Breaking down barriers of hate

A young film-maker uses her art to spread the message of peace

BY USHA ARVIND

Debutante filmmaker Saliha Wazirzada’s Zarmina - A Story of Hope was adjudged Best Short Film at the inaugural Colourfest Film Festival recently.

The national festival, which focuses exclusively on culturally diverse filmmakers in Australia, has attracted hundreds of entries, which were then whittled down to 10 finalists. Zarmina was named winner after an audience vote on the opening night.

Directed and produced by Saliha, the 12-minute feature tells the story of an Afghan woman who stakes her existence, in hope of a better future for her young son, surviving the trauma of a bitter war, only to emerge stronger in the face of extreme adversity.

“The movie explores changing perspectives and the desperate hope for peace and understanding,” the Pakistani born filmmaker told Indian Link

It is about understanding perspectives and making peace within, by reaching out to each other, she explained.

“Through emotional empathy, we can recognise the larger purpose of life and eventually become better human beings. No matter where we are born or raised and how different we are, deep down we are all the same inside. What runs within is still blood, red, just red. And I strongly believe that forgiveness is the only way to peace and by killing each other we merely sow seeds for an eternity of hatred,” she emphatically stated.

“Thus, through my maiden venture I wanted to show that emotions are universal and that, two people hailing from two different cultures or geographical locations can still connect through an emotional understanding,” she continued.

Filmmaking has been a lifelong dream for this young woman, who moved down under with her parents nearly a decade ago, in search of a better future, more specifically a good education, which she believes is the basic foundation for any good citizen of the world.

“I have always yearned to tell the stories that aren’t being told, but I had no idea that nine months and 24 drafts after I started my maiden production, Zarmina would touch so many people. I was speechless when they called my name out after the screening”, Saliha confessed.

A creative storyteller, her passion for spinning a yarn goes back to her early teens when she used to engage her young cousins in Pakistan. Her tales were loaded with pathos, expression, movement and songs.

“My little cousins still remember how the scriptwriter in me thrived, when I used to whip up a drama script instantly and give each of them a character to play, performing it in front of the whole family,” she recalls nostalgically.

Hobby soon became a passion and when the family moved to Australia, her parents encouraged her to take it up professionally. Saliha enrolled for a Masters in Media Arts & Production at UTS, enjoying every bit of the practical hands-on exposure.

At Uni, her primary focus was on documentaries, but around this time, she also felt the strong urge to express her ethnic diversity through the artistic medium. “Rather than worrying whether the course would open up professional or monetary opportunities, I felt the need to just express myself as who I am. Being a first-time filmmaker I wanted to study more and more about my culture and my focus grew on the issue of Afghan women,” she narrated.

“I learnt a great deal about their resilience. This then led to me to conclusion that these women are the ‘real war heroes;’ having their husbands and sons fight for freedom at the fore front, they are left behind to raise kids within a society where the man is the main bread winner. While hearing many sad stories of these women, I felt that I should reach out to these women and give them hope. I wanted the world to understand them, the way I understood them”.

“And I am really glad that I touched so many chords. After all, for every true artist, real success comes though connecting with the audience,” she concluded. The award obviously means a lot to this talented young woman, whose role models include film-makers Benjamin Gilmore, Mehboob Raawi and Aamir Khan.

Thrilled with her award, she sees it as a way of repaying her parents for all their innumerable sacrifices. “All the good values they instilled in me, helped to see the world as a global place rather than one with harsh borders and differences of religion and culture. I also feel better knowing that I have provoked people to care about the helpless and think beyond the square. If I can help people let go of their hatred and negativity against each other and connect on the basis of humanity, then that is my biggest achievement,” she proudly acknowledged.

Saliha is also thankful for the tremendous support she has found from within her ethnic community.

“They believe what I am doing will always reflect their voices and wherever I go, whatever I do, my ethnicity will always be reflected in my work,” she added.

Egged by her success, Saliha now hopes to continue her campaign for those whose voices are yet unheard in the mainstream.