There are people who live here...
and yet...
life here has come to standstill
""This land was like the heavens...""
""it has now turned into a hell""
Destruction everywhere... wails of mourning"
""Freedom is itself in captivity, every deed is an atrocity""
""Every heart burns in the simmering deserts""
""Faith has been betrayed... but there is yet hope sometimes""
""A dawn of joy shall some day overcome the darkness of sorrow""
""Today"s December 2, 1994""
This is the day when l had married Jaanbaz and left my hometown Kolkata...
""five years ago, and dreamt of starting a new life here""
""Here, in this farflung town of Afghanistan""
Our village is an 1B-hour journey away from Kabul
When l came here in 19BB for the first time...
the whole country was in the grip of a ravaging civil war
""The then President Dr Hajibullah, with the help of the Russians...""
was fighting lslamic militants
The Afghanis are an extremely freedom-loving people
They will even lay down their lives to safeguard their freedom
But they have trampled under their feet the issue of women"s freedom
ln the name of customs and in the name of religion
The worst example of this suppression is the Taliban
""And today l, Sushmita, am a mere prisoner...""
""a prisoner of fanatics, the Taliban""
Stop! Look over there
lt"s the fasting month of Ramzan and smoke is coming out of that house
Should we go check it? - Let"s go
Glory be to Allah"s greatness
Oh my God!
Damnation!
What happened?
""Don"t you know, it"s the month of Ramzan?""
""During Ramzan, you"ve got to observe the roza (fast) Do you know?""
You are not supposed to cook. You"ve got to pray every day
Chant the name of Allah!
l"m not a Muslim
But you must still chant the name of Allah
You must observe the fast and do just as we say
Never - Shameless!
Chant the name of Allah! Go on
Never
Chant the name... Go on! - No
Mummy!
Chant the name of Allah
Abu! Uncle Dranai! Save me from them!
Stop it
""lf you dare speak against lslam, we will hang you till you die!""
""lf such a thing happens again, we will hang all of you to death""
Jaanbaz is to blame for all this
Taliban can walk into the house anytime and kill anyone they want
Jaanbaz has brought this infidel here and created this problem for us
She should convert to lslam
The Taliban are right. She should be fasting
She is a Hindu from lndia. She is not like us
Mummy...
""Try to understand, father. - No, never""
Sumi...
Now listen to me
The Hindus and Muslims belong to two different religions
Our traditions and cultures are very different
You are not going to find happiness married to a Muslim
Which means what you taught me was wrong!
""The values we have imbibed are no good, they mean nothing?""
Have you any idea what our position in our own community...
will be if we accept him? We"ll have to hide our faces
So that"s your problem. You"ll have to hide your faces
Which means your position means more to you than your daughter?
""We"re worried about you, Sumi. Which is why we"re reasoning with you""
""What do you know about him, about his family?""
That a moneylender will become my son-in-law... l can never accept
So don"t accept it. Tell the world that l"ve died
All right. We have no other way
l"ve told you what l"ve decided. l don"t want anymore arguments
""No, father. You can"t decide it. lt"s my life and l"ve made my decision""
But Mita...
That you"re a Muslim and l"m a Hindu makes no difference to me
But how can we deny the truth?
Our marriage will spell doom for my family
So the promises you made to me mean nothing?
""Our love is finished? - l don"t know, Jaanbaz""
l"m terribly confused. What can l do?
""Mita, let"s run away - Where to?""
To my country. Afghanistan
""A land of tall mountains, clear blue skies...""
snowclad plains...
Don"t think
Look...
What a beautiful sight
What"s that?
What"s happening here...? What?
Looks like a Russian air-attack. Don"t worry
Drive fast!
When will we reach home?
Don"t worry. We"re almost there
Drive fast
Hurry up
Glory be to Allah"s greatness
Welcome! Welcome!
""How are you, Kala? - Welcome home""
""Oh, stop it""
Welcome home
""Greetings, Uncle Asam. - Allah bless you""
""Greetings, Aunt Abu. - Allah bless you""
""Look, Sultan. That is Jaanbaz"s bride""
She"s beautiful
Welcome! Welcome
Let it be
Come...come
l"m Gul Sarina. Jaanbaz"s aunt
""You can call me Abu, like everyone else does""
""Hello, l"m Jalil. Jaanbaz"s best friend""
Want me to sing an lndian song for you?
