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The MISAFF festival pass gets you one ticket to each and every film including opening and closing. The VIP ALL ACCESS PASS gets you a swag bag and reserved seating as well as a chance to enter the cinema before the other audience members.

Features

Kamli - Pakistan

Director: Sarmad Khoosat

KAMLI by Sarmad Khoosat (Opening Night Film/North American Premiere) - PAKISTAN

Three women grapple with their restrained desires in a tale of love, loss and hidden secrets wherein their stories intertwine. Pakistan’s leading actresses Saba Qamar (Hindi Medium), Sania Saeed (Joyland) and Nimra Bucha (Ms Marvel) star in this stunning film. 6PM Red Carpet Gala and 8 PM screening. Cineplex Mississauga.

Joyland - Pakistan

JOYLAND by Saim Sadiq – PAKISTAN

In inner-city Lahore, a severe patriarch is the head of the middle-class Rana family, which includes his two sons, daughters-in-law, and four granddaughters. He wants his children to give him a grandson and forces his daughter-in-law Mumtaz to quit her job after Haider, his younger son and her husband, finds work at an erotic dance theater. But all changes when Haider falls in love with Biba, a transgender dancer.

Friday, 24th March 2023. 9:15 PM Cineplex Mississauga

SANAA - India

SANAA by Sudhanshu Saria (Canadian Premiere)

The film is about an ambitious young woman who is raging against an internal battle that is rooted in unhealed trauma. Sanaa, like Suds last film LOEV, also world premiered at Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival to great acclaim.

6 PM. Saturday, 25th March 2023. Cineplex Mississauga

Hawa - Bangladesh

HAWA by Mejbaur Rahman Sumon – BANGLADESH

The film depicts the journey of an all-men team on a fishing trawler, eventually where the mystery of life and relationships gets re-interpreted. The usual fishing mission of a group of seasoned boatmen of Cox's Bazar finds an unheard-of catch in the deep of the sea. They caught a beautiful yet mysterious young girl and then entered the world of men on the boat. The story of the film is based on a fairy tale.

25th March, 2023. 9 PM at the Cineplex Mississauga.

Doda - Pakistan

DODA by Adil Bizanjo (International Premiere) – PAKISTAN

This first feature revolves around a former boxer DODA from a small town. The film goes through the journey of Doda, and how he can survive and overcome his past and make things right once again. The Balochi language film is an attempt to push Baloch representation in the film industry.

Saturday, the 25th of March at 6 PM at the Living Arts Centre Mississauga.

Powai - India

POWAI by Kuldip Patel - INDIA

Powai is a triptych of stories about three women from diverse socio-economic backgrounds living in the titular developing suburb of Mumbai - a domestic worker, a govt preschool teacher and a software professional. As they struggle to realize their aspirations and claim their autonomy in a fast-changing, male-dominated, chaotic and often unforgiving urban landscape, their lives intersect in small, unexpected ways.

Sunday 26th of March at 6:30 PM at the Cineplex Mississauga.

What's Love Got To Do With It? - UK

What’s Love Got To Do With It by Shekhar Kapur – UNITED KINGDOM

Set between London and Lahore, a filmmaker documents her childhood friend and neighbour's arranged marriage to a bride from Pakistan. The film stars Academy Award winning actress Emma Thompson, Indian parallel cinema diva Shabana Azmi and beloved British star Lily James.

Closing film will start at 8 PM on the 26th of March 2023 at the Cineplex Mississauga.

Documentries

An Act of Worship - USA

Director: Nausheen Dadabhoy

AN ACT OF WORSHIP is a polyphonic portrait of the last 30 years of Muslim life in America. Told through the lens of Muslims living in the United States, the film offers a counter-narrative of pivotal moments in U.S. history and explores the impact of anti-Muslim rhetoric and policy on young Muslims who came of age after 9/11. Due to their first-hand knowledge and intimate access to the Muslim community, the filmmaking team is able to take charge of the account, which has previously been shaped by outsiders.

4:30 PM Saturday 25th if March 2023. Living Arts Centre

Exegesis: Lovecraft - Canada

Director: Qais Pasha

A cathartic journey that Qais Pasha, a Pakistani-Canadian filmmaker embarks on as he traces the life of cult author H.P. Lovecraft, from woodland cemeteries in Rhode Island, to the docks of New York and on to the cobbled stone streets of Quebec City.
A head first dive into the division at the heart of weird fiction, wherein Qais encounters everything from Lovecraft’s ghost to the various writers, artists and researchers battling over the soul of Lovecraft’s legacy. Was he a misunderstood genius whose work holds the key to understanding the modern world and it’s ills? Or was he a hateful nihilist whose writing encourages division?
A documentary that proves that the truth is weirder than fiction.

Friday 24th March 2023 at 12 PM at the Living Arts Centre.

While We Watched - India

Director: Vinay Shukla

A turbulent newsroom drama intimately chronicling the working days of broadcast journalist Ravish Kumar as he navigates a spiraling world of truth and disinformation. As factual reporting is in freefall globally, ‘While We Watched’ is a dignified lens into the abyss.

12:00 PM. Sunday, 26th March 2023 at the Cineplex Mississauga.

