Shiva Sanjari decided to make the film on the suggestion of her grandmother, who introduced the director to the works of the former dancer
A multi-talented artiste who could dance, act and direct... moved on to imprisonment and institutionalisation, before a final vanishing act. The life story of Iran's pioneer filmmaker, who went by the screen name Shahrzad, is nothing short of a blockbuster. The good news is that a telling documentary, showing the times and the struggles of this extraordinary woman, will be screened at the India Habitat Centre (IHC) on June 20.
Directed by Iranian documentary maker Shiva Sanjari in 2015, the film titled 'Here The Seats Are Vacant' (Inja Sandaliha Khalist) follows the journey of Shahrzad, right from an exploited childhood to an award-winning career, imprisonment after the Islamic Revolution, and admission in a mental hospital later.
Set in pre-Revolution Iran, the film shows a young Shahrzad being sold by her father. She then goes on to become a cabaret dancer before winning awards as an actor. Not stopping there, Shahrzad then becomes an author and also one of the first women directors of the times.
Sanjari decided to make the film on the suggestion of her grandmother, who introduced the director to the works of the former dancer.
The title is a comment on the somersault that life takes once the arc lights fade. It was difficult to research for the film as Shahrzad has retired form the public life and now lives in anonymity in a village. Her family, too, has disowned her while her once-close friends do not know anything about her whereabouts. After finally locating her, Sanjari had to put in a lot of effort to convince the revolutionary filmmaker to share her story.
The acclaimed documentary was recently also screened at the 13th International Association of Women in Radio and Television (IAWRT) Asian Women's Film Festival.
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