KATHMANDU Oct 31 (TNS): Five documentaries from Pakistan are among 63 non-fiction films to be screened in Film Southasia 2017, the eleventh edition of the premiere non-fiction film festival for the region, in Kathmandu, Nepal.
The Festival opens on November 2 with the theme ‘Documentary Bears Witness’.
The non-fiction films from Pakistan are ‘Among the Believers’ by Hemal Trivedi and Mohammed Ali Naqvi, ‘A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness’ by Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy, ‘Perween Rahman: The Rebel Optimist’ by Mahera Omar, ‘K2 and the Invisible Footmen’ by Iara Lee and ‘Lyari Notes’ by Maheen Zia and Miriam Chandy Menacherry, stated a press release from the event.
Among the Believers
Among the Believers, by Oscar and Emmy-winning editor Trivedi and Emmy-winning filmmaker Naqvi, has won global accolades around the world. It has been shown in more than 90 film festivals worldwide, where it has won more than 30 awards.
The film is about cleric Abdul Aziz Ghazi, a suspected Daesh supporter and Taliban ally who has a dream to impose a strict version of Shariah law in the state. A flashpoint in Aziz’s holy war took place in 2007, when the government leveled his flagship mosque to the ground, killing his mother, brother, only son and 150 students. With unprecedented access, Among the Believers follows Aziz on his very personal quest to create a religious utopia, during the bloodiest period in Pakistan’s modern history.
A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness
Chinoy’s A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness is an Oscar winner for best documentary (short subject) in 2016 and The News and Documentary Emmy Award winner, which follows a rare survivor of honour killing in Pakistan. More than 1,000 women are killed in the name of honour in Pakistan every year.
Perween Rahman: The Rebel Optimist
Perween Rahman: The Rebel Optimist is a documentary about social worker Perween Rahman, who dedicated her life for the poor of Pakistan, but was shot dead by armed assailants on her way home in March 2013. Her pioneering work in sanitation in the Karachi-based Orangi Pilot Project led her on a collision course with the various mafias in the city and ultimately caused her killing.
K2 and the Invisible Footmen
In K2 and the Invisible Footmen, director Lara Lee and team chronicle the lives of both Pakistani porters and Nepali Sherpas as they risk their lives while earning their living in the treacherous Karakoram range. The film also follows the first official all-Pakistani climbing team, made up of former porters, who successfully summited in 2014 in celebration of K2’s 60th anniversary. Amid breathtaking scenery, the film depicts the everyday sacrifices of porters and the courage of those indigenous climbers who choose to return to scale K2 in spite of past tragedies.
Lyari Notes
Lyari Notes is about rock star Hamza Jafri who teaches a group of girls to express themselves through music in Karachi’s most volatile district. He travels in an armed vehicle and is famous for his hard hitting political lyrics since the 1990s. Captured over three years, the documentary is the narrative of four young girls who attend Hamza’s music school and learn what it takes to express oneself despite the cycles of violence.
About FSA’17
FSA’17, now in its 20th year, will screen 63 documentaries over four days from November 2 to 5. Selected from over 300 submissions, the festival will showcase the best of non-fiction films on Southasia that address contemporary issues in compelling ways.
Of the 63 films, 45 are in the competitive section and will vie for five awards with a net cash prize worth USD 5,500. A jury comprising of Editor/Publisher Kunda Dixit of Nepal, filmmaker Farjad Nabi of Pakistan and senior journalist Rajashri Dasgupta of India will select the winners.
FSA takes place in Kathmandu every two years. The festival has chosen to employ ‘Southasia’ as one word in seeking to restore some of the historical unity of common living space.
