Isklamabad : Occasions of relaxation have been few and far in between during the tense seven months lockdowns in Islamabad. Documentary films did manage to recover some ground. PNCA Director General Dr. Fouzina Saeed took a personal interest in holding two competitions for upcoming filmmakers. Now Foundation Art Divvy and PNCA have joined hands in screening of films (again mostly documentaries, shorts, features, animation) at PNCA Open Theater every week. Films are being shown every Friday at PNCA Open Theater at 6 pm. To beat the late-October chill and bold concrete steps, bring your jackets and cushions.
Friday screenings on October 23 bring in films by Saim Sadiq Umair Riaz and Jawad Sharif. Their work away from escapism and box office glories, portray life and its realities. Produced in 2018 by Saim Sadiq, ‘Nice Talking to You,’ unspools strangers who get to know each other in silence. The film runs for 19 minutes during which we see reflections of life and cementing of relationships.
Umair Riaz work ‘Lover to Some Beloved’ brings in seven years of Faiz Ahmad Faiz and Zia Mohiuddin. This brings on screen the life and times of Faiz Ahmad Faiz and actor Zia Mohiuddin. The actor, in his own commanding voice, captures recitals of Faiz through exploring ups and downs of his own life and career. This then combines and brings in the best of both the worlds ,becoming a challenge the artists face today in the complexity of our time. Zia Mohiuddin's vocal cords lend the magic to words and expressions only Faiz could have done.
The third film Indus Blues’ from 2018, on the surface, is a musical in the real sense of the term. However, it goes beyond music with art and craft, which we are now losing (and a part of it has already been lost). Filmed all over Pakistan and stretching mileage beyond 1500 KM, it carries colors and shades with conflicts and crises of musicians from all over Pakistan. These artists and craftsmen desperately hold on to their about-to-be lost craft. Their life is shown with bare minimum existence. They made little in terms of material comforts, and now in old age, they carry absolutely nothing. This is a journey about the battle of survival along the Indus River. The best part of Indus Blues is not just the music and musicians. It brings in focus the glimpses of life from ordinary folks, women, children and their passion for life and their existence. The film covers mostly rural outdoors with dusty paths as well as green patches, filmed without glamour and gloss. But yes, this land, despite that, looks pretty and worth spending the rest of one's life here.
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