Dying Wind in Her Hair [Shorts Session 2]

Unable to rely on her cash-strapped family to further her education, Fatin, an ambitious Architecture Student seeks out a scholarship from a conservative Muslim Trust. When she discovers that the money comes with strings attached, her liberal values will be put to test.

Director

Shazia Iqbal has been working as a Production Designer for twelve years in the Indian Film & Advertising Industry. An Architecture graduate, she left a sheltered office job after being enticed by the idea of telling stories. She has studied film direction at MET film school, London. Bebaak is her debut short film. It won the Audience award at Indian Film festival of Los Angeles, Best Actor at ShortShorts FF&A, Tokyo, Best Short Narrative at the New York IFF and Second Best Short at the IDSFFK. She is the lead Production designer for India’s first original Netflix series, Sacred Games.

Producer

Anurag Kashyap is an Indian film director, producer and screenwriter. Kashyap is known as the stalwart of the new wave of Independent Indian Cinema. He made his directorial debut with yet unreleased Paanch. As a filmmaker, he is known for Black Friday, a controversial and award-winning Hindi film about the 1993 Mumbai bombings, followed by No Smoking, Dev D, Gulaal, That Girl in Yellow Boots, Mukkabaaz and Gangs of Wasseypur. As a screenwriter, he wrote the scripts for the Filmfare Award-winning Satya and the Academy Award- nominated Canadian film Water. His most recent project is India’s first original web series for Netflix, Sacred games. Kashyap has produced many critically acclaimed short and feature films including the hugely successful and well known, The lunchbox.

Ajay G. Rai’s thirst for cinema brought him to Mumbai. Based on sheer hard work, he soon became an independent line producer. With his collaboration with Anurag Kashyap, Ajay was associated with some fairly groundbreaking films – Dev D, Gulaal, and the more recently Gangs of Wasseypur. In 2011, Ajay set up Jar Pictures in partnership with Alan McAlex. The goal of the company is to position itself as a premium content provider for the global entertainment industry. From the critically acclaimed “Liar’s Dice” which premiered at the Sundance 2014 – ‘World Cinema Dramatic Competition’ playing numerous festivals across the globe and winning several international and National awards to the mainstream”Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana” the company’s filmography is swiftly building up with films of varied genres Liar’s Dice was also India’s official selection to 87th Oscars for Best Foreign Film Category. Killa (The Fort) which was produced by Jar Pictures, won the Crystal Bear at 64th Berlinale and also the 62nd National Award for Best Marathi Film.

Actor

Sarah Hashmi – Sarah is a theatre and film actor, has worked with renowned directors like Dibakar Banerjee (Bombay Talkies) and Zoya Akhtar (Dil Dhadakne do) from the Indian Film Industry. Her film, Bombay Talkies premiered at Cannes film festival 2013. She started acting on stage at the age of 6 and has not stopped since then. Bebaak is her debut as a lead actor.

Nawazuddin Siddiqui – Nawazuddin starred in four films playing at the Cannes Film Festival – Bombay Talkies, Monsoon Shootout, Manto and the critically acclaimed, hugely popular The Lunchbox. Siddiqui is often referred to as the poster boy for the new wave of Indian Cinema. Having begun his career in Sarfarosh in 1999, there has been no looking back for the actor since. He is credited with strong performances in films such as Talaash, Anurag Kashyap’s mega gangster epic Gangs Of Wasseypur, Aatma, Peepli Live, Chittagong and Black Friday amongst various others. A recipient of the Special Jury Award at the Indian National Film Awards for his role in Talaash, Siddiqui also won the Best Supporting Actor at the 7th Asian Film Awards held in Hong Kong and the GQ Man of the Year award for breakthrough talent for his work done in 2012.

Vipin Sharma – Vipin initially trained at the National School of Drama in New Delhi, India, and at the Canadian Film Centre in Toronto, Vipin Sharma made a come back to Acting after almost over a decade of hiatus from it. His first film Taare Zameen Par became India’s official entry to Oscars in 2007 and it also got him a nomination for the Best Supporting Actor for the Star Screen Awards and Cineblitz. Since then Vipin has been part of some of the best films made in Hindi cinema. Gangs Of Wasseypur, Shahid, Raman Raghav and Daasdev are some of the films he acted in that have premiered at Cannes Film Festival.

