Valley of Saints at Sundance

In the valley of Kashmir, a lakeside city convulses with riots and curfews. A young man plots his escape, until he meets a beautiful environmentalist in an abandoned houseboat. Trapped together in his floating village, their blossoming romance threatens to derail his dreams…

As Valley of Saints gears up to premiere at the Sundance Film Festival 2012, competing for the distinguished award in the World Dramatics category, filmmaker Musa Syeed tells us a bit about his debut feature film.

‘I think on one hand the film will introduce Kashmir to Western audiences, it’s a region not well known in the West and if people do know it, it’s generally a very dismal portrayal of conflict. So I hope to sort of transcend that and to show that even in the face of conflict and destruction there are people that still embrace life and love. The film takes a positive outlook on things and there is a message of hope at the end. For Kashmir, I hope they feel this a positive portrayal of their lives and their experiences and I hope it also helps Kashmiri’s to re imagine their possibilities in living in the situation they find themselves in.’

Read more in the forthcoming issue of platform_ March/April 2012._

By: Shruti Kapur Malhotra

Image Caption: A Still From Valley of Saints