A Pakistani short film Darya Kay Iss Paar (At this side of the river) has won three awards at the prestigious New York City International Film Festival (NYCIFF).
The 30-minute film won three awards at the film festival for Best Short Film, Best Director and Best Leading Actress Khaba Aziz.
Produced by Nighat Akbar Shah, the film Darya kay Uss Par has been helmed by Shoaib Sultan, an alumni of Lahore Engineering University.
“Proud moment for Pakistan. 30 min Short Film Darya Kay Iss Paar (This Bank of The River) won three major awards in world prestigious New York City International Film Festival 2021,” shared the director.
The movie received six nominations at the annual World Festival in New York City, USA, and won in three categories – Best Director, Best Actress, and Best Idea awards.
More than 96 films were submitted from all over the world in 15 categories. Darya Kay Iss Paar has won Best Director, Best Film and Best Actress.
The film stars Samiya Mumtaz as well. The film revolves around spreading awareness about women's suicides and psychological problems in the Chitral District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
In a post on social media, musician and audio engineer Mubeen Zahid wrote, “Shoaib Sultan showed up in the summer of 2019 with an idea, and a producer wanting to highlight critical, painful issues affecting the lives of young people in the beautiful, mountainous region of Chitral. Some of the old group joined in and with a magnificent, fresh young team of film-makers, the short film 'Darya ke iss paar' was born.”
“Darya Kay Iss Paar is the story of a young girl named Gull Zareen, who is from the Northern areas of Pakistan. Zarin suffers from severe mental health issues but due to the lack of education, no one pays heed to Zarin's deteriorating condition, which results in propelling her to take drastic measures.
“The story depicts the stereotypical behavior of the society towards the mental illness. Certainly, it is a roller-coaster ride of strong emotions inspired from real events where the story can force a viewer to, at least, think about the issue,” reads the description of the short.
