make the switch at visible.com.

One-line wireless starting at $25 a month.

For our best features, get the Visible Plus Pro plan for $45 a month.

Visible, live in the know.

And we are now going to kick things over to you, Alona, for a very exciting interview with our incredible special guest and friend, Malala Yusofzai.

Yay.

Alona, do you remember the first moment you first followed each other?

I remember that she followed me and I was like, what the heck?

And then I followed her back and she,

you know, is a big fan of women's sports.

And so she came to a game when I was in England, came to our Harlequins game.

And it was so cool to meet her in person.

So I'm excited to chat with her and just really just girls being girls.

You know what I'm saying?

Girls being girls.

Let's get into it.

It is an honor to have you.

The last time I saw you was in England.

you came to one of my matches tell me what did you think about rugby elona i think you have made rugby more fun it was a valentine's day uh and yes astra and i my husband we were thinking about what to do and usually you know we plan a dinner and we said that is just boring we have done that so many times so that's why we said oh there's Bristol Bears.

Elona will be there.

We must watch our rugby game.

And it was a perfect day.

Could not have imagined it better.

Deeply romantic day for you and your husband, watching some women tackle each other on a cold England night.

There's nothing better, really.

100%.

It was freezing cold.

I could

not stand in those heels on the grass for that long, but it was truly worth it because that was when we met for the first time.

And I was so grateful, like we could chat.

But for me, the memory from the day was actually watching girls and especially younger women.

They're waiting for you to just wave at you and take a photo with you.

And I just saw the power of women's sports, how young girls are gaining confidence and self-esteem when they watch women's sports.

And you definitely seem to be a big fan of that.

I mean,

you used to play cricket in a little badminton.

And now you're even starting your own kind of women's sports fun recess.

You can tell me a little bit about that.

That just sounds so cool.

And for someone like you who sees that, for women athletes, that, oh, there's something here.

There's something powerful.

Yes.

So

my story with sports is a long one.

And it's an interesting one because growing up, I was a big fan of sports and playing on the street with friends.

But as we got older, I realized that life for women and girls in sports is very different.

One example, in our school, on a sports day, the boys would go to the local cricket ground while girls had to stay back in the school.

And it wasn't that that playground said boys only, but that was the understanding, that was the perception that girls are supposed to stay inside

and it's sports was only meant for boys.

And

I had this mission of fighting for girls' education.

as much as I believed in women being able to do anything, I think all of us sometimes sometimes give up to the

perceptions we are told to hold.

And sports was one of those things.

I thought that you have to be naturally born with it.

And,

you know, because boys get a lot more opportunities to play, so we sort of assume that they're good at it.

My perception changed when I actually started playing sports again.

It was

after I got married to Aster.

He comes from the sports world and he has worked in cricket.

He took me to different sports from pickleball to cricket to

golf.

And I thought I could never do it.

I thought I could never hit a ball.

I could never kick a ball.

And as soon as I started taking some lessons and practicing, I realized that anyone can do it because I was a person who used to love sitting.

I could sit forever.

I was not a person who could move move around or walk.

I even hated walking.

I mean, forget about running and kicking a ball or any of that.

So to see myself transform

and

really

understand that sports is for everybody.

At the same time, I also realized how sports can help girls gain confidence.

and self-esteem.

It can be so important in their personal growth.

Even if they don't want to be in sports sports as a career, it can help them no matter where they work and where they are in their life, at what stage, age they are.

You can pick up sports anytime.

So that's what drew me to sports.

And that's why my husband and I came together to do something where we can be more helpful for women's sports.

I so agree.

And I think it's something that, you know, you know, I always preach is like sport taught me for somebody who had a body who didn't understand why I didn't look like my classmates and whatnot.

It gave me a way to feel like like capable and that my body was just something more than just to be looked at.

And I don't, I preach like play rugby because I think rugby is one of those sports like you don't have to, you, you don't have to have played any sports or be athletic at all.

Come out to a rugby pitcher as a community for you.

But my big thing is like try any sport.

Try golf.

Get out there and try, you know, cricket, whatever it is, pickleball.

Do something that kind of moves and shows, oh man, look at me.

I can hit this ball or something.

It just, to me, can can do so much and so I love that you've seen the value in that I I heard that you also tried out a little rowing back at Oxford

that's hard rowing is hard extremely hard and you know it's like you cannot stand in that boat right it's there there's just a huge protocol to how you get in in and

and then the first question I was asked was can you swim and that's when I realized hmm

I need to start with that before I get into rowing.

So

I still need to focus on that.

And eventually, who knows, I might get into rowing.

But for me, it was just this new experience that I was going to try everything in college.

At school, I was...

A very shy person.

I had become a shy person, to be honest, because I thought I was a latecomer.

People now know me for my activism.

And I am going to these serious events and conferences.

I get to talk to presidents and prime ministers, but still I don't know how to have a conversation with another 14 or 15 year old about just a normal day in school.

So when I went to university, I told myself that everybody is new.

Don't be shy.

Try anything and everything, including rowing.

And I think I regretted that in the end.

I think it was worth it because I met new people and I saw myself in places in which I could never imagine myself.

