Saarc film festival to commence from May 30 | Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF)

Pakistan Press Foundation

Saarc film festival to commence from May 30

ISLAMABAD (May 29 2008): The Asian Study Group and the Pakistan National Council of the Arts will jointly organise a Saarc film festival in Islamabad from May 30 to June 2 where as many as 13 films from different countries would be screened.

The festival will begin on with the screening of three Indian films: ‘Sky Below: India and Pakistan,’ Six yards to democracy.’ and ‘Ayodhia GathaIndia.’ Two more Indian films ‘Remembrance of Things Past’ and Rabba Hun Ki Karye’ would be screened on June1. However, as per the schedule, only one Pakistani film ‘Miseducation of Pakistan’, will be screened in the event.

Bangladesh is representing with two films namely ‘Every Good Marriage Begins with tears,’ and ‘Iron Eaters.’ The Afghanistan film ‘Motherland Afghanistan’ will be screened on Saturday. Sri Lanka will participate in the film festival with its solo presentation ‘From Dust’ to be screened on Saturday. Moreover, Nepal has sent three films, ‘Life with slate,’ ‘Forgive, Forgive Not,’ and ‘Living Goddess.’

There will be free entry offered to the audience subject to the production of National Identity cards. Pakistan’s ‘Miseducation of Pakistan directed by ‘Syed Ali Nasir in 2005 has story of schools without teachers, buildings, electricity or drinking water. Most of the public schools of Pakistan lack these basic facilities. So the film argues that graduates finishing the studies in such an environment, are not considered even literate as per international standard.

‘The Sky Below’, the winner of the best debut film, tries to display a contemporary picture of the Indian-Pakistan feeling on the frontiers six decades after the independence. It talks of commonalties as well as possibilities of reconciliation. The film also recalls the woes of Indo-Pak on the backdrop of the 1947 partition saga.

The story of ‘Six Yards to freedom’ evolves around an incident happened in Luckhnow, Indian, where politicians promised free ‘saris’ to women that led to a stampede killing 22 women. The film portrays the sordid side of the Indian democracy.

Another Indian film is based on Babri Masjid episode and the fact that Ayodhya lost touch with its residents after the demolition of the mosque. The joint England-Bangladeshi production ‘Every good marriage begins with tears’ is a story of two rebellious sisters, born and raised in London, who are forced to return to Bangladesh for arranged marriages. The film explores conflicts between immigrants in western countries and tries to dispel the myth about treatment of Muslim women.

The Sri Lanka film ‘From Dust’ is about the devastating Tsunami, which hit the island in 2004. Here one can experience how the survivors were being prevented from rebuilding their homes along the coastline while developers eye the rich coastline.

Life with Slate’, is the tale of a mountain village near Kathmandu, in Nepal and that exhibits the harsh life of slate miners who filters slate from rocks. How the women-workers carry heavy loads to distant markets.

Sedika Mojadidi’s film ‘Motherland Afghanistan’ is about a woman who has specialised her father’s noble profession of medicine, keeping in view the harsh fact that two out of seven children die during childbirth in Afghanistan. The film takes two different trips, one to a maternity ward in Kabul and the other to a rural hospital in Ghazni. In the juxtaposition of these two situations, the story highlights the courage of Afghani women.
Source: Business Recorder
Date:5/29/2008