Amateur Anthropologists
This is the storytelling arm of Mehman's Table.
We are not academics. We are listeners. We sit across from people — in cafes, in homes, over tea — and we ask them to tell us their story. These are voices from Istanbul and beyond: immigrants, refugees, locals, and wanderers — people whose lives reveal something true about what it means to be human in a complicated world.
Every person carries a world within them. This is where we write it down.
Buzkashi — Afghanistan's Game of Courage
Buzkashi is one of the oldest and most celebrated traditional sports in Afghanistan. More than a competition, it is a living symbol of courage, skill, and solidarity — woven into the cultural fabric of a people across centuries.
Abdullah’s Story - Life in Turkey
Abdullah arrived in Turkey in 2020 with a plan. He had funding, a place in a university program, and enough savings to give himself a real shot. The first step was learning Turkish. He tried doing it online. It wasn't worth it, he said. So he studied on his own for seven months until he passed the language exam and got into a university in Nevşehir.
Things were moving. Then the Taliban took over.
Abdullah’s Story - Life in Afghanistan
When most people think about people from Afghanistan living in other countries, their first thought is usually that they are a refugee. And while that is true for many, it is not the whole story. To understand Abdullah, you have to start at the beginning.
Abdullah grew up during the Afghan Civil War. He was five or six years old when he first started working...