To Kill A Tiger - Canada

Director: Nisha Pahuja

Ranjit, a farmer in India, takes on the fight of his life when he demands justice for his 13-year-old daughter, the victim of a brutal gang rape. His decision to support his daughter is virtually unheard of, and his journey unprecedented.

Friday 24th of March at 7:45 PM at the Cineplex Mississauga. Director in attendance. Presented by the Reelworld Film Festival.

Still Standing - Italy

Director: Mirko Pincelli

As the homeland of the Indus-Valley Civilisation, the Sindh region of Pakistan is one of the cradles of human civilisation. It was also the only region of Pakistan left undivided by the Partition of 1947. That same year, the Sindhi Diaspora emerged: Sindhi Hindus fled Pakistan for India and other countries, while Muslims from all over India fled into Pakistan, with large numbers reaching Sindh. Suddenly, the Sindhi community found itself to be a minority.

Still Standing searches for the footprints of those who left, as well as digging into the stories of those who remained. A tale of nationalism, radicalisation, and division in a land which, once upon a time, was home to florid cultures and peaceful coexistence.

5:30 PM. Saturday, 24th March 2023. Living Arts Centre

Shorts

It was a tough year for the shorts programmers. There were too many excellent films and not enough slots for them. There are three international shorts programs and one Canadian shorts program. Some of the mid-length films are going to be screening on their own. Please consult the schedule for timings. Some films will not have an actual screening as they are available online.

Shorts 1

The Good News

Director: Danish Renzu

My Mother's Daughter

Director: Ahmen Khawaja

Murmurs of the Jungle

Director: Sohil Vidya

Have You Forgotten Me?

Director: Baljit Sangra

My Body Your Choice

Director: Areeba Naveed

Aurat March’s slogan “Mera Jism Meri Marzi” / “My body, my choice” is the feminist slogan that actually has different meanings to different generations in Pakistan. The film explores those divisions across three generations.

Shorts 2

Muhafiz

Director: Pradipta Ray

Crazy For Bollywood

Director: Imran J Khan

Footprints

Director: Tathagata Ghosh

Haqeer

Director: Fareez Aziz

Stay With Me A Little While

Director: Sheheryar Sardar

Farhan and Aadhya have been together for years, but a mental health crisis brings their relationship to the brink.

Shorts 3

Murder Tongue

Director: Ali Sohail Jaura

Baked Beans

Director: Matt Ayleigh

Brown Elephant

Director: Fawzia Mirza

Kripamanch

Director: Prashant Verma

Canadian Shorts

The Canadian shorts are presented with BIPOC FILM & TV. There will be a Q & A following the film presentations. 26th of March 2023 at the Cineplex Cinema at 3:30 PM.

PLEASE NOTE: Angel Dose, Marginalizing Minorities and Chinna Chinna Aasai will be presented on the 25th of March 2023 at the Living Arts Centre starting at 1 PM.

Chinna Chinna Aasai

Director: Santhosh Jay, Sabareesh Subramaniam

An ambitious young woman trapped in an archaic village decides to shed the limitations of her coveted long hair for a chance at a life on her own terms.

Screens on the 25th of March, 2023 at the Living Arts Centre at 3:00 PM.

The Love We Made

Director: V.T. Nayani

Following a miscarriage, two lovers struggle to find the right words to share between them. Through moments of both private joy and grief, their story reflects the uniquely heartbreaking nature of a miscarriage, and all that is lost amidst this type of loss.

Imran and Alykhan

Director: Shakil Jessa

Please view the film on the CBC GEM app online

Beneath Us

Director: Faisal Lutchmedial
An undocumented mother and her child hide from ICE when the factory she is working at is raided.

Hills and Mountains

Director: Salar Pashtoonyar

Shooting on location in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, director Salar Pashtoonyar uses a thought-provoking yet powerfully humane hybrid of documentary and fiction to delve deep into the experience of a woman forced to the edge by society.

Have You Forgotten Me?

Director: Baljit Sangra

Baljit Sangra shines a light on North American's oldest running Sikh Temple and the struggle it represents.

Hindsight

Director: Shubhi Sahni

A fleeting retrospect of a young woman who develops a chronic illness over the course of 2020.

Desi Standard Time Travel

Director: Kashif Pasta

When a new father suddenly loses his own dad, an opportunity to travel back in time for an evening gives him a chance to end things on a better note.

Starring Adolyn Dar (The Expanse), Ali Kazmi (Funny Boy), and Anika Zulfikar.

Lohri

Director: Virinderpaul Singh

A husband (Jaskaran Singh) and wife (Aman Buttar) try to celebrate their daughter’s birth while dealing with his alcoholism, toxic masculinity, and the culture’s negative attitude towards women.

Marginalizing Minorities

Director: Dipti Gupta

As India continues its shift to the right, this documentary shares vignettes of discussions with various grassroots artists, activists, historians and people representing the majority, as the country spoke up against the proposed discriminatory citizenship laws in India in 2019-2020. Documented before the COVID pandemic, the government of India has since withdrawn the proposed laws, but the battle for justice and the identity of the Indian nation continues.

Screens on the 25th of March at the Living Arts Centre at 2 PM

Angel Dose

Director: Sami Khan

ANGEL DOSE is an urgent chronicle of Philadelphia-based nurse Tarik Khan’s (no relation) attempts to vaccinate his city as vaccine hesitancy and new variants threaten to unleash yet another wave of suffering. Offering one of