Her début collection of poems Small Hands won the Forward Prize for best first collection in 2015. She worked for a decade as a lawyer for the human rights charity Liberty UK, acting on many high-profile cases, including that of the ‘right-to-die’ campaigner, Diane Pretty. Arshi began writing poetry in 2008 and studied Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia. While she was studying Arshi won first prize in the inaugural Magma poetry competition for her poem 'Hummingbird'. Arshi also won the Troubadour International Competition in 2013 for her poem 'Bad Day in the Office'. Arshi was selected for the ‘Complete Works’, a national development programme funded by Arts Council England.