Forget it. Go and fetch her luggage first
l"ll sing for you later
""You can meet the others later. You must be tired, come and rest""
What happened? - Don"t touch me!
What happened? - Don"t touch me
You"re a liar! Did you show me this picture of Afghanistan?
""Why did you lie to me? Why? - l didn"t want to lose you, Mita""
Mita... believe me
""You love me too, don"t you?""
Don"t you love me?
Don"t ever lie to me - l won"t
Promise me. - l promise
Have some more. Where"d you find such food in Calcutta?
""Enough, Kala. Enough""
Are you feeling very cold?
""Come, come""
""Sushmita, remember Uncle? You"ve met him""
Salam Aliekom
""That"s his wife, Sarina""
His daughter. - Zarina
His daughter-in-law. - Babban
""That"s his son, Roshandar. - Salam Aliekom""
Uncle Aslam
His wife. Tell her your name. - Bablu
Who"s that?
Gulgutti
""You"ve met my brothers Kala, Musa, Sawali...""
""and that"s Abu"s son, Adraman. - Hello""
l"m Gulabi
l"m Gulbibi
""This is Afghani bread. Have some, taste it""
""Have some more, Jaanbaz. - Enough, Kala.""
""Uncle Dranai, Sushmita and l got married in a hurry""
We thought we"d celebrate here if it"s okay with you
There"s no need
You"ve married an infidel
You think you"ve done something great? ...She"s an infidel!
Did you sleep well?
""lf there"s anything you need, you can tell me""
Don"t feel shy
Careful
What happened?
Jaanbaz! Come quickly!
(Exorcism spells in Arabic)
(The verses are recited to exorcise possession by evil spirits)
""Mita, are you all right?""
What"s happening here?
""You aren"t well, Sushmita. So we"ve called the priest""
He"s an exorcist
You folks still believe in that drivel?
He"ll set you right... - He can"t do anything
""l need a doctor, not a priest Stop it""
""Jaanbaz, l"m ill. l need a doctor""
""l don"t need a Mullah. l can"t tell them, but you...""
Why have you called me here?
First you call me here and then insult me!
""Forgive me, Mullah Sahib""
l"m going. Think carefully before you call me next time
Oh my God!
Such airs this lndian woman has! - Shut up!
We"ve grown up with never a doctor coming to us
Stop it. That"s enough
Take her to a doctor
""Aunty, you know the only doctor is in Mushkel and the way there is dangerous""
How am l supposed to take her when she"s unwell?
Abu and l will come with you
""Yes, they"ll go with you. You"ll be all right""
""lf we are stopped on the way, don"t utter a word""
l told you it wasn"t safe for you all to come. But you didn"t listen
We"d all be more tense had we stayed home
""Oh, that"s true... May Allah help us""
Russians
Bring her along. - Very well
Careful
What did she have to eat?
She"s an lndian. She can"t digest the food we eat
She ate very little
Give her this medicine every day. She"ll be all right
""May l take a look, doctor? - Of course, it"s a medicine""
""l know, but l wish to see what it is""
Are they vitamin capsules?
""Yes, you"ll find them helpful. You"ll be all right""
But they"re way beyond their expiry date!
Don"t you ever feel ashamed at what you"re doing?
You are cheating these naive folks. This is so dangerous!
""Jaanbaz, please take me away. l don"t want these medicines""
""Please take me away, Abu. - One moment""
You"ve said so much. How long have you been here in Afghanistan?
""You"ve come from lndia, isn"t it?""
There isn"t a single doctor here in Afghanistan
But l do what l can
""We neither have the medicines, nor drug making factories...""
but l still try to infuse as much confidence as l can
So they will recover
""Don"t use that as an excuse to give the wrong drugs, doctor""
That"s not right
l know you are facing a lot of hardships
But you"d rather send patients away than give them wrong medicines
""Abu, let"s go""
Careful
Now tell me what"s the good news?
""You really want to know? - Yes, hurry up and tell me""
""Well, l"m pregnant""
""What? ls that the truth? - Yes, the absolute truth""
Feels nice to hear that? - Nice...?
You can"t imagine how happy l am
""lf it"s a boy, we"ll call him Salim. - No, we"re having a daughter...""
