The citizens of Herat suffered the abuses of the Taliban for six years before their purported liberation by the United States-backed Northern Alliance in 2001. Anjuman was 21 and, as she was free to pursue an education, applied and was accepted to Herat University, where she matriculated in 2002 in the department of Farsi Literature and Languages. While earning her degree in literature, Anjuman published a book of poetry entitled “Gul-e-dodi” (“Flower of Smoke”) which proved popular in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iran.