Murder of Mystic

The short documentary, Murder of Mystic, directed and produced by Khalid Hasan Khan is at the forefront of documentary wins these days, having won an Eco-Selection Award at the Soto Aqua Film Festival in Venice, just last year. The narrative of this short addresses the struggles of three fishermen from three fishing villages of Karachi: Kaka Pir, Ibrahim Hyderi and Rehri Goth.

It highlights how they struggle to safeguard mangrove forests of the Indus Delta, deal with timber mafia, land mafia and urban corporations looking to make a profit by various means, disregarding environmental cost. The documentary also features a mangrove song composed by Abu Wada, a fisherman from Rehri Goth.

Filmmaker Khalid Hasan Khan explained his reason for this documentary’s title in the following words: “Mangrove is a plant that saves and serves the planet! It is self-seeding vegetation that doesn’t need cultivation; its self-sacrificing nature is for the benefit of mankind.” The documentary, however, did not represent one point of view but also includes the standpoint of Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum, Karachi Port Trust, Forest Department of Sindh, WWF and IUCN. In addition to winning in Venice (among other platforms), the documentary has intrigued Alfredo Quarto, executive director of Mangrove Action Project, United States. Alex Smith, a leading broadcaster has covered this documentary on radio, notes a press statement. This is not the first award for Murder of Mystic, which has also won the Best Foreign Short Film Award at Istanbul Film Festival, Turkey; Outstanding Achievement Award at the World Film Carnival in Singapore and the Best Editing Award from Argenteuil International Film Festival in France.

Shehzad Hameed’s eco-friendly films

Documentary filmmaker Shehzad Hameed Ahmad has won so many awards for his various work that it is hard to keep track of them. Shehzad has made environmental films about coral bleaching of Australia's Great Barrier Reef to the illegal deforestation of the Amazon Rainforest in Brazil.

The filmmaker took home a Bronze Global Award for his documentary film, Brazil's Amazonian Battle in the Environment and Ecology category. "To film this documentary, Shehzad went on a dangerous journey deep inside Brazil's Amazon Rainforest to film with the Munduruku Tribe whose protected lands were being infiltrated by armed gold miners. Deforestation in Brazil's Amazons increased 30 per cent since Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro came to power," notes a press statement. Among his many, many awards, Shehzad Hameed has 3 Global Media Awards in Germany, Green Image Award in Japan, Silver Award at the 2020 Handle Climate Change Film Festival in China, Mediacorp News Award of the Year 2015 in Singapore, Pakistan's Agahi Journalist of the Year 2016, Tagore Film Festival 2020 and 2021, Sweden Film Award 2021, Canada International Film Festival 2020 and Gender Equality Impact Change-maker (Male) by United Women Singapore 2020. In fact, Shehzad has been winning back-to-back with more than one documentary based on the environment.

Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy’s Climate Change
Animated Series

Pakistan's two-time Oscar winning filmmaker and journalist, Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy is also serious about the issue of the environment and to that end, she launched Climate Change Animated Series. Helmed by SOC Films, the series was launched as a public awareness campaign in Urdu to make sure it educates as many Pakistani people as possible, particularly the youth. The fifth instalment in the series was an exploration of the neglected area of Manghopir and how polluted it had become. “There will come a time when our children will not benefit from Karachi’s biodiversity; we have to find a way to preserve our mangroves and the animals that inhabit it,” Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy noted in a press statement post release. Conceptualized, produced and directed by SOC Films, the animated series was ultimately about creating awareness about our environment in a manner that would appeal to adults and children alike.

Natari by Jawad Sharif Films

From the award-winning director of Indus Blues comes non-fictional film called Natari, which means ‘anchor’ in Sindhi. “It tells the story of the potential conflict caused by climate migration, the continued use of the illegalised Bullho Net by the powerful, and its impact on local fisher communities and families such as that of Ayoub Sehto in the endangered Indus Delta region.”

Available on YouTube, Natari tells the story of Ayoub Sehto and his stranded son as they struggle against the tide of a sinking Indus Delta and great many injustices they and others like them suffer.

Given how terrific Indus Blues was, we believe Natari is just as arresting albeit showcasing inhabitants looking for a better life in the backdrop of climate migration and how it is an issue that is as neglected as the environment.