Sheeba Chadda – Sheeba’s career started in 1998 ans she established herself as a top league actress with films such as Parzania, In Othello, Delhi 6. She apprenticed with The Big Telly theatre company in Northern Ireland. She has appeared in international films such as West is west, a British comedy-drama film directed by Andy De Emmony, What will people say Directed by Iram Haq and Sahsi Chori directed by Erin Galey.

Awarded the Charles Wallace scholarship-participated in a one month summer course at RADA, she has also acted in stage plays like Rajat Kapoor’s C for Clown and Gandhari monologue, Atul Kumar’s The Blue Mug, Osencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, Roysten Abel’s Othello in Black & White, Rehan Engineer’s Hedda Gabler, Seven Jewish Children and Faraway and Director Kalki Koechlin’s The living room. She is also involved in running a theatre group, The Company Theatre in Mumbai.

Over the years she has worked with directors like Mani Ratnam, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Aziz Mirza, Sriram Raghavan, Anurag Basu, Rahul Dholakia, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, Zoya Akhtar, Rafeeq Ellias, Reema Kagti.

Director’s Note: Based on a true story, Bebaak is an exploration of patriarchal notion of male agency over female bodies, constructed on a systematic theological idea that requires women to cover up, to be ‘more modest, respectful and acceptable’ by Society and religion.

The conversation around hijaab became mainstream when France banned the face veil few years ago. While banning anything is a maximal response, I didn’t understand the support and romanticisation of the hijaab, as it clearly subjugates women for being the ‘attractive’ gender and depletes their individuality and identity. The normalization of covering up women so they are no more ‘an instrument of distraction’ for men is a very disturbing idea, which doesn’t deserve to be condoned. Conceptually, it encourages the abominable culture of victim blaming.

The menace of Islamophobia is not new to the world and it’s been on a steady rise for last decade or so. I believe Muslims around the world and in India are being cornered and attacked as anti-social elements. In desperation, they are holding on to their identity in a search to belong. There is a need to stick to the roots to feel more secure. And unfortunately, hijaab is seen as a strong identity tool for Muslim women. I have seen more young Muslim women wearing burqa now, in Colleges, at work, than a decade ago. Even in mainstream media like Advertising, there is stereotyping of Muslim women with brands like Pepsi, L’oreal, etc normalizing hijaab.

Every day I get surprised at the number of educated, so called liberal men and women who support this oppressive piece of clothing, which is a shame for a modern society fighting its way to be an egalitarian one. Supporting hijaab to be more inclusive of Muslims, (in an attempt to fight Islamophobes) is alarming and upsetting.

Bebaak is an attempt to wake up people, to give them a reality check. To rethink the role of ‘choice’ in this debate, where a five years old underprivileged kid is brain washed into believing that covering her head is the way to be ‘good girl’ or a young woman forced to cover up by her husband or father. We have to open ourselves to these narratives than the privileged lot who defend hijaab because they do have a choice. This isn’t choice, it is indoctrination of young, vulnerable minds.

And it’s silly that being anti-hijaab is perceived as being racist. It’s a religious idea, liable to criticism. And covering up women is a misogynist idea, that exists in the roots of almost all religion and this isn’t singling out just one religion.

Bebaak challenges this notion of ‘choice’, which is the defence mechanism of all those who support hijaab without any awareness of what it stands for. It attempts to see the alternative narratives of many who suffer quietly.

I hope Bebaak helps to light a thought in a person who wears hijaab or the one who supports it as a choice. I hope it starts a conversation.

Festivals/Awards

Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles [Audience Choice Award]; New York Indian Film festival [Best Short Narrative]; ShortShorts Film Festival & Asia, Tokyo [Best Actor – Sarah Hashmi]; International Documentary & Shorts film festival, Kerala [Jury Special Mention]; ImagineIndia International Film festival, Madrid; International Film Festival of South Asia, Toronto; Ottawa Indian Film Festival; Stuttgart Indian Film Festival; Indian Film Festival of Melbourne; Sao Paulo International Short Film Festival; Indian Film Festival of Montreal; Ojai Short Film Festival, California