The Berkeley Pakistan Initiative invites you for a screening of Indus Blues, a documentary by Pakistani filmmaker Jawad Sharif, that tells the story of the disappearing folk musical instruments of Pakistan and the struggle of those who play them as well as those who craft them, to keep them alive.
The 75-minute documentary takes the viewer through a musical journey across the country documenting the lives of both musicians and the makers of traditional musical instruments, in Sindh, Balochistan, Punjab and Khyber Pahktunkhwa. Featuring snapshots of conversations with folk musicians along the Indus river and examining how these traditions are perceived by others, the documentary aims to create awareness about the plight of music in a country riven by political turmoil and violence.
The film has won several awards in the international film festival circuit including the Grand Jury Prize for the Crystal Award at Guam International Film Festival 2018 and the Best Documentary Feature and Best Cinematography Awards at the Jaipur International Film Festival.
See TRAILER here.
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The post screening conversation and Q&A session with the director will be live streamed on the Institute’s FB page: ISASatUCBerkeley
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ABOUT THE DIRECTOR:
Jawad Sharif is a filmmaker and National Geographic Explorer based in Pakistan.
Exploring the themes of social change and human rights, his projects focus on reviving the suppressed cultural and Indigenous identities of Pakistan. In the past 15 years, Sharif has pushed the boundaries of visual storytelling by documenting stories about the rights of folk musicians, high-altitude porters, climate migrants, and marginalized communities. His current film project, Mohana, will document the struggle for the survival of a diminishing Indigenous community that has been living on boathouses on a freshwater lake for centuries.
Sharif was awarded a scholarship at the UCLA School of Theatre, Film, and Television in 2016. He is also an alumnus of the Swedish Institute and Institut Fur Auslandsbeziehunge, Germany. Sharif’s work has received several international and national recognitions including Grand Jury Prize for Crystal Award at Guam International Film Festival and the Gold Award at Spotlight Doc Awards. He was selected as a TED Fellow and speaker in 2022 for his achievements in filmmaking and the potential impact of his work. He won the Our Heroes Award for his achievements in the field of art in Pakistan. Sharif is the director of the films Indus Blues, Natari, and The Losing Side among others. His film The Losing Side has won the award for Best Human Rights Film at the Cannes World Film Festival. Indus Blues, directed and produced by Sharif, has been screened at the international film festival circuit including CPH: DOX, the Copenhagen International Documentary Film Festival, and Dokufest. His film Natari was part of the official selection of the Climate Crisis Film Festival 2021, which was held in line with the COP26 in Glasgow, UK.
Sharif is the founder of the nonprofit initiatives Climate Kahani and Cinema for Change. Climate Kahani uses visual storytelling to address the impact of climate change. Cinema for Change promotes visual storytelling as a tool to inspire social change to ensure the rights of communities at the margins. Sharif also serves as an advisory board member for Forum for Dignity Initiatives, a a nonprofit organization that helps protect the rights of sexual and gender minorities in Pakistan.
Please click to read more about the Berkeley Pakistan Initiative
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The event is FREE and OPEN to the public.
