Bridging the Culture Gap: An Interview with Sharmeen Obaid
by Laila Kazmi
continued from page 1...

Laila Kazmi: So, does there also exist a strong movement against the rise of religious fundamentalism in Pakistan?
Sharmeen Obaid: I think there can only be a strong movement against it if average, everyday Pakistanis decide that they want to take a stance but that has not happened yet. Though even among the people in the Northwest, I’ve noticed there have been rumblings about how the MMA is carrying out its business.

On India and Pakistan relationship

Laila Kazmi: Your third documentary is called On A Razor’s Edge. Can you tell me more about that film?
Sharmeen Obaid (Photo from http://www.sharmeenobaidfilms.com)	Sharmeen Obaid: Yes, it was early February this year, just before the nuclear scandal broke out in Pakistan. PBS/Frontline decided they wanted a story on Pakistan and my idea was to do something about the peace gesture with India because all the news that comes out of Pakistan is not always positive. Having better relations with India is something that my generation greatly values because we’ve never experienced anything like this. My generation has never seen or heard peace rhetoric with India. So In early February 2004, I traveled by train from India to Pakistan and spoke with families long separated by political division. I was in Pakistan for basant (kite and colors festival) and met Indian families there who had crossed the border for the first time, really enjoying Pakistan.
I did lots of street interviews where everyone said they wanted peace – even more so in the middle of the nuclear scandal involving Abdul Qadeer Khan, which broke out while I was filming. So I covered that bit as well. I spoke to some Generals, I spoke with Mirza Aslam Baig. I also spoke with members of the ISI. I spoke with a number of other people across the country. On a Razor’s Edge is basically a 25- minute piece about peace gestures with India and while I was there the nuclear scandal that happened, if that would impact the peace gestures.

Laila Kazmi: Speaking of peace between India and Pakistan, after the recent cricket matches in Pakistan, we in the West read many stories by Indians who went to Pakistan to attend the matches. They wrote about the amazingly warm welcome they received in Pakistan. Their stories seem to just confirm the notion that the ordinary people in Pakistan just want to live in peace with their Indian neighbors.
Sharmeen Obaid: That’s exactly what I found out. In my generation an average Pakistani has never met an average Indian. The borders have been closed for so long, how can we meet each other? This has contributed to so many misconceptions because people believe whatever the politicians feed them.

On Pakistani Film Scene

Laila Kazmi: About the film scene in Pakistan, it seems that there are several new independent filmmakers who are doing very interesting work. Do you think that perhaps the standard of films in Pakistan is improving. I mean, I remember when I was a child in Pakistan, nobody really watched Pakistani films because the quality of films was very low, technically and especially in terms of story and content. Do you feel that is now changing?
Sharmeen Obaid: I think that there is a change. I think that young Pakistanis who would never have thought of making films because of the stigma attached to it have broken that barrier. They have decided to go into the film industry.

In Pakistan, Lollywood is not looked upon with excitement because Lollywood has never created a hit. The actors and actresses are mostly drawn from the red light area and the image of Lollywood is not appealing. That’s why it was never considered to be an honorable profession to be part of Lollywood. Now Independent filmmakers are saying, well we don’t really have to be associated with Lollywood to make films. We can make films and they could be far more successful than any film Lollywood has produced.

In fact, when I make my documentaries, my crew is entirely Pakistani. For all three of my films, I hired young Pakistanis, just out of college who were very eager to make it into films. And it was wonderful because now they are all working for Geo and Indus and I have good relations with them.

Laila Kazmi: Right now you film in Pakistan but you do all the editing back here in the US, is that because of lack of proper technical resources in Pakistan?
Sharmeen Obaid: Yes. We don’t have the technology in Pakistan at all and neither do we have people who understand editing. The quality of television isn’t exactly very high right now. I think it’ll become better. In fact, it is becoming better. Some channels are better than other channels. Still in terms of technical quality, they way edits are done, they way films are shot, it’s not up to the mark. If I were to edit a film in Pakistan, it wouldn’t be shown here in the US because the editing in Pakistan is way behind the editing in US, in terms of equipment and in terms of know-how. People need to have practice on these new machines to understand how to use them.

Laila Kazmi: What do you want your films to say? Why are they important to you?
Sharmeen Obaid: After 9/11, one of the most important things about being a Muslim woman is that we now have the opportunity to tell our story and to do it from our part of the world.

My films try to show a reality that’s largely ignored by Western media. I’m trying to bridge the gap between the image of Pakistan on, say, American television, and what’s actually happening there. What government officials and important people say may be familiar, but my films look beyond that to the unheard voices of ordinary Pakistani citizens and what they want for the future of their country.

Laila Kazmi: So what are you working on for your next project?
Sharmeen Obaid: I am developing a project in Saudi Arabia. I am not sure how it will turn out because I have just started developing it. In any case, I will be doing project in the Arab world now. I am also hosting a show twice a month on the Discovery Times channel called ‘World Wire.’ It is show about documentary films from around the world.

Laila Kazmi: Sharmeen, thank you for talking with?
Sharmeen Obaid:Thank you

An excerpt of this interview was first published in openDemocracy.net, an online global magazine of politics and culture.