""we"ll name her Shahnaz. Lovingly, we"ll call her Tinni""
""Okay, we"ll have twins""
O my heart"s beloved!
""When you are the gift l have been given, what else is there to ask?""
What more can l ask of God?
""l have found heaven and earth in your arms""
O my heart"s beloved!
""When you are the gift l have been given, what else is there to ask?""
What more can l ask of God?
""l have found heaven and earth in your arms""
""l believe in you more than l believe myself, O my true love!""
""Your faith, never shall l break. This is a promise l make""
""l believe in you more than l believe myself, O my true love!""
""l shall hide you in my eyes so the world can"t see you""
O my heart"s beloved!
""When you are the gift l have been given, what else is there to ask?""
What more can l ask of God?
""l have found heaven and earth in your arms""
""Such bliss have l found""
""Now that you are mine love itself is more lovely""
""My body and soul are drenched in the colour of your love""
""Such bliss have l found""
""Now that you are mine love itself is more lovely""
""Love"s hues may be many. But never may we ever be parted""
O my heart"s beloved!
""When you are the gift l have been given, what else is there to ask?""
What more can l ask of God?
""l have found heaven and earth in your arms""
O my heart"s beloved!
""When you are the gift l have been given, what else is there to ask?""
What more can l ask of God?
""l have found heaven and earth in your arms""
O my heart"s beloved
""Mother, l have good news for you""
l"m pregnant
""l"m very happy, Mother. So is Jaanbaz""
His folks are wonderful
They"re very simple
""l know, you and father must"ve been hurt very much when l left abruptly""
""But my love for Jaanbaz has proved to be greater than all these things""
""l"ll come to Kolkata very soon. With Jaanbaz""
""Please forgive me, if you can. Yours, Sumi""
What happened? Are you all right?
""l"m okay, Abu. l"ve got to mail this letter. Where"s the post-office?""
Why"re they laughing?
She wants pigeons perhaps to post this letter!
What joke is that? - Your letter can"t be mailed
""Why? ls that the law? - No law, but...""
Where is Dranai?
Where is he...? - l saw him outside
He has gone out. - l"ll ask him
""Wait, you"re not going there. No, you can"t""
""Why not, Abu? lt"s all right. - Wait, women can"t go out""
""Stop there! Stop, l say! - For Allah"s sake, don"t go!""
Uncle Dranai... - What is it?
l want to mail this letter to lndia. To Kolkata
""Come with me, Sushmita""
See those ruins?
lt used to be our post-office
Our streets were lit up by lamp-posts
Electric poles. We had electricity in the whole village
But how did this happen?
The Russians bombed this place. 5 years ago
""Ever since, there has been no post-office in our nation""
No post-offices at all. We can"t mail letters to anyone
Letters can either be mailed in Pakistan...
""or if there is someone coming from lndia, he can carry a letter for you""
""ln any case, the folks here can neither read nor write very well""
There are hardly any letters coming and leaving this country
But how did all this happen?
lt happened because of the war
""The war has claimed this nation, my child""
lt has taken a toll of everything
""Schools, electricity, hospitals post-offices... everything""
lt has ruined the future of our children
Everything is finished
How long did the war last?
Very long. Very very long
l"ve been watching it from the last ten years
""ln 1979, when the Russians arrived here...""
the war was mainly between the Russians and the lslamic militants
But those who died were the poor and the innocent
""The Russians went away, but nothing was left here anymore""
Everything lies in ruins
Everything is finished
Jaanbaz promised to get more money. But he hasn"t
What happened?
Kala"s wedding is coming up. - l know
According to our customs...
the groom"s folks must give the bride"s parents some money
But you needn"t worry. Go and rest. lt"ll be arranged
How much do you need? - Why are you telling her all this?
""How much do you need, Abu? - 50,000 Afghanis""
Maybe l can help
""Where will you find so much money? - l don"t have any money, but...""
l have some gold ornaments. l"m sure you will manage with it
l"ll give it to Jaanbaz who can then raise the money
""You don"t mind, do you?""
Allah be praised! You"ve saved the family honour
Come and sit down
Thank you
""From today, we"ll call you Sahib Kamal, Lady of Miracles!""
