Moni Mohsin (born 1963) is a

British-Pakistani British Pakistanis ( ur, (Bratānia men maqīm pākstānī); also known as Pakistani British people or Pakistani Britons) are citizens or residents of the United Kingdom whose ancestral roots lie in Pakistan. This includes people born in ...

writer based in London, United Kingdom. She wrote a long running satirical column ' The Diary of a Social Butterfly' for

The Friday Times ''The Friday Times'' (TFT) is a Pakistani English-language independent newsweekly, based in Lahore, Pakistan. History and profile ''The Friday Times'' was first published in May 1989. TFT's founder-editor Najam Sethi and publisher Jugnu Mohsin, ...

and a book with the same name.

Early life and career

Mohsin grew up in

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city ...

, Pakistan and describes herself as being from a family of "educated, westernised people". When General

Zia ul-Haq General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq HI, GCSJ, ร.ม.ภ, (Urdu: ; 12 August 1924 – 17 August 1988) was a Pakistani four-star general and politician who became the sixth President of Pakistan following a coup and declaration of martial law i ...

came to power in a coup in 1977, her family began to feel less comfortable in the new, religious Pakistan, where political repression against nonconformists became routine, but she chose to remain in Lahore. Mohsin left Pakistan at age 16 to study at a boarding school in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, and later attended

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...

, where she studied anthropology and archaeology. After General Zia's death in 1988, she moved more decisively into the public sphere, working for the country's first independent magazine " Friday Times", where she rose to the ranks of features editor. Her sister,

Jugnu Mohsin Syeda Maimanat Mohsin (born 1959), commonly known as Jugnu Mohsin, is a Pakistani politician and journalist. She was an independent member of the Provincial Assembly of Punjab until 31 March 2022 and then joined PML(N) on 1 April 2022. Previo ...

, is the publisher of "

", an independent Pakistani newsweekly. She is aunt of Ali Sethi and

Mira Sethi Mira Sethi (born January 12, 1987) is a Pakistani actress and writer. The daughter of journalists Najam Sethi and Jugnu Mohsin, she attended Lahore Grammar School and Cheltenham Ladies' College then graduated from Wellesley College in 2010; she ...

. Mohsin is often invited in the panel of literary festivals. She was also included among the panel of judges for The

Zeenat Haroon Rashid Zeenat Haroon Rashid (Urdu: زینت ہارون راشد; January 21, 1928 – April 8, 2017) was a Pakistani women's rights activist and founding member of the Women's National Guard. Early life and family Born in 1928, she was daughter of Abdu ...

Writing Prize for Women.

Publications

Mohsin is author of two novels: "The End of Innocence" (2006) and "Tender Hooks" aka "Duty Free" (2011), and two books of collected columns: " The Diary of a Social Butterfly (2008)" and The Return of the Butterfly (2014). Her writings have also appeared in "

The Times of India ''The Times of India'', also known by its abbreviation ''TOI'', is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by The Times Group. It is the third-largest newspaper in India by circulation and largest ...

", "

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

", " Prospect", "

The Nation ''The Nation'' is an American liberal biweekly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper t ...

1843 (magazine) ''1843'' (formerly ''Intelligent Life'') is a digital magazine published by ''The Economist'' which features longform narrative journalism as well as shorter reads and columns. Named after the year ''The Economist'' was founded, ''1843'' offers ...

(

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Eco ...

Boston Review ''Boston Review'' is an American quarterly political and literary magazine. It publishes political, social, and historical analysis, literary and cultural criticism, book reviews, fiction, and poetry, both online and in print. Its signature form ...

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

Herald (Pakistan) ''The Herald'' was a monthly magazine of politics and current affairs published by the Dawn Media Group from 1970 to 2019 in Karachi, Pakistan. ''The Herald'' has been responsible for producing many large and breaking stories since it started. It ...

and other publications. Mohsin is working as a freelancer and writes about class, politics, culture, society and lifestyle.

References

External links

Moni Mohsin
Official website {{DEFAULTSORT:Mohsin, Moni 1963 births Living people Pakistani emigrants to the United Kingdom Writers from Lahore English-language writers from Pakistan Punjabi people Pakistani socialites Pakistani columnists Pakistani women columnists