Trials and tribulations are not new to Afghan filmmaker Roya Sadat. But not even the harsh laws of the Taliban suffocated her passion for films or silenced her voice. One of the first woman filmmakers to emerge on the scene after the fall of the Taliban in Afghanistan, Roya is calling the shots as director, producer and writer. If Three Dots , her first feature film on the far-reaching effects of the drug trade, helped her connect with the international film fraternity, her television serials, short films and documentaries have become a powerful means of expression for the women and youth in her country. As one of the founders and president of the International Women’s Film Festival in Afghanistan, Roya often speaks up on behalf of the women in her country. Born and brought up in the historic city of Herat, where Khaled Hosseini narrated his novel A Thousand Splendid Suns , Roya has become a role model for women in a country where women are often not seen or heard.
As one of the jury members of the Netpac award for Malayalam films screened in the Malayalam Cinema Today section of the International Film Festival of Kerala, the Afghan filmmaker is on her first trip to Kerala, although she has been to Delhi and Mumbai. MetroPlus caught up with her early in the day before she stepped out to watch movies. Putting on her scarf before posing for photographs, she says: “Then I can post the article on Facebook.” Dressed smartly in trousers and shirt with a stylish Herat shawl draped around her shoulders, Roya is a picture of elegance. Her inner strength is evident as she speaks about her vision for her country’s future and its women.
Edited excerpts from an interview with the director.
What is your reaction to the horrific incident in Peshwar, Pakistan, in which militants killed hundreds of school students?
Very sad and disturbing. Education and employment are the need of the hour in Afghanistan, especially, in the regions bordering Afghanistan and Pakistan. So when schools are targeted, it is the future that is going to be adversely affected. It is a pity that women and children are always the victims of any war or unrest.
How did you become a filmmaker?
Before the Taliban rule, I used to write scripts and direct plays in my school. I wrote my first play when I was all of nine. But once the Taliban came, girls could not attend school. My mother and aunt were determined that our education should not suffer and so we were taught at home.
Six of us sisters, two cousins, my parents and my aunt stayed together. We could not step out unless my father accompanied us. No woman could, unless she was accompanied by her father, brother or husband. In desperation, my mother cut off my younger sister’s hair, dressed her in boy’s clothes and sent her out with us to do the shopping and run errands. I could not believe that this was actually happening to us.
As soon as the Taliban left, I took up my studies and graduated in law and political science from Herat University. But my heart was in filmmaking. My uncle in Iran sent me DVDs and books on cinema and script writing. That is how my first feature film was made.
That was Three Dots…
Yes. The script was written much before. The film is about a poor woman who is forced into the drug trade for survival. The three dots signify an ellipsis, which means it does not signify a full stop, the end of a sentence or story. My story goes on…there is more.
The film fetched me many awards and got noticed. Although I did not have any technical knowledge, I managed to shoot that film in the Shindand region in Herat. After a few days of the shoot, we had to leave the region.
You have also been credited with the first television series in your country.
I began Roya Film House with my sister Alka Sadat in 2003. Since then, I have made more than 30 films, including documentaries, short films and features. Many of these movies are on the status of women and their problems. In 2006, I won a scholarship to study at the Asian Film Academy in South Korea.
In 2007, I directed the first soap opera, ( Secrets of This House ), for Tolo TV. Now, I am working on Bahasht Khamosh (Silent Paradise). My husband, Aziz Deildaar, has scripted it and he is also acting in it. It is about five youngsters, two women and three men. As with all my works, the focus is on the women. As a woman, I naturally empathise with them. I worry about their future.
What are your hopes for women in Afghanistan?
Illiteracy and lack of space for women are hampering us. Some of us got together and made a charter of rights for women. It addresses six areas that are important for women in the country – education, women in senior positions in the judiciary, health care, especially in rural areas, implementation of the law that prevents child marriage, and representation in the political and economic structures. Our president Ashraf Ghani has declared his support for our charter and I am optimistic that things will begin to look up for us.
In fact, last year we had organised a women’s festival in Herat that had many women screening their films.
Your impression of the Malayalam films you saw?
Many of the narrative styles had a similarity but the movies were rooted in the lives and dreams of the people.
So will we see you again for the next IFFK?
Yes, hopefully with an Afghan package of films.