""Let"s sing in joy. Let"s dance with joy""
""The bride"s face is lovely as a flower""
""The nuptial wreath crowns the groom"s head""
""Through the trailing wreath the groom eyes the bride""
""The bride blushes under the veil""
""Let"s sing in joy. Let"s dance with joy""
""Hearts are alight on this festive night""
""Those destined to be joined meet tonight""
""Hearts are alight on this festive night""
""Those destined to be joined meet tonight""
""Have you ever seen the sun and moon joined?""
""Oh, the joy of it! This union is that rare joining""
""Let"s sing in joy. Let"s dance with joy""
""The bride"s face is lovely as a flower""
""The nuptial wreath crowns the groom"s head""
""Hoping for happiness we await the coming morrow""
""May your every night be moonlit, your every day be festive""
""Love will now perfume your body and soul""
""Then this world will be verily a heaven""
""The bride"s face is lovely as a flower""
""The nuptial wreath crowns the groom"s head""
""Through the trailing wreath the groom eyes the bride""
""The bride blushes under the veil""
Life was somehow going ahead
""There were problems, but not unsurmountable ones""
""But the moment the Taliban arrived, it seemed the world itself had changed""
""lnitially, those who joined the Taliban were devout young Muslims""
Those who had got their education in the religious schools
""To begin with, they were seen only on the borders of Pakistan and Afghanistan""
""But gradually, they started fanning out in the villages""
The Taliban made tall claims...
that they would restore peace and calm in the country
""But they gave nothing except violence, atrocities and oppression""
They have adopted a fanatical stand on lslam...
""it"s a madness of sorts, an obsession""
They kill those who are not Muslims...
but they don"t either spare those who refuse to obey their command
Dissent... they just can"t tolerate
Praise be to Allah the Merciful
lt"s mentioned in The Holy Koran that Unbelievers in Allah may be killed...
...as well as those who do not pray nor obey the laws of Shariat
You are students
lt is incumbent upon you to spread the message of lslam through the world
Kill those who oppose you in the way of Allah
""God willing, we shall succeed""
Glory be to Allah"s greatness!
""Jalil, stop!""
Save me!
Where"ll he go from here!
Save me!
Why"re you killing him?
No one can come between us!
Save me!
Where are you taking him? Let him go!
We don"t talk to women. - You can"t take him away!
YOU are going to stop ME!
Forgive him. He is a good man
No! He is not a good man. He does not pray
Who are you to tell me what to do and not do?
l will show you!
""Stop it, please... let him go!""
He does not follow lslam
He must die!
l know why they want to kill me!
They sell drugs to buy arms!
They"re hiding arms and explosives in the mosques!
Move it
Remember my words
lf the Taliban are not stopped...
they"re going to kill us!
All of us!
""Mother, where is Sahib Kamal?""
She"s in the kitchen
A lady wants to see you. She"s at the hospital
She says it"s very important
Greetings
So you are Saira? - Yes
""Where are you from? - Kolkata, lndia""
So we"re from the same country! - Yes
We share the same fate
You may go now. Come tomorrow
Where do you live in Afghanistan?
Mohammad Khail. lt"s ten miles away
l"ve heard a lot about you. To meet an lndian doctor...
l"ve travelled a long distance to you
What is the matter?
l"m told you want to return to lndia?
""Return, l surely will""
l hope you will succeed. l need a help from you
My parents live in Kolkata
My husband"s brother lbrahim also lives there
lf they could have him caught him Kolkata...
my in-laws might possibly send me back
You don"t live here of your own volition?
""Neither do l have the money, nor any support""
""How will l return, even if my husband leaves me?""
l can"t take the physical and torture they are meting out to me
Doesn"t your husband live with you?
l fell in love with Nawab. l went against my family...
and ran away with him to come here
He brought me here to this hell
""For a while, l thought everything would be all right""
But l...
couldn"t give Nawab a child. He got married again
""l had to give up my own customs, my way of living...""
to compete with this other woman
What happened after that?
She bore him a child and Nawab moved with all of them to Pakistan
What l didn"t know was that l too was with baby...
and he"s the father. - Did you deliver the baby?
""Yes, l bore the baby. But Nawab says he has nothing to do with the child""
""Because of this, you...?""
""l live here, with my in-laws. Entirely at their mercy""
""When they feel like it, l eat, or go hungry""
They beat me up. Somehow or the other...
if you could reach my message to my father...
l could be free again. My child too
There are thousands of girls here in Afghanistan who are cursing their fate
l must leave now. lt"s very late
Please inform my parents
You know nothing about me Saira. Nothing
""What are you doing...? - Mita, go back to your room""
So you can have a nice time with her?