I was like literally on the river and I knew that I could drown any minute, but I survived.

So it was a lot of fun.

We have a little similar in that way.

So I've just kind of started reading your book.

First off, I want to let you know, I don't read books to learn.

So I was like, I'm going to read some of Malala's.

I was hooked.

Malala, you got some good stuff.

And your book is coming out in October.

But one thing that you and I are similar in is that I also, when I went to college, I didn't have a lot of friends in high school.

I, to me, my friends were whoever I was on a sports team with.

And that's kind of where I got my respect.

I was respected in high school for being such a good athlete, but I never had like strong friends.

And I was always jonesing for that.

Like, I always wanted to find a friend.

And so

when I went to college, it was again like, okay, I can kind of be whoever I want to be.

And I'm going to try and start fresh.

And so friends have always been something I've

jonesed for.

Like, I just, it wasn't, and it wasn't until later that I found my, you know, best friend, Nicole, till after college.

But I think the value of female friendships, and if you can speak on it, it's just, it's kind of shaped me into who I am as well.

I had only one friend at school, and I was hoping that maybe I'll get true friends at college.

And I am so grateful to say right now that I have so many friends, so many friends.

And in college, I knew that I had to change.

I had to approach people.

I had to be the first one to say hi.

And I'm so grateful for that.

I think it, you do feel a bit weird.

And I thought, you know, I'm a bit creepy if I'm approaching everybody.

But it was truly worth it because I found the most amazing people from my subject group, from my year group, from my college, from other colleges, from different parts of the world.

And they are just incredible people.

We can talk about anything.

We can talk about a silly topic.

We can talk about a serious topic.

We can talk about world politics we can talk about how we want to use our platform our role to help change the world and then sometimes we just talk about astrology and what do we think about this boy and what do we think about this profile on the dating app and i am i become their advisor and it could be a conversation about anything and and everything but they helped me grow they helped me uh be that old self of mine which i was missing in pakistan i was a very chatty person.

I had a lot of friends and I didn't know if I could ever be that old self of mine.

I can now say that I feel that I was in a better place because I met so many incredible, smart, funny people who are still with me.

They're on this journey with me and I can reach out to them anytime about anything and we can talk for hours and hours.

That's it though.

About finding friends now, it truly, it's a it's a work though.

It's work to get friends because I think we kind of sometimes can be so flimsy with it.

We're like, oh, we should get coffee sometime.

Yeah, let's take coffee sometimes.

But then we don't set a date.

Like when I want to be friends with someone, I have to be like, okay, we're going to get coffee at this date at this time.

I'll see you there.

Because I don't know if it's with social media or with you can meet so many people.

It can be hard to really connect on that deeper level.

And it takes work,

like you putting the work in for that.

I think nothing is harder than bringing your friends together for breakfast coffee lunch anything you want to plan i have arranged many events and gone to many countries around the world we can put a trip together for to tanzania or nigeria in a few weeks but i cannot bring all of my friends together and i also sometimes i tell them that like let's be there at 1 p.m even though i have booked a place for 1 30 and they still manage to show up late and I'm still there before everybody.

It still happens.

And I'm like,

how can you be an hour late?

I try every tactic and it does not work.

But, you know.

You got to love them.

I love my friends.

Yeah.

What I loved is when you came to the game, I think everyone was like, oh my gosh, Malala's here.

Malala's here.

And they put this idea of who you are in their heads.

And then you were there just like, just to watch rugby and hang out with the girls.

My sisters were there.

My agent was there and my agent's friends.

And you just wanted to hang out with the girls and watch some rugby.

I think that this kind of

preconceived notion of who you are follows you everywhere.

Guys, Malal is just a girl.

She wants to chill.

She wants to hang.

She just wants to chat as a girl would.

And I feel like sometimes I, you know, this idea of like being a role model, I guess, follows you everywhere as well with whatever you do and say.

Yes, it has been

there as part of my life for many, many years.

Sometimes even I forget that

I am

still a young woman, I'm still a girl, or you sort of forget that you are in your 20s.

But it's really my time with my friends that remind me of that.

And

I also,

you know,

and it took me a while to figure this out, but now I feel

I put less pressure on myself.

to

sort of feel less guilty for trying to

find myself and try to like

try to grow and try to make mistakes and try not to know all the answers.

And I think this is like, this is part of our life.

Somehow, when you become a public figure at a young age, people expect you to have figured it all out, to know all the answers.

And then you feel the pressure that...

you should know it.

And if you don't, then somehow you are not doing your job and you feel like this, you know, imposter syndrome.

So

it took me a while to overcome that.

And

I knew like, you know, there's just no other way.

I have to be myself.

I have to be myself and I will learn along the way.

One thing, I don't think you're running the Malala Fun Instagram, but we've been loving the way that they comment on girls' posts.

Girls will do something funny, like say, oh, I'm skipping school today, and Malala Fun will comment like, boo.

We just love that.

That's how you connect with people, though, just with humor.

And even like, it's it's something so funny and trivial, but just adding something lighthearted to it, I think also still gets your message out there.

