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Filmmaker Captures Hazara Community's Painful Exodus
14 Oct
Summary
- Documentary chronicles survival, exile, and family bonds over six years.
- Filmed in Quetta, Pakistan, where the Hazara community faces violence.
- Family's dispersal across continents is captured before stories fade.
Filmotor has secured global sales rights for "Hazara Town," the debut feature documentary by Khadim Dai. The film will have its world premiere in the International Competition at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA).
"Hazara Town" is a six-year chronicle of survival, exile, and family bonds, focusing on the Hazara community in Quetta, Pakistan. Forced from Afghanistan in 1998, Dai's family found refuge in Quetta, a place where the Hazara people continue to face targeted violence.
Following a devastating school bombing in 2013, Dai was urged to flee. After multiple failed attempts to reach Australia and time stranded in Indonesia, he returned to Quetta in 2019 to document his community.
The documentary captures the family's daily life and their eventual dispersal to Canada, the United States, and Australia. Dai aimed to bear witness to his community's slow disappearance, preserving their lives through cinema.
Producers highlighted that "Hazara Town" is the first film of its kind made in Quetta, offering a rare encounter with the lives and perspectives of the Hazara people. The film will compete for the IDFA Best Film and IDFA Best First Film Award.
