Malala Yousafzai, Saim Sadiq Talk Pakistan Oscar Hopeful ‘Joyland’: ‘The Themes Resonate With People All Around The World’ (EXCLUSIVE):

After gathering acclaim and awards around the world, beginning with a winning debut at Cannes, Saim Sadiq’s “Joyland” has trained its sights on the next big prize – the international feature Oscar.

“Joyland,” set in Lahore, Pakistan, revolves around Haider, the youngest son of the middle-class, patriarchal Rana family. As the Ranas yearn for the birth of a baby boy, Haider secretly joins an erotic dance theater and finds himself falling for a fiercely ambitious trans starlet. Their love story illuminates the secrets and desires of the entire Rana family.

In its quest for the statuette, the film has gained a powerful ally. Pakistan education activist and Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai who heard about the film – the first from Pakistan to be a Cannes official selection – watched it and boarded it as an executive producer. “Joyland” will be the first venture for Yousafzai’s film and TV production company, Extracurricular Productions.

“My goal was to bring attention to the stories that are often put aside, to give an opportunity to more voices from different corners of the world and focusing especially on women, people of color, and young artists,” Yousafzai told Variety. “Starting with ‘Joyland’ is such a moment of joy, because this is a Pakistani film produced by Pakistani directors, writers and actors, and I’m a Pakistani executive producer. This was such an incredible opportunity for me to begin with this. I always imagined a world where I could support more Pakistani content, more Pakistani artists.”

“The themes that are touched upon in this movie resonate with people all around the world. We hear about family dynamics, we hear about the relationship between parents and children, between husband and wife, between the work that you are expected to do inside your house compared to the role you want to play outside in society. And these are the things that that we hear about in every corner of the world,” Yousafzai said. “There are disappointments from parents, there are disappointments in relationships as well. And these are the themes that this movie has touched upon so beautifully. We also hear about identity and how people are trying to understand their own identity and then find a place for it in their home and outside as well, finding that dignity and respect that they deserve.”

Yousafzai finally met Sadiq in person at the film’s U.K. premiere at the BFI London Film Festival in October where the picture’s sold-out screenings were met with an ecstatic reception.

For Sadiq, the film’s perspective is very important.

“There is something to be said about how we’ve been talking on issues about identity and sexuality and gender, and the politics regarding trans issues, which we’ve only seen with the Western frame of reference so far in movies and film. That may not be the same as what is a South Asian frame of reference, because, even though the issues are pretty much the same, the way of dealing with them emotionally and politically, are very different,” Sadiq told Variety. “This film does introduce a new leaf in terms of the conversation around that, because it’s just refreshing to see a very empowered trans character who happens to be brown and Muslim and in a country like Pakistan.”

Sadiq also has a different perspective on the conservative family that is at the core of “Joyland.” “Very often in movies we do enforce liberal values, and tend to paint the people who are conservative with a brush that perhaps we shouldn’t, because we from the media, or from the artistic community where most people often are liberal, we expect a certain amount of empathy from the conservatives for us, but it starts with us affording that empathy to the conservative folks as well, and looking at them with an empathetic light, and seeing how they perhaps are also struggling with the very system that they’re trying to uphold,” Sadiq said.

Meanwhile, Yousafzai is unequivocal about her support for the film. “This film deserves an Oscar and I’m really proud that it’s been submitted from Pakistan – it deserves all the awards out there. And I hope that more and more people step forward and nominate the film,” says Yousafzai. “I will be doing all that is in my capacity, whether that’s in person or in any other way, to tell everyone that this is an incredible movie, watch it, nominate it, support it.”

“Joyland” has its U.S. premiere at AFI Fest on Nov. 5, 2022.

View this article at Variety.