Yeah, no, I have asked my staff at Malala Fund, I said, if you see a girl not doing her homework, you better call her out.

No, I'm just kidding.

I think it's been really fascinating for me to see how I have a following among parents, teachers, among you know, women who are in their in their 30s, who are

at that point in their life where they're deciding or starting their career.

And then I also have a following among very little girls, school girls and school students.

And it's just fascinating for me when I see comments from kids or even when I meet kids who have like no idea that.

that I'm like real or I'm alive.

They thought

like happened like 50 years ago or something.

And that's why the school teacher asked them to do a project on my story.

So

so yeah, you know, I've been making these TikTok and I've been making these Instagram reels to sort of raise awareness that, you know, I'm alive.

And

yeah.

That one was really funny.

Making sure, what was it, Gen Z notes?

I'm still live in the comments.

People are like, wait a second.

Hilarious.

What?

Hilarious.

Yeah.

It's just a great way to just also like continue to put that message out there because social media can be so powerful.

And that's where everyone's on.

That's how I've built my brand.

Cause I'm like, okay, everyone I want to target, the young girls who I want to get into sport, to get into rugby, are scrolling their phones.

Just put a video out there.

And also, the messages like never stop.

For me, it's a lot about body positivity and stuff like that.

And I'll post one,

but it can never be just like, all right, it's solved.

We did it.

I have to continuously post because it's just a continuous flood of information.

One post for me about, you know, your body's capable, your body's strong, it's beautiful.

And then the next post is, it's be smaller, be skinnier, whatever it is.

So it's like a, it's a never-ending thing.

And for the rest of your life as well, it's going to be kind of a never-ending getting your message out there.

Social media is a very powerful platform.

And I love how you are using it to raise awareness and promote body positivity.

I love the way you do your work.

And,

you know, when I follow your account and come across your content, my dream is to have the same biceps and triceps as you.

So

that I

there you go.

You get back in that rowing boat and you will.

You start rowing again and you will, Malala.

Yes, yes.

And I want to lift heavier weights.

And yeah, we'll get there.

We'll get there.

And I think it's important for us to promote self-confidence among girls because social media can be

very dangerous at the same time, the way it puts pressure on young people.

So

it's a tool and it's up to us how we use it.

And I think we have the power, we have the capacity, a lot of us have the following and we need to ensure that we are promoting the right message among young people so that they realize that no matter where they come from or how they look and how tall or short they are or like it's just like all of these things do not matter.

It's all about what they decide to do for themselves to make a difference and

that's what matters matters in the end.

Now, from what I've heard, you met your husband through sport.

Sport really brings us together.

I personally am looking for that as well.

Valala, if you can find me a husband through sport, it's been tough.

How did that happen?

Please don't leave out any details.

I need to take notes and figure it out for myself.

He still plays cricket.

Okay, here's the mystery part.

So, my husband comes from sports.

He

is actually not really

a sports person because I was under the assumption that, oh, he works at cricket, so maybe he can play cricket.

To this day, it's been seven years.

I have not seen him play cricket because he just, he will not.

He's under so much pressure.

And when I ask him, he says,

you know, now we're married.

There's no point.

Like,

he says,

yeah.

So.

Anyway,

we will eventually find out if he can actually play cricket well or not.

All I can say is that, you know, when you meet the right person, you know.

And it's for me, it was respect, it was love, it was kindness.

And I found all of that in Asar.

But he's also funny and entertaining.

And he looks after me.

So I said, wow, like he is.

the right person.

And we're both friends.

Like we still sort of joke about it that, you know, like, oh, we are married, but, you know, we're actually friends and i love love languages i love knowing what people's love languages are what's your love language do you do you have a s one or do you have many so my love language is acts of service i think uh i

i i i am not a person who so much believes in like words of affirmation i appreciate them when i receive them but for me it's the acts that speak louder um and i think then for my husband it's it's anything he can be happy with anything whatever acts words affection whatever you give him but what is yours what is okay what is

mine

so we need we need the boys to know we need we need them to know so what is your love language okay guys

um listen carefully everyone listen up please everyone uh be quiet this is gonna be cliff uh i think my love language is quality time

i just love spending time together And that's how my family kind of does it as well.

Just us, my sisters and I on the back porch, just together.

My friend and I, even if it's like just scrolling on your phone together, I love that.

I'm definitely not like an acts of service person.

I, my mom is.

My mom wants to cook for everyone.

She wants to do the little things for people.

I also love, I kind of words of affirmation at times.

I think that I don't know if it's still the young girl growing, you know, young girl inside inside of me who feels sometimes insecure at moments, who wants just a little bit of, you know, all of that.

It's kind of changing, I think, though, as I get older as well.

But I don't know.

I think it's different ways with different people.

And it's so fun to also learn what somebody else's is.

Cause if

his is acts of service, well, all right.

I got to start clocking in.

I got to start doing what maybe isn't natural for me.

But I also, I haven't really been in a relationship before to even kind of learn learn those things.

And that's something that, you know,

as you found with Astros, like learning so much from them and how much it changes over the years, it's something I haven't experienced yet.

And I really want to.

I want to like

get deeper and learn somebody.

