Khajistan Leads the Program at Pioneer Works’ Press Play 2025 Book Fair in Brooklyn

Khajistan Leads the Program at Pioneer Works’ Press Play 2025 Book Fair in Brooklyn

by Khajistan Cultural Desk

Khajistan Press is heading to Brooklyn this December for Press Play 2025 at Pioneer Works


The sixth-edition of Press Play, a weekend-long fair of books, records, art, ephemera, talks and workshops, returns Saturday–Sunday, December 13–14, 2025, from 12–7 PM at Pioneer Works in Red Hook, Brooklyn. 

We are stoked to be the featured exhibitor this year presenting a program including:

  • A special salon spotlighting our gay-mid-2000s blog anthology Karachi, After Midnight Vol. 1

  • The launch of Smut of the Middle World, Volume 1: Pakistan, a curated collection of banned erotic magazines and underground print culture from 1960s–2000s Pakistan — translated, contextualised, and resurrected for present-day audiences. 

We’re also releasing the official limited-edition Khajistan x Press Play tote bag, inspired by 1970s call-girl ads — a visual nod to the defiant print aesthetics forged under decades of censorship and dictatorship in Pakistan. 

Press Play 2025 is curated by Micaela Durand (Associate Director of Publishing at Pioneer Works) and brings together over 130 artists, writers, musicians, publishers, and exhibitors who defy easy classification. 

Beyond our own table, the fair includes — among many other features — a lounge designed by Zabu (inspired by traditional Japanese zabuton), a special-edition show paper by Gunk, a limited-edition scarf from Secret Riso Club x Press Play, and the debut of Broadcast Issue 03.

Ticket info: Saturday’s entry costs $10; there is also a $30 “Limited Edition Ticket Bundle” that includes two-day access, the Khajistan x Press Play bag, and a copy of Broadcast Issue 03 (while supplies last). Sunday, December 14 is free and open to the public, with registration. 

Please mark your calendars for December 13–14. We’ll soon share our table number, signing times, and a first glimpse inside Smut of the Middle World

Watch our social channels for updates. See you at Press Play.

 

Leave a comment

Please note, comments must be approved before they are published

Madrassa

  1. Read more: Khajistan Press Cancels Karachi Reading of Karachi After Midnight, Vol. 1
    Khajistan Press Cancels Karachi Reading of Karachi After Midnight, Vol. 1

    Khajistan Press Cancels Karachi Reading of Karachi After Midnight, Vol. 1

    Karachi, Pakistan — Khajistan Press announces the cancellation of its scheduled reading of Karachi After Midnight, Vol. 1, which was set to take pl...
    Read more
  2. Read more: Khajistan Bazaar Comes to Bayt AlMamzar, Dubai
    Khajistan Bazaar Comes to Bayt AlMamzar, Dubai

    Khajistan Bazaar Comes to Bayt AlMamzar, Dubai

    Dubai, UAE — Khajistan Madrasa presents Khajistan Bazaar, a one-day public gathering at Bayt AlMamzar on Sunday, January 25, from 3 to 7pm. The baz...
    Read more
  3. Read more: They Are Killing the Horse (1979): A Film They Tried to Bury
    They Are Killing the Horse (1979): A Film They Tried to Bury

    They Are Killing the Horse (1979): A Film They Tried to Bury

    Title: They Are Killing the Horse (also circulated under the title Noori)Year: 1979Country: PakistanFormat: Black-and-white short film / docudramaD...
    Read more
  4. Read more: Khajistan Manifesto
    Khajistan Manifesto

    Khajistan Manifesto

    TLDR: Born in 9th-century Herat, Afghanistan, today Khajistan lives on as an archive founded by Saad Khan.   Khajistan preserves art, words, ...
    Read more

Preservation Projects

  1. Read more: Khajistan Seeking Preservation and Digitization Partners for Historic Erotic Film Posters
    Khajistan Seeking Preservation and Digitization Partners for Historic Erotic Film Posters

    Khajistan Seeking Preservation and Digitization Partners for Historic Erotic Film Posters

    New York, NY — Khajistan is launching a preservation and digitization initiative for its collection of 200 original Turkish erotic film posters, on...
    Read more
  2. Read more: Khajistan Seeks Preservation Partner for 202 U.S. Propaganda Leaflets Dropped on Japan
    Khajistan Seeks Preservation Partner for 202 U.S. Propaganda Leaflets Dropped on Japan

    Khajistan Seeks Preservation Partner for 202 U.S. Propaganda Leaflets Dropped on Japan

    New York, NY — Khajistan has completed the full digitization of 202 American war propaganda leaflets dropped on Japan in 1944 and 1945....
    Read more
  3. Read more: Urgent Call to Digitize Khajistan’s 1,000+ Urdu Children’s Books
    Urgent Call to Digitize Khajistan’s 1,000+ Urdu Children’s Books

    Urgent Call to Digitize Khajistan’s 1,000+ Urdu Children’s Books

    New York, NY — Khajistan has assembled a large and vulnerable collection of Urdu children’s books and magazines that rarely survive in libraries. T...
    Read more
  4. Read more: Emergency Preservation of Pakistan’s Early 2000s Sexploitation Cinema
    Emergency Preservation of Pakistan’s Early 2000s Sexploitation Cinema

    Emergency Preservation of Pakistan’s Early 2000s Sexploitation Cinema

    Khajistan has acquired a vulnerable set of original 35mm reels containing five films from Pakistan’s early 2000s sexploitation cinema.  Made during...
    Read more