“Joyland” Is Pakistan’s Official Entry To Oscars – Nothing Could Be More On-Point
2022 seems to be the year for Pakistani artists and more specifically, team “Joyland”. After creating waves at Cannes, the film has now been announced as Pakistan’s official entry to the Oscars.
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Written and directed by debutant Saim Sadiq, it is a bittersweet tale of repressed desire and the quest for individual freedom. What’s commendable is that the lead role of a trans woman is played by trans actor Alina Khan – something that we still do not see even in big-budget Hollywood and Bollywood productions.
Adapted from his award-winning short “Darling”, “Joyland” made history by becoming the first Pakistani film to be selected as the official entry at this year’s Cannes film festival. Written and directed by debutant Saim Sadiq, this film is a moving take on gender and sexuality set in a busy Lahore household. It also became a clear crowd favorite and received a rapturous standing ovation.
It also made history by winning not one but two awards. The Jury Prize in the Un Certain Regard section of the Festival de Cannes as well as Queer Palm. One of the central characters in the film is a transwoman played by a real-life transwoman Alina Khan.
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“Joyland” follows the relationship between a married man and a transgender erotic dancer. Patriarchy works insidiously and as the film examines gender and social norms you are forced to marvel at how sensitively each character and the story unfolds.
It’s a busy household with a wheelchair-bound father-in-law, his two sons, daughters-in-law, and their children – where any sort of transgression is forbidden and frowned upon.
Malala Yousafzai announced that her film and TV production company, Extracurricular Productions, will join “Joyland,” as an executive producer.
It is currently playing at both the BFI London Film Festival, where it is competing for the Sutherland Award, which recognizes the most original and imaginative directorial debut, and the Busan International Film Festival, where it is in A Window on Asian Cinema strand.
