Kabul Falling Brazen

Lucy Woods, Managing Producer of Kabul Falling – Project Brazen’s series following the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan – interviews an Afghan family torn apart by the chaos.

Hakim Shakib was separated from his wife Paimana, and his young daughters Neyo and Seto, in July 2021. In this bonus interview, the family charts the anxiety of their separation as Kabul fell to the Taliban – trapping Hakim, an employee at Afghanistan’s Ministry of Interior Affairs – in the city. The Shakibs describe the tireless work that went into reuniting them, the challenges of resettlement, and their fears and hopes for Afghanistan’s future.

Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts. 

For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds.

Neha Wadekar, Associate Producer of Kabul Falling, speaks with two Afghan women on their ongoing work in media – and the extreme dangers journalists face as they continue to report under the Taliban’s regime.

In this exclusive audio interview, Rukshana Media founder Zahra Joya talks about setting up the women-focused publication, and shares her own story of escaping Afghanistan following the Taliban takeover. Shirin Yusofi, a Kabul-based journalist at Rukshana Media, shares her motivation for continuing to report from Kabul despite the risks – including terrifying close calls with Taliban enforcers.

Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts. 

For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds.

Neha Wadekar, Associate Producer of Kabul Falling, speaks with Rahman, a former acting general in the Afghan army, and Carly Sparkes, operations manager at Azadi Charity, about what it’s like to leave behind the only life you’ve ever known and resettle in a foreign country to rebuild anew.

In this exclusive audio interview, Rahman talks about his high-profile military job, his last days fighting on the frontlines as the Taliban closed in, and his months living in hiding with his young children as they waited for assistance to escape. Carly Sparkes shares how the UK-based Azadi Charity helped Rahman’s family travel overland to a neighboring country before eventually settling into their new lives as refugees in Brazil.

Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts. 

For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds.

Project Brazen is excited to announce Arson Fahim, the composer of Kabul Falling’s main theme music, has been nominated for an Ambie award for Best Original Score and Music Supervision.

Arson Fahim is a pianist, composer, and conductor from Afghanistan, In 2021, only two weeks before the Taliban took control and once again banned music, Arson arrived in the US and started his studies at the Longy school of music, where he was awarded a scholarship.

The Podcast Academy will announce the winners at its third annual Awards for Excellence in Audio, a.k.a. The Ambies, on 7 March 2023.

Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts. 

For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds.

Reporter Neha Wadekar interviews Mohsin Mohi Ud Din, leader of Me We International, an organisation that uses art to help refugees around the world heal from trauma, reframe their narratives, and author their futures.

To follow Me We International and learn more about their work, please visit www.meweintl.org. You can find them online at @meweinternational on Instagram and @meweintl on Twitter.

Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts. 

For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds.

On August 15, 2021, the Taliban regained control of Kabul, nearly 20 years after the US Army and Coalition Forces  had cast them out of power. To many Afghans and observers watching from abroad, the fall of Kabul came as a shock. The news thrust thousands of Afghans into a terrifying journey to flee the country, leaving their old lives behind. In this episode, you’ll hear from Ogai Wardak, a young journalist at a women’s TV station, and Abdul, a former CIA interpreter and father of four, describing how they began planning their escape as Taliban fighters patrolled the streets.

For a transcript of this episode and additional material, visit: https://www.kabulfalling.com

Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts.

For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds.