Since the introduction of television to Pakistan in 1964, Urdu drama serials have enjoyed widespread popularity. This essay explores the ways in which the zanaana, or women's sphere, was negotiated by these serials, particularly during the years of General Zia ul-Haq's regime and its immediate aftermath in the 1980s and 1990s. Legislation aimed at policing women's visibility and participation in the public sphere was one of the key elements of his regime's 'Islamisation' project that continues to exert widespread political, social and cultural influence. However, television's domestic address and viewing context intensifies and complicates the relationship between the private and public; the very fault-line that causes patriarchal Islamism so much anxiety in relation to women. This essay focuses on the production, consumption and textuality of Urdu drama serials in the 1980s and 1990s. These narratives deal primarily with women's lives, are written mostly by women and, invariably, are viewed by a large female audience. They contribute to the development of women's culture in both private and public spaces. The essay develops the concept of zanaana to examine how these serials open up discursive sites where women resist, transgress and negotiate their prescribed limits in an Islamist patriarchal society.

Background: The World Health Organization (WHO) has called for global approaches to palliative care development. Yet it is questionable whether one-size-fits-all solutions can accommodate international disparities in palliative care need. More flexible research methods are called for in order to understand diverse priorities at local levels. This is especially imperative for Indigenous populations and other groups underrepresented in the palliative care evidence-base. Digital storytelling (DST) offers the potential to be one such method. Digital stories are short first-person videos that tell a story of great significance to the creator. The method has already found a place within public health research and has been described as a useful, emergent method for community-based participatory research. Methods: The aim of this study was to explore Māori participants' views on DST's usefulness, from an Indigenous perspective, as a research method within the discipline of palliative care. The digital storytelling method was adapted to include Māori cultural protocols. Data capturing participant experience of the study were collected using participant observation and anonymous questionnaires. Eight participants, seven women and one man, took part. Field notes and questionnaire data were analysed using critical thematic analysis. Results: Two main themes were identified during analyses: 1) issues that facilitated digital storytelling's usefulness as a research method for Māori reporting on end of life caregiving; and 2) issues that hindered this process. All subthemes identified: recruitment, the pōwhiri process, (Māori formal welcome of visitors) and technology, related to both main themes and are presented in this way. Conclusion:Digital storytelling is an emerging method useful for exploring Indigenous palliative care issues. In line with a Health Promoting Palliative Care approach that centres research in communities, it helps meet the need for diverse approaches to involve underrepresented groups.

Digital storytelling can be a useful method for Māori to express their experiences providing end of life caregiving.

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