Projects

Varanasi is the ancient city on the Ganges where Hindu pilgrims come to bathe at dawn and where cremation fires burn along the sacred river long after night has fallen. The city is also famous for the Moslem silk weavers whose ancestors traveled along the Silk Road and whose history is interwoven with that of their Hindu neighbours. Here, one thousand years of repression and conflict evolved into a unique, hardwon tolerence in which Moslems are the creators and weavers and Hindus are traders and merchants. Now, however, the pressures of globalization have created dangerous faultlines in this complex web of relationships. To visit this extraordinary place is to to witness a city literally 'woven into being' each day because every single aspect of Varanasi life is fused with the production of handwoven silk. Loosely structured as a day in the life of Varanasi, this unique, intimate documentary explores how the Moslem community of weavers respond to huge economic shifts in their lives and shows the difficulties they face in passing on traditional weaving skills to their children. The film also gives voice to the changing roles of women within this enclosed world. In celebrating the warp and weft of myth and reality in everyday Varanasi, the film questions prevailing Western attitudes to the Moslem world while subtly challenging our own attitudes to how we structure relationships between men and women.

ROMANTIC RAZIA SYNOPSIS Razia is a beautiful and innocent girl who is fond of living in dreams and fantasies of her own. Among many of her small and insignificant wishes is her dream of visiting Swat for her honeymoon. Many of her marriage proposals have been rejected in the past due to her immature and naive nature. While on the other side is Rameez, a young and handsome man whose family is in search of a perfect life partner for him. As Rameez and Razia's paths cross and after they share a bittersweet moment problems begin to resurface. Will Razia and Rameez be able to clear the misunderstandings? Will Razia's dream of visiting northern areas for her honeymoon ever be fulfilled? Will anyone from their families make an effort to unite Razia and Rameez?