Islamabad, Pakistan, Feb 6 (V7N) — Growing up in the rugged northern region of Pakistan, Anita Karim learned how to fight the hard way—by taking on her three older brothers in no-holds-barred battles at home. That tough upbringing set the foundation for a career in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), a grueling sport that blends Thai kickboxing, judo, and wrestling.

Today, Karim, 28, is Pakistan’s first internationally competing female MMA fighter—a title she had to fight for, both inside and outside the ring.

Competing in a male-dominated sport in a deeply conservative country was never going to be easy.

“The village where I come from, they support women fighters,” Karim told CNN. “But when I started MMA, they had no awareness of this sport.”

Early on, critics dismissed MMA as a “men’s game,” questioning whether a woman should even step into the cage. But support began at home.

“When she showed commitment and dedication, we knew she was going to make it,” said her brother Uloomi Karim, who is also her coach. “We knew she could take it, and we didn’t have any issues with her training with guys.”

Karim hails from Gilgit-Baltistan, a mountainous region in northern Pakistan where women’s sports are more accepted than in much of the country.

In 2024, two sisters from the region—Maliha and Maneesha Ali—won gold and bronze medals in an international taekwondo competition in Indonesia. Now, Gilgit-Baltistan is producing a new generation of female fighters, following in Karim’s footsteps.

Inside the cage, Karim’s persona is anything but shy. Her signature move—the armlock submission—has earned her the nickname “The Arm Collector.”

In 2022, a podium photo showed two of her defeated opponents wearing slings after falling victim to her brutal submissions.

“They could have tapped to stop the fight, but they didn’t,” Karim said. “So I went through with it.”

Her journey hasn’t been without obstacles. On her professional debut in 2018, a referee refused to let her fight unless she raised her leggings above her knees—an experience that led her to move to Thailand to train at an elite MMA academy.

Karim now makes a living through competition prizes, coaching, and modest government grants. She trains with both men and women at her gym in Islamabad, where she’s inspiring a new generation of female fighters.

“Anita is a role model for us,” said Bushra Ahmed, a young fighter training alongside her. “She’s paving the way.”

Beyond MMA, Karim is also using her skills for self-defense training, in a country where over 80% of women have experienced public harassment, according to United Nations statistics.

Recently, she had to put her skills to the test outside the ring.

“A man was harassing me in a market in Islamabad,” she recalled. “I hit him. He left with his face stained with blood.

END/SD/RH/