And I mean, I don't know if you've it, maybe my fame, but I haven't really been on many dates in this past year.

So I think once I, once I take a little break, I'm going to see if I can really pull some in.

I'm going to head to some cricket games,

see if you two can help me out and we'll go from there.

Yes, for sure.

And one thing I have noticed is that when two people are considering partnership or living together, they sometimes ask each other questions or trying to judge each other as if they are the husband or as if they are the wife or the spouse.

And I personally felt that I was trying to get all of those answers from Asar that

what would you be like in the husband role?

How would you behave how would you act what roles and responsibilities are you expecting from me in the house some of the questions sounded really silly but I felt I had to ask them because of my my upbringing and how I saw how women were losing more when they were deciding to get married and for me it was always about a compromise I had seen stories of child marriage and how girls just work were

were losing so much from their education and work and other things.

So I was concerned for the right reasons and I felt weird asking him all the questions, but I think it was worth it.

But one thing which I realized in the process was that we expect all of these answers from each other while we have never been exposed to that role.

If he asked me a question about how I would be as a wife, my honest answer would be, I don't know, because I have never been a wife.

And

that changed my perspective because then I was more focused on thinking of him as a friend.

Do I have a quality time with him?

Do I enjoy my time with him?

How do we feel when we talk?

How do we feel when we don't talk and are just on our phones?

Or do we like planning new things?

I would have never tried this many sports in my life.

It was him because of his company.

I could enjoy pickleball.

I could go to a cricket game.

I could play golf.

I could do all of these things.

And he also got exposed to my work as well and he was enjoying it as well.

And the more quality time you guys have the more you enjoy each other's company you know that you can be together for the rest of your of you you know that you can be together for the rest of your lives

and you also realize that you are learning along the way so when we got married i still felt weird i said like what does it mean are things gonna change the next day and they don't because you are still the same people and one thing that truly fascinates me is how you love each other more and more day by day.

I thought that wasn't true because that's what we are told.

But if you are meant for each other, you are going to love each other even more than you used to.

And nearly four years, and we, Astra, and I are more in love than before.

I love it.

I need to stop.

Okay.

Awesome.

You're in love, Malala.

We get it.

Some of us over here.

You know what?

I'm going to.

I don't want to take Esther Perel's roles, right?

Like,

I don't want to be the...

Anyway, anyway, hands up.

I bet Oscar is really good at cricket.

I bet he's secretly amazing at it, and he just wants to be chill.

He's like, no, no, no.

I bet he's really good at it.

I agree.

I think it's been seven years since he's been hiding this talent.

And I'm sure he's taking lessons every day.

So

we should see it.

He's secretly just been going to the courts.

No, no, no.

Just going on a walk.

He's been just, you know, bowling all day long.

Yes.

Yes.

The other day on our sister call, I couldn't listen to Dre because I was so distracted by how stunning her bedroom was looking straight out of a magazine chute.

Shout out to Wayfair.

The second I saw the striped sage green duvet on the Wayfair site, I knew that was missing from my room and I had to get it.

Dre, it's so perfect that I just added the classic blue cornflower stripe duvet to my cart.

I love how timeless and classic the stripes are.

It will match perfectly with the Ebern Designs Terra accent lamp that I just bought.

I'm away at Rugby Road Camp right now.

so I've just been taking a look and I cannot wait to get all the Wayfair stuff to outfit my apartment when I get home.

Wayfair has a huge selection of everything-from bedroom decor and pillows to bed frames and dressers.

So, if you're feeling homesick and need a throw blanket to bring you back to cozy East Coast summer nights, Wayfair has your back.

Whether you're in a major city like Liver Dre or in a tiny town like me, Wayfair has free and easy delivery, even on the big stuff.

Sadly, summer is coming to an end, but giving your space a seasonal refresh is just around the corner.

Get organized, refreshed, and back to routine for way less.

Head to Wayfair.com right now to shop all things home.

That's w-a-y-f-a-i-r.com.

Wayfair, every style, every home.

If you're like me, you probably have a million tabs open from researching all the hottest new restaurants.

Next thing you know, you're down a rabbit hole of brunch and dinner menus.

To stay organized and up to date, you need wireless that can keep up.

Visible is wireless that lets you live in the know, so you can follow a rabbit hole as long as you want, wherever it takes you.

I need to be able to read my cowboy romances anywhere.

And with Visible, you get unlimited data and hotspot.

So I can read anytime, anywhere, and look up reviews so I can pick the best ones.

Visible is the ultimate wireless hack.

I love knowing I'll always be connected on the go.

And it's powered by Verizon.

Visible runs on Verizon's 5G network.

So you know, you get great coverage.

Imagine being on a rooftop wanting to look up the next spot in town to go.

Your friends are waiting for you to choose a spot and your phone is still loading.

With Visible, you have a reliable connection you can trust.

Level up your wireless with the new Visible Plus Pro plan.

It's premium wireless without the premium cost.

Visible gives you access to 4K streaming.

Visible is an all-digital wireless service, so you can literally just use the phone you have, then activate and manage your plan all in the app on your phone or online.

Terms apply.

See visible.com for planned features and network management details.

