Ajyal Film Festival 2023

All Films

The Reluctant Fundamentalist (The Reluctant Fundamentalist)

Special Screening

Mira Nair / Feature Narrative / India, Pakistan, United States of America / 2012 / 128 min / Colour / DCP
In English, Urdu / Arabic, English subtitles
Interests: Thriller, Adaptation
MENA Premiere

Synopsis

Based on Mohsin Hamid’s best-selling novel, Mira Nair’s timely new film is a gripping thriller that explores the cultural divide between East and West since the attacks of 9/11. Changez (Riz Ahmed) and Bobby (Liev Schreiber) meet in a Lahori teahouse, where the young Pakistani professor tells the American journalist his story. He recounts his relentless pursuit of corporate success on Wall Street and the path that led him back to his native Pakistan when his American dream began to crumble after 9/11. Eventually, the hidden agenda of the meeting is revealed. Layered with traditional Pakistani songs, Urdu poetry set to music, cutting-edge Pakistani pop, and a new original song from Peter Gabriel, composer Michael Andrews’ score is a rich tapestry representing the intertwining of old and new. A powerhouse performance by Ahmed and Nair’s confident direction ensure this will be one of the most-talked-about films of the year.

About the Directors

Born in Bhubaneswar, India, in 1957, Mira Nair made several documentaries before achieving international acclaim with ‘Salaam Bombay’, which won the Caméra d’Or at Cannes in 1988. Subsequent films, often focusing on cultural identity, have included ‘Mississippi Masala’ (1991), ‘My Own Country’ (1998), ‘Monsoon Wedding’ (which won the Golden Lion in Venice in 2001), ‘Vanity Fair’ (2004) and ‘The Namesake’ (2008).

Credits

Director
Mira Nair
Screenwriter
Mohsin Hamid, Ami Boghani, William Wheeler
Producer
Lydia Dean Pilcher
Cast
Riz Ahmed, Kate Hudson, Liev Schreiber, Kiefer Sutherland, Martin Donovan, Om Puri

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