In this narrative autoethnography, I narrate my experience as a Malawian woman navigating the complexities of undertaking Ph.D. research with decolonial ambitions. This narrative unfolds in three distinct acts, each examining different aspects of my effort to integrate decoloniality and Freirean (1970) participatory principles into my research. Act I establishes my positionality and confronts the dilemmas of decoloniality within the academy, highlighting the struggle to meet Western, academic expectations while adhering to decolonial ethics rooted in African traditions. This section critically explores the interplay of race, gender and, decoloniality, illustrating their collective influence on knowledge production in my work. Act II focuses on the decolonial methodological strategies I employed, emphasizing participatory techniques and an overall approach designed to amplify the voices of Malawian women and men, placing their narratives at the center of the research process. These strategies facilitated the co-creation of knowledge, grounded in the participants’ perspectives on gendered realities. Act III briefly explores how integrating Africana Womanism as a theoretical framework aided in challenging prevailing Western feminist theories and contributed to the research and my ambition to co-produce decolonial knowledge. This narrative autoethnography advocates for academia to embrace a multitude of epistemologies and methodologies, promoting a more inclusive and equitable scholarly environment.