Ready for wireless that lets you live in the know?

Make the switch at visible.com.

One-line wireless starting at $25 a month.

For our best features, get the new Visible Plus Pro plan for $45 a month.

Visible, live in the know.

Malala, tell me about some things in pop culture.

Are you a big music girl?

Ajana just loves listening to all music.

Who are you listening to now?

Anything that gets you hyped up to do a speech?

Well, I do, you know, I do rugby.

I like to listen to Shania Twain, man.

I feel like a woman.

What gets you ready to go?

I love listening to any of the later songs.

I follow these big artists from Taylor Swift to Selena Gomez.

And

I'm like waiting for everybody's next album.

I mean, Rihanna and Beyoncé.

Yeah.

And I, and, you know, I like different music at different times.

If I'm in the gym and I decide to run for one hour, then I do like songs that give me all of that energy to sort of, you know, like who run the world girls kind of songs so that I keep running.

And

but I'm also a big fan of Kawali music.

That is a huge part of the

of the history and culture of India and Pakistan, like the whole subcontinent.

There's so much about

connecting with yourself and connecting with God.

So I love Kawali music, Sufi music.

And

yeah, and then I'm like, I'm listening to music in different languages, in Hindi, in Urdu, in Pashto, in English.

And I think that's the beauty of music.

Like it can be from any culture, any country, in any language, and it can

help you feel your emotions and it can help you connect to the story it can help you connect to another

person

so so i really enjoy music my sister ajan is always one who just like gets us in on all the coolest artists and i also am the same i pretty much listen to what everybody else is listening to If you like, if I'm not, I'm not cool like that.

If, if everybody else likes it, if it's on today's top hits, I'll be listening to it.

If it's just, it's clear that it's great songs.

You are on TikTok.

Are you loving a weird trend right now?

I love trends like you look happier.

To be honest, you know, I think everybody's TikTok algorithm is different.

So when I open it,

I just get cooking videos how to make, you know,

a cake or like this pastry and like this sort of protein high something something.

Like there's a protein high version of everything.

And I can't cook.

And somehow I get those videos on my algorithm and i and i love watching them and i know i could never i could never ever cook any of that

a trend of yours that i liked was um

malal is going to show you her pen collection and you better be cool about it um you had a lot of pens there big pen girl

yeah i just i just showed you guys a few because

I did not want to be accused of, you know, imagine

all hotels, anything you can think of, suddenly come out and they're like,

we know who it was.

So that's why I said I'll share with you.

I love collecting pens and hotel keys, the card keys.

I don't know.

I have like these strange things, collections with me.

They sort of like remind me of.

all the places I have been to.

And to be honest, like a pen collection works really well for that.

And

I I just love pens.

I like trying a new pen.

Do you journal?

Like, I bullet journal, and my sisters and I bullet journal.

So we'll get like a even a piece of paper or something from somewhere and we put it in our journals, and you can kind of remember.

It's kind of the same thing, I guess.

So do you guys share the journal?

Like, can your sisters read your journal?

No, no, no.

Secret journals.

No, I talk about them.

We each have our own.

And so, like, but when we're together, we all find like a that's a nice sticker.

And then we all get the same sticker and pretty much put it in.

Okay.

Yes, I do journal.

I

have actual like diaries, journals, and I also use notes.

I love notes because it's a lot easier.

Yeah.

And I just sometimes like I'm journaling every day.

And then sometimes I take a month off because I have been so busy and I get no time to write down anything.

And then I'm trying to remember.

So I have like a very long entry in my journal where I have written, I try to write about everything that happened for as long as I can remember.

And I find it really helpful because it helps me

just bring together everything that's been happening because work can be quite overwhelming.

And just like in July this month, I was at so many different places from

being at the GQ.

Then I went to Tanzania to visit Malala Fund's projects.

Then I have been here in London for these few weeks focusing on

the work of recess or sports fund.

We have an incredible team that were were all here together in England and,

you know, we were working on next steps from

focusing on fundraising to then also looking at investment opportunities and just, you know, looking at how women's sports is actually thriving.

And it's a great time for us to be investing in it.

And then now I'm focusing on the book because I have to do the audiobook recording.

So the whole next week, I will be doing the audiobook recording.

And I know I should take care of my voice and speak softly and yeah

of course well thank you for thank you for using your voice here today was writing the book almost cathartic for you i wrote i'm writing my own memoir gonna come out later later but it's been actually fun to go through and to write everything down and and kind of relive things again and and get it out there how has it been to write it two years ago when i thought about sharing more about my life I had no idea how it will

work,

what would that final draft look like, but I just could not wait for that moment.

And the process in itself can be a bit challenging because there's just so much you can share and you can talk about and you want to explore.

You want to go through every page of your journal.

You want to talk to all of your friends.

You want to talk to all of your family members.

You want to like recall these events.

It's truly fascinating that you remember it very differently than other people.

And I found that just such an exciting experience that

I remember things in a different way.

And I think that's cool because that way we can share about it.

And then someone else can reflect on that story and tell us their perspective as well.

And when the final draft was ready and I read through it, I knew that this is exactly how I wanted the book to look like.

