Farida was born in Bangladesh and she has been working in the area of violence against women for over 17 years. In 1995 Farida and seven other women started a discussion about specialist cultural support service for Asian, Middle Eastern and African women. This was the beginning of Shakti New Zealand.

In 2018 Farida continued to have a governance role with Shakti but her focus had changed to combating institutionalised patriarchal dominance and discrimination against women. She worked with NGOs in New Zealand and overseas to change
legislation, prevent domestic violence and create equal employment opportunities for girls and women.

Driven by her own desire for independence and freedom, her struggle became the catalyst for helping women and the beginning of her work as a women’s right activist.​