From Iraq to Lakshadweep: ‘Sinjar’ to speak Jasari

Under the ‘Potpourri India’ package, International Film Festival of Kerala will screen the National Film Award winning film ‘Sinjar’ which speaks the script-less Lakshadweep language Jasari. The film written and directed by debutant director Pampally, won the Best Feature Film in Jasari, and Best Debut Film of a Director awards at the 65^th National Film Awards. It received wide acclaim at various international film festivals, and has in its cast Sindra Arhaan, Mythili, Mustafa, and Sethulakshmi.

The first film to be made in the islands is ‘based on events that followed the 2014 massacre at Sinjar’. The 2014 Sinjar Massacre, was the genocidal killing and abduction of thousands of Yazidis in the Iraqi city of Sinjar, by the terror group ISIS. The film narrates the tale of two women from the islands, escape from the nightmares of brutal captivity. It meticulously portrays the subtleties of human life in Lakshadweep, and explores in detail international terrorism, religious and orthodox beliefs, and the complexities of human empathy.

Sinjar is also an attempt to revive and preserve the dying language, which is an alloy of Malayalam, Tulu, Kannada, and Arab.

Six films from around India have been included in the ‘Potpourri India’ package.