Clad in baggy jeans, with bags slung over their shoulders and a variety of books in hand, a pack of them descended on the park for Karachi’s first Performative Male Competition. “‘Performative male’ is a relatively new term, but we’ve been calling them ‘pick-mes’ for a while now. Wali defined a performative male as one “that dresses for the female gaze”. He added that this also meant actual performative men can play to the fact it’s part of meme culture when they’re confronted. “It’s just good fun, a bit like a cosplay competition,” said Ayan, adding, “I am just a performative male for the day.”Events like the Performative Male Competition, which was born out of a social media trend, encourage a chronically online generation to interact outside of their phones and — literally — touch some grass.