Chalta Phirta Documentary Festival 2.0
Goes Virtual...
Documentary Association of Pakistan:
Documentary Association of Pakistan (DAP) is an initiative to promote the art of documentary films in Pakistan, to strengthen the community of documentary filmmakers in Pakistan, and to provide mentorship and training to documentary filmmakers working in Pakistan.
Chalta Phirta Documentary Festival 2.0:
With 9 films spread out over 4 months i.e. from August 21 – November 24 2020, for free, globally, on DAP's YouTube Channel, followed by interactive Q&A’s with the directors and characters, and moderated by DAP team members.
Jawad Sharif's magnificently shot documentary Indus Blues — The Forgotten Music of Pakistan, also won Best Documentary Feature and Best Cinematography at the Jaipur International Film Festival last year.
See Also : Surkhro A Documentary by Pakistan Navy
Format:
The Chalta Phirta online edition opened with:
- Berlin-based Bani Abidi's The Lost Procession (on the trauma of displacement) on August 22,2020.
- Indus Blues on September 5,2020. Indus Blues explores the uncertain future of the rich musical heritage of Pakistan, which has so much in common with India's Hindustani classical and folk music, showcasing instruments like the sarangi, saroz, sarinda, banjo, chardha and alghoza. There was also a live Q&A after, with Jawad Sharif and Zohaib Hassan, one of the last sarangi players in Pakistan.
- Tazeen Bari's Vote for X (September 19), on trans-woman Nayyab Ali who contested in Pakistan's general election in 2018;
- Mahera Omar's The Rebel Optimist (October 3), on Perween Rahman, Pakistani architect and urban planner who dedicated her life to the poor, and was shot dead;
- Danyal Rasheed's Mela Chiraghan (October 17) on the festival commemorating 16th century Punjabi Sufi saint-poet Shah Hussain.
- In Fahad Naveed's Puff Puff Pak (October 31), the filmmaker tries to quit smoking in New York and returns to Karachi, where his mother is battling cancer.
- Gulzar Nayani's No More BackSeaters (October 31) is on women bikers in Karachi.
- In Shehrezad Maher's This Shaking Keeps Me Steady (November 14), a prompt to two ambulance drivers in Karachi to reconstruct recurring dreams, becomes an exploration of memory and fiction.
- Umar Riaz's Some Lover to Some Beloved (November 29), weaves together a recitation of Faiz Ahmed Faiz's poetry by veteran actor Zia Mohyeddin (Lawrence of Arabia), with an exploration of Mohyeddin's life.
All documentaries will be screened live at 6 pm — and free of cost — on YouTube . You can join on your phones, laptops and tablets, and make sure to not miss anything by staying connected!