‘The Perfect Voice’ celebrates strong, trailblazers in this series with stories of women who brave battles every day that serve as an inspiration to the next generation. We have daughters fulfilling their parent’s dreams, victims of domestic abuse rebuilding their lives and professionals dealing with the famous ‘mom guilt’.
Part - 3
Black-Belt Granny
Shaheen Akhtar, Mumbai
At first glance, Mumbai’s Shaheen Akhtar appears to be an ordinary, genteel, ‘hijab’ clad woman, out on her normal chores. A close encounter reveals otherwise –Akhtar, 53, is a four-time National Karate Champion, with a steely resolve and packs in a mean set of ‘zuki-uchi’ punches-strikes to knock anyone, down and out.
Just like the Japanese martial discipline, she has climbed her way up with strategic surgical strikes. At present, she is the first-ever woman Referee Commission Member of Asian Karate Federation, and was the only Indian who judged the recent World Karate Federation’s Karate 1 Youth League held in February 2025 in the UAE. Earlier, at the 19th Hangzhou Asian Games 2022 in China, she worked as the first and only woman ‘Officiating Referee’, raising eyebrows globally, as people yearned to learn more about her.
“I was immersed in karate from the age of 13, since my days at the Christ Church School, Byculla. There I learnt the first of my kicks, stances, punches, blocks and chops. I later completed my B.Com. from HR College, Churchgate and continued to learn Karate. I loved it enough to make it a full-fledged career as a ‘Karateka’ professional,” Akhtar told The Perfect Voice.
Four decades hence, she went kicking-punching her way up, from the Youth League to Premier League, South Asian Championship to Asian Championships, Commonwealth Championship to World Championship, picking up medals, honours and laurels in her discipline for the country, both as a participant and as a referee.
Marriage and family responsibilities didn’t dampen her passion for continued her passion for karate and she continued to serve as the International Technical Official or Officiating Referee and recently as the first woman Referee Commission Member of Asian Karate Federation (AKF), held last month.
In the UAE, she served as referee for all Karate events for men and women where top youth champions took part from different countries, and termed it as “a very crucial and challenging responsibility”, as also in the Hangzhou games.
Explaining her duties, Akhtar says that ‘handling pressure’ is the most critical part of her assignment, when billions of pairs of eyes watch her every move and decisions. “In such global events, participants from all countries perform their best to vie for the top medals. There are top game experts from all the participating countries, sports officials, judges, VIPs, viewers in the stadium and millions more glued to their television sets at home. One erroneous decision on my part can wreak havoc right inside the stadium,” she says.
Inside the ring, she describes how medal-hungry champions from different nations lunge fiercely at each other ‘for the kill’, and the experience becomes a sort of trial even for Akhtar, who is a respected figure world over in karate. “I have to exercise control over these ferocious rivals in the ring, command them to obey and adhere to the rules of the games. If they falter, then there are levels of warnings, penalties, etc. to rein them in… And all under the watchful eyes of many.”
There are exceptional instances when the moderator ‘Kansa’ (match supervisor) may intervene and very rarely the ‘third umpire’ or the video review supervisor could step, but mainly while appealing for points is resorted to.
In her current role, the former four-time national champion, a six-time Maharashtra champion, an 8th Degree Black-Belt holder, Akhtar is ranked as the highest and most qualified female referee for World Karate Federation and Asian Karate Federation in India and in South Asia. Presently, she is passing on her talent and baton to the gen-next through SAMA (Shaheen’s Academy of Martial Arts), affiliated to Karate India Organisation, where she is striving to groom future state, national and international level champions and referees. Her children, daughter Sana Hava and son Ayaan Ansari are also National Champions in karate, and hopes even the next-gen would be inspired by them. “I do hope my long journey can inspire the younger generations to take up Karate as a serious and viable career option."
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