It is a coming-of-age story.

It is the continuation of my story since my last book, which was, you know, just about the girl who was shot by the Taliban and stood up for her rights.

But there was, that was it.

She was only 15 years old.

She had not made friends.

She did not know what she wanted to do in her life.

So in this book, Finding My Way, I am sharing about the journey after that.

how I was still a girl in school and I was lonely and how I went to college, became a reckless college student, and made friends, and found love, and had to come to a decision about if I want to get married or not, and how to set a new path of my activism and

focus even more on protecting the right to education for girls because of how this right is still taken from girls, including girls in Afghanistan right now who are banned from learning by the Taliban, and they have not been in school for the past nearly four years.

So,

this book has helped me

to bring everything together.

So as much as I am excited that this book is complete and I'm going to be sharing this story with other people, they will be able to benefit from it.

And I hope that it helps somebody who is feeling lonely or is struggling with mental health, who feels a bit lost, that it will help them find their way.

But this book has also been a healing process for me.

I have learned through it so much.

It has helped bring everything together.

There were so many topics that I did not want to go back to.

I did not want to read my journals.

I was like, I want to leave everything in the past.

But when you bring it together as a story in a book, it is very powerful because you realize how

when you were feeling so low and you were in the toughest moments of your life, you actually have overcome them.

You have grown out of them.

And now, when I read all of that and I find myself in a different place, I'm just so grateful.

And

I'm saying well done to myself

for not giving up.

So I hope that it can help so many other people out there.

And

I hope people enjoy reading it.

I've tried to make this book a bit funny

as well.

So I hope they enjoy the humor of it as well.

And yeah, I hope it's a fun read.

I've read the first part of it.

I honestly didn't want to read too much because I wanted wanted to just hear more from you.

But I can't wait for it to come out to read in person.

But what I did notice, even just from the beginning, was how much it feels like you're genuinely talking to us, which I like.

I don't, those books, when it's by somebody, I'm like, okay, it just feels very like...

I want your own voice in it.

I want to feel like this is what you were actually thinking in your head.

And I think you do that so well.

Just some of the little...

quotes you have in there it's the little experiences and even how you know sometimes described some of your friends i'm like okay this is this is malala just on the written page yes and I wanted my book to be that way because

it's not a biography.

It's not about

writing a history book where you just want to put your life on record.

Like that was not the point for me.

I wanted to express exactly what I went through openly with people because I know that we all go through similar emotions.

And when I was in college and I was going through difficult times or when I was deciding to get get married and I had a billion questions on my mind, I wish I could read somebody else's story who were in that place who could have helped me.

And

it's the stories of other people, their experiences and learnings that can help us

understand that

it will be okay.

It will be fine.

And I hope that this book is a small contribution to that.

I'm very excited.

Any tips for me as I write my own memoir book?

I'm so excited for your memoir.

I can't wait to read it.

Just

keep writing and

it's it's a process.

The first draft is very different from the last draft.

But you sort of know, you know it's heading in the right direction.

And there will be a point where you have to decide that it's finished.

Otherwise, like you can keep editing it forever.

So you have to say, okay, like done.

This is what I want to share for now.

And I think people will absolutely love it.

I want to know more about Ilona and

the incredible

journey that she has had and how she's become a role model to girls and women and men and boys, everybody.

And I want to know.

I want to understand.

I want to know everything about your story.

Malala, I'm blushing.

All right.

I'll send you my advanced copy.

It probably won't be until 2028.

I've been writing it since 2022,

but I just keep adding a little bit more.

And so, kind of what my sisters were saying, just keep writing.

A lot of it might not go in the book, but just keep putting it down.

And then, like you said, the first draft is not going to be like the last, but I'm just writing.

Sometimes, when I get mad at a date I went on, I put a chapter in it and I'm like, this probably won't end up in the end, but it's a fun chapter to put in.

Yes, keep writing.

It will,

you will, you will be so grateful for it that you wrote it.

You can even use it in the second edition.

You could have a memoir too you will you will need it

perfect oh i can't wait uh with that malala i'm gonna bring my sisters back in and we're gonna uh have a fun segment with you hi darlings did you miss us yes oh my gosh good because yeah olivia couldn't stop talking about you guys she was like yeah i have to bring my sisters yes they're so fun uh we i love them but you all hung out at the harlequins game together so you guys are all kind of besties anyway Yeah.

Yeah, I mean, yes.

We were freezing together on Valentine's Day.

It was freezing cold.

I don't get it.

Like, my toes were actually frozen.

I'm not kidding.

Actually.

And then, like, actually.

I think about them on the field, like, hitting the hard, cold ground.

I'm like, God, not.

Thank you, Alona, for your service.

Like, for the entertainment.

And those little girls were waiting for Elona for like two hours.

And I love that.

I love that.

When little girls want to meet Elona, that was my favorite part of the whole game.

I love them too.

And I, as you saw, I try to make a point to go around to see, say hi to them.

Here they are.

They've made the journey out here.

The ones that are wearing their little lipstick and they're so excited to see me.

I just feel like that's something also special about women's sports is how much we want to connect with the fans.