""Go back to your room, Mita""
How dare you sleep with my husband...?
l"m not letting you get away with your womanising!
""l say, go away!""
""Jaanbaz, how can you sleep with that woman?""
You"re a liar! You have betrayed me!
Leave me alone! l don"t want to listen to anything!
""Quiet, Mita... Quiet!""
l told you! Go to your room
Go
You cheat!
Don"t you touch me! Don"t! - Listen to me...
l"ve seen it all! My husband was sleeping with another woman!
""No! She"s not another woman, she"s my wife!""
""Mita, Gulgutti is my wife""
So who am l?
You are the one l love. - Liar! Shut up!
Hear me out! You know how much l love you!
""Love...? l left my family, my home...""
""my country... only for the sake of your love, Jaanbaz""
And what have you done? You"ve made a mistress out of me!
A mistress! - No...
""you are my wife, just as she"s my wife!""
""You are my wife, Mita. My wife. - No, Jaanbaz""
l won"t be able to tolerate all this
""Mita, have l done anything wrong? Have l not looked after your comforts?""
Are you a good husband? You"ve been lying to me all the while. Liar!
Listen to me! l"m not a liar
And you will now live like the other women!
You will live in the same room and sleep on the same bed!
""No, never!""
l"ve said what l had to
lf you don"t obey me...
""Where are you going, Sahib Kamal?""
""Jaanbaz, Sahil Kamal is leaving home""
Where are you going? - Don"t touch me!
You can"t go away like this. - l"m leaving!
You can"t go away like this! Have you gone mad?
""She has gone mad, Abu. Make her understand she"s leaving her home""
""No, Sahib Kamal. You can"t go away""
No... stop!
""Uncle Dranai, tell her she"ll spoil our family name if she leaves home""
""You go, Jaanbaz""
l"m not living here anymore! Never! - Sahib Kamal
Try to understand. You can"t leave like this
Come with me...
try to understand the situation
What are you doing? Are you mad? - Let me die!
l can"t live the way you want me to!
Come with me
You"re doing all this because Gulgutti is my wife...
""because we live in the same room. - No, it"s because l"m your wife...""
and l"m pregnant with your child. Let me go!
""Wait, Mita""
Now listen
l promise not to have anything to do with Gulgutti anymore
Does that make you happy? - You"re a cheap and selfish man!
Why must l punish her? lt"s your fault...
and l"m leaving because of you. So let me go!
You cheat!
l had married Jaanbaz. l had left my house in the hope...
that l"d have a happy life. But he betrayed me
""And l lost my baby too. My own baby, Mother""
l don"t know who"s responsible for this
Oh my! How lovely you look!
Come
Come... come in
That fertility rites for Gulgutti made me realise my shortcoming
l find myself incomplete and helpless
""For some strange reason, l have neither anger nor resentment for Gulgutti""
That"s perhaps because she"s carrying the baby of a man...
l loved dearly
lt"s perhaps because of this that l feel a sense of bonding with her
lt"s also perhaps because she silently watches all that happens around her...
she has nothing to defend herself with
Maybe that is why l can never hate her
You see how the Taliban kill anyone without any reason
lt"s a dangerous situation. Anything could happen
Where are all the women of the house?
l don"t accept water from an infidel!
You infidel! Kafir!"
One...two...three
These grapes are very nice. - Yes
Eat as much as you can. - l will
l think this is the last basket
Four...five...six. - These are all yours
What"s all this? - Grapes
""l know, but what"s going on? - Sharing the grapes""
""2 baskets for my family, 2 for uncle Dranai...""
""6 baskets uncle Asam"s, and two for yours""
""Sure, but why a huge share for uncle Asam?""
""Because ours is a large family. - Bigger the family, bigger the share?""
""l"m a kafir (lnfidel), and you folks are pious, aren"t you?""
""Uncle Asam, uncle Dranai, my father-in-law...""
and Abu"s husband are brothers
""So from now on, even the grapes will be shared equally""
This is how we share. - You must change this practice
lt"d be wise not to change our family practices. Let them be
No. The grapes will be shared equally. l"ll do it