Among the Believers (film)

Among the Believers
Directed byHemal Trivedi[1]
Mohammed Ali Naqvi
Written byJonathan Goodman Levitt
Produced byJonathan Goodman Levitt
Hemal Trivedi
CinematographyHaider Ali
Sardar Habib ur Rehman
Edited byHemal Trivedi
Music byMilind Date
Production
companies
Changeworx Films LLC
Manjusha Films LLC
Distributed bySubmarine
Release date
  • April 17, 2015 (2015-04-17) (Tribeca Film Festival)
Running time
84 minutes
CountriesPakistan, United States
LanguageEnglish/Urdu

Among the Believers is a 2015 documentary film directed by Hemal Trivedi and Mohammed Ali Naqvi and produced by Jonathan Goodman Levitt and Hemal Trivedi.[2][3] The executive producer was Whitney Burton Dow and co-producers were Naziha Ali and Syed Musharaf Shah.[4] The film had its US premiere at Tribeca Film Festival on April 17, 2015 and was pitched at the 2013 MeetMarket as part of Sheffield Doc/Fest.[5][6] After its theatrical release, it aired on television on World's Doc World.

The documentary examines the increasing political and religious turmoil in Pakistan since the War on Terror, with specific attention to the Red Mosque (Lal Masjid) and its network of madrasas. The Red Mosque's madrasas are live-in Islamic seminaries which admit youths. The struggle between militant Islamist forces and secular forces are seen to play out in the country's educational system.[7] The Soviet–Afghan War and the Siege of the Red Mosque are depicted as well.

The main focus of the film is the head of the Red Mosque, Maulana Abdul Aziz Ghazi. Abdul Aziz takes the filmmakers on a tour of his madrasas in Islamabad and the countryside. He explains his point of view, and why he advocates jihad in favor of instituting Sharia law as Pakistan's main law.[7] Abdul Aziz also explains key events in his life and the history of his organization.[7]

As a counterpoint, the film features noted nuclear physicist and civil activist Pervez Hoodbhoy, who provides broader context on the history presented by Abdul Aziz. The film also tracks the lives of two adolescent students in madrasas run by the Red Mosque (named Talha and Zarina), and a village chief (Tariq) who creates a school centered around academics rather than religious education.[8]

  1. ^ "About". Manjusha Films.
  2. ^ "Crew". Among The Believers. Retrieved 2015-12-09.
  3. ^ Dollar, Steve (20 April 2015). "Documentarians Take On Religious Activism at Tribeca Film Festival" – via www.wsj.com.
  4. ^ "Among the Believers press kit" (PDF).
  5. ^ "Among the Believers | Tribeca Film Festival". Tribeca. Archived from the original on 2015-12-11. Retrieved 2015-12-09.
  6. ^ Fleishman, Jeffrey (October 6, 2016). "My Atomic Aunt' and other docs bring foreign cultures to American audiences". LA Times.
  7. ^ a b c "Tribeca Film Review: 'Among the Believers'". Variety. Retrieved 2015-12-11.
  8. ^ "Welcome". Among The Believers. Retrieved 2015-12-09.