And I want to go see them and they're so excited.

So I'll do it.

Rain or shine.

I broke my nose.

I was still out there seeing my fans.

I'm for the girls and I will see them.

Today we have a fun segment we would love to do with you called try hard with Malala.

So, and as you know, in rugby, to score a point, it's called a try.

So we're going to hit you with some rapid-fire questions that you have to try and answer quickly.

Are you ready?

I like the try part, so I will try.

Yes, go.

Perfect.

All right.

You have...

Two younger brothers.

Who is the most competitive among the three of you?

All of them are very competitive.

I think the middle one.

Among your siblings, were you the peacekeeper or the rebel?

Peacekeeper, but I think my brothers will disagree.

I think I'm the peacekeeper too, Malala.

Turns out I'm not.

I really thought that, and they were like, no.

See, this is the funny part.

So my two younger brothers, they would get into a quarrel.

They would be fighting.

I would intervene, try to mediate, stop their fight.

And then they would turn against me.

I was like, I am here to resolve the issue.

And then they would unite, become like one and just call me out.

And I was like, excuse me, I'm just here for my, you know, playing my part.

But anyway.

You try to do a good thing.

What has been your favorite age so far?

Oh,

28.

I think I love the age that I am right now.

And if you had asked me a year later, I would have said 27.

I like getting older for now.

That's what I'll say.

I like getting older because I am, I don't want myself to be stuck in the past, to be thinking so much about the old days.

I know that they were fun and good and there was a lot of excitement to it.

But it's

when you learn and when you grow as a person, you become a better person for yourself and for everybody around you.

I love that.

So I have learned so much in the past many, many years that I love this age of mine.

Malala, I don't want to like brag, but when this episode comes out, it's my birthday and I'm turning 29.

We're the same age right now.

Amazing.

And also, I agree with that.

One of my favorite quotes is:

your greatest accomplishment is your next one.

I think that there's so much more I want to do, and everyone's like, What's the best thing?

I'm like, I'm so excited for what's going to happen.

I'm excited for my 30s.

I've told my sisters, I hear your 30s are great, you know, yourself more.

And I'm letting you know they're cool so far.

Do you have a drink of choice?

I love English breakfast tea, black tea.

I could have that anytime.

These days, I'm trying Americano and like, you know, black coffee because maybe, you know, I am getting older.

As we said, I am 28, so I do need more caffeine.

But other than that, any drink would work.

Yeah.

But tea, tea is my favorite.

We're big Earl Gray girls.

Like, we just always have that at our house.

We're always drinking Earl Gray or mint tea.

Alone and I tried breakfast tea when we were living in Bristol for those three months.

It didn't agree with us.

I don't know.

Maybe it's the high tannins in it, but we opted for their old gray, which some of our new British friends called me an old lady for, but I'm not holding it against them.

Yeah, we can give it a try.

I would love to invite you to my place and maybe you will reconsider your

proper breakfast tea.

So I heard you guys talking about music.

That is my first love always.

Do you have a song of the summer a song of the summer i think i'll just say hattie styles watermelon sugar okay yeah that's a good one that is a good one very summer-esque what is your girl dinner i love dark chocolate i can have dark chocolate anytime i love like mixed nuts i love it with tea i love hummus just you know with tips anything it could be bread and i love bread i love bread i can have any bread bread and butter.

Oh, like the list goes on.

Anything that I can just, oh, and this is the summertime.

So I love mangoes right now because it's the season.

Yeah.

Pakistani mangoes are like the sweetest, delicious mangoes.

I love them.

That's a perfect girl dinner.

You killed it.

Perfect girl dinner.

Good job.

Favorite movie?

Movie you can watch over and over again.

Okay.

So I love comedy and I can watch any fun movies.

I really love The Dictator.

I don't know if you guys have seen it, but The Dictator is one of those fun movies that I love.

I love animation.

I can like watch all the Madagascar movies.

I can watch Shrek.

I can watch Minions.

I can watch any of those movies you pick.

I can watch them anytime.

Do you have any pet peeves?

I have many pet peeves.

I think we can talk about it forever.

And here's the thing.

Like when somebody else does it, then it bothers me.

But if I do it myself, then I'm less bothered.

But it's like, you know, leaving your clothes and like laundry on the floor.

Or,

you know, for me, it's always like, oh, I'll come back and figure it out or like sort it out, but you never have enough time.

Sort of like when people throw their socks on the floor.

I don't know.

Like all of these things, all of these things.

I like things to be tidy, as tidy as they can be.

Yeah.

that's good answer all right let's head on into the book nook so

in the book nook we chat about books we're all big readers we love fantasy books and we saw on your story i think i even commented on it i saw ostra's niece gifted you a copy of akatar yeah thoughts on it how's it going you know i noticed that people have very strong feelings about akatar and i was getting so many dms and comments asking me about what i think and i have been very careful i said i'll share when i finish the book.

That's what I say because I'm like, what if I like what if people call me out or, you know, so I'm like, I don't want to get into a whole controversial thing.

So when I finish, I'll let everybody know.

We are waiting.

Yes, I know, I know.

I feel like, okay, I'll be ready.

Do you love fantasy books?

What do you mostly read?

Like, are you a fantasy reader?

Are you, you know, fiction, non-fiction?

What are you reading?

And do you have a book that you've really loved?

My favorite books are usually nonfiction.

I love memoirs.

I love people's personal stories.

But I'm also, you know, I can read non-fiction.

I can read fiction as well.

I can read a fantasy book.

I have brought a few books here with me.

So

My Beautiful Sisters is by Khalida Popal.

She was the captain of the soccer team for women in Afghanistan.

And her story is really powerful.

Like when you, if you read My Beautiful Sisters, you will learn all about

the incredible work she has done, how she took women's soccer to Afghanistan.

And then she shares more about what has happened in the past four years.

When the Taliban took over, the Afghan women's team had to bury their uniform and literally hide their trophies or medals, any record that they had ever played sports, because suddenly sports became a crime for women.

And the Taliban since then have issued these restrictions on women and girls, banning them from education, work, any public and political participation.

And sports.

Sports should be the right for any girl, any woman to have.

But in Afghanistan, that's not the reality.

Women's sports teams are banned from cricket, from soccer, and from the Olympics.

And

all of these players are in exile right now in Australia, in Portugal, in different parts of the world.

But they're advocating.

They're advocating, calling out FIFA, ICC, Olympics, all of these international bodies that they need to stand together with the Afghan female athletes and they need to find ways for them to play because helping Afghan women play right now is a form of resistance for them against the Taliban.

And people need to side with the Afghan women and

and really challenge what the Taliban are doing.

Afghan women and human rights activists call it a gender apartheid because it is a systematic oppression when half of the population by law are banned from all of their rights from education to work and they're punished if they dare to disobey any of those laws.

So we are hoping that this becomes recognized as an international crime.

This is called a gender apartheid and people like the Taliban, perpetrators like them are held accountable and that we give more support to Afghan women, support their work, fund their work, support the different education initiatives that they are leading.

Balala Fund supports their work, including their campaign for gender apartheid and online learning for girls, and that we help the female athletes as well.

So we have a lot that we can do.

So, yeah, this is her book, Khalida Popal.

I love her story.

Frankenstein, I was reading recently.

I'm sure everybody knows Frankenstein.

And then the final one is, this is heavy, is this one.

It's actually a birthdays book, the secret language of birthdays.

And it is heavy, but it's like two pages on every

date.

And this is like

gold.

Ilona and Adriana and Olivia, I'll send you a screenshot or like, I'll send you a photo of your dates.

And just tell me if you agree or disagree.

But this book is like epic.

Of course, not everybody has to take my recommendations for reading.

So if you guys want to ignore the birthdays one, you can, but I'll definitely recommend these other ones for you guys to read.

Adding

to my to be read pile, all of those for sure, but also the birthday ones.

I love that.

I was literally going to go, that's okay.

Just read me my pages right now.

I'm so curious.

So

I'll definitely take that photo.

Yeah.

Yes.

I'm going to read Beautiful Sisters.

That's amazing.

That is so cool.

And, you know, once once you have sisters in the title, it works out for us over here.

Huh?

One of the reasons why I was looking at starting Reese, a women's sports fund, was because I met so many

women from different parts of the world who want to get the opportunity to play, but they do not have that right.

They do not have those opportunities because of different reasons.

And the story of Afghan women is one of them because right now their teams are banned from playing.

And

I support them, I advocate with them.

So I do believe that Resource will become that platform that will create more opportunities for women and girls to play from any part of the world.

When we create these leagues, when we create these tournaments, when we invest in these athletes, they could be from any part of the world and it can help us

ensure that women and girls have more equal opportunities.

So yeah, that's sort of my hope.

Well, that is amazing.

And I'm coming over to England soon for the World Cup.

I'll get you to a game again.

And hopefully, you know, it'll be a little warmer, hopefully.

But again, thank you for coming on, Malala, for what you're doing for, you know, the world in general, for women's sports.

It's so, you know, dear to my heart.

I'm so excited to read your book fully.

I'm going to get a hard copy and I'm going to really dive into it.

You're amazing.

You are a girl's girl.

And we're so honored you decided to join us here in the House of Marr.

Yeah, thank you so much.

And all of you are incredible.

I love your, you know, the sisters' friendship.

And Elona, thank you for all that you do.

Truly, you are inspiration.

We have been doing the sports work for the past two and a half years.

You get mentioned in every meeting.

You are already changing things.

You may not know this, but

the conversation is different in rooms now because of you.

So thank you for what you do.

And I hope that we will be inspiring many more girls and women women to believe in themselves, to do what they love.

And we will have many more Ilonas

in every sport.

And yes, they will shine, they will thrive.

Oh, yeah, I'm blushing again.

Thank you so much.

And make sure to check out Malala's new book, Finding My Way Out this October.

Thanks so much for coming over to the House of Mar, a wave original.

Be sure to watch and subscribe on YouTube and listen wherever you get your podcasts.

Plus, follow the show on social media at House of Marr for clips and behind-the-scenes content.

Bye.

Bye-bye.

Bye, love you.