Producers Jeremy Chua (Singapore) and Rajib Mohajan (Bangladesh) pull off a coup with this Bangladesh-Singapore-Qatar co-production
Illustration/Uday Mohite
Here are my Top 10 South Asian films of 2021. I’m excluding India here, as I will focus exclusively on India in my list next week. These films include fiction features, documentaries and shorts, and so, are not in order.
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1. Rehana Maryam Noor by Abdullah Mohammad Saad, Bangladesh: Stunning, demanding film. First Bangladeshi film in the Cannes Film Festival’s official selection—Un Certain Regard. Azmeri Haque Badhon is compelling as a medical college professor, whose obsession with justice in a #MeToo case, doesn’t end well. Producers Jeremy Chua (Singapore) and Rajib Mohajan (Bangladesh) pull off a coup with this Bangladesh-Singapore-Qatar co-production.
2. No Land’s Man by Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, Bangladesh: Farooki’s big international film, in English, starring Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Megan Mitchell (Australia), is produced by Shrihari Sathe (US/India), with music by AR Rahman (also Executive Producer), and shot by Alexey Kosorukov (Russia) and Sheikh Rajibul Islam. About a man who pays the price for defensively lying about his name, religion, family and identity. Was at the Busan and Cairo film festivals.
3. Payer Tolay Mati Nai, No Ground Beneath the Feet, by Mohammad Rabby Mridha, Bangladesh: About a desperately poor ambulance driver who is supporting two wives; the village wife gamely copes with the floods that climate change brings. Starring Mostofa Monwar, it was at the Busan Film Festival, and is produced by Abu Shahed Emon and team.
4. Alborada, The Dawning of the Day, by Asoka Handagama, Sri Lanka: Sobering revelations about Chilean poet Pablo Neruda, who was posted in British Ceylon as the consul in 1929. Recovering from a disturbing relationship, he soon sets upon a local, low-caste woman. Starring Luis J Romero and Rithika Kodithuwakku, the film was at the Tokyo Film Festival.
5. Mulaqat (Sandstorm) by Seemab Gul, Pakistan: This superb 20 min short film by the British-Pakistani director premiered at the Venice Film Festival’s Orizzonti, followed by the Sundance and AFI (LA) film festivals. Starring Parizae Fatima and Hamza Mushtaq, it is about a young woman whose online boyfriend threatens her after she shares a sensuous video of herself dancing. Produced by Abid Aziz Merchant and shot by Argentinian cinematographer Alberto Balázs.
6. Daagh Daagh Ujala (This Stained Dawn) by Anam Abbas, Pakistan: Karachi’s feminists boldly organise an Aurat March (woman’s march) to protest against Pakistan’s extreme right wing, despite the surveillance and threats of physical violence, hoping to spur a revolution. This 89 min documentary was at the Yamagata and Sheffield documentary film festivals. The Pakistani/Canadian Abbas also produced it—her debut feature docu as director. She’s also a cinematographer, activist and fronted the ultra-cool Maa Behn ka Danda from Garam Anday—just YouTube it.
7. Anyadin, Day After, by Kamar Ahmad Simon, Bangladesh: This hybrid documentary eavesdrops on the multiple stories of people travelling the Rocket, a century-old paddle ship that sails along the river to and from Dhaka. Produced by Sara Afreen and Simon, this Bangladesh-France-Norway co-production was at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA).
8. Asu by Sanjeewa Pushpakumara, Sri Lanka: Neelum is happily pregnant, until diagnosed with cancer. Once her baby is born, she approaches death. The film was at the Tokyo Film Festival. Third feature of Pushpakumara, a Berlinale Talent, who studied filmmaking in Korea, and whose Flying Fish and Burning Birds were at Rotterdam.
9. Bhai by Hamza Bangash, Pakistan: Two brothers drive to a restaurant for biryani. A commotion reveals that the younger one is autistic; the film is a reflection on inclusivity. This short by the Pakistani/Canadian Bangash was at the Toronto International Film Festival. Bangash made Dia (Locarno), 1978 (Locarno), and Stray Dogs Come Out At Night (London, Clermont Ferrand).
10. Why is the Sky Dark at Night? by Kelzang Dorjee, Bhutan: About a stoic young girl who can put up with chopping meat in a butcher’s shop in Thimphu, but not a layabout boyfriend. This 23m short was at the Busan film festival. His second short, A Song of Silence, was at Locarno.
I would like to add Kiran Shrestha’s Yet Another Winter, a Nepali short that was at Busan. A mother’s visit to a shaman to cure her deaf child, turns traumatic. A Berlinale Talent, this is Shrestha’s debut. This is not a watertight list, but rather to spark more interest and conversations around good South Asian cinema. Your suggestions are welcome.
Meenakshi Shedde is India and South Asia Delegate to the Berlin International Film Festival, National Award-winning critic, curator to festivals worldwide and journalist.
Reach her at meenakshi.shedde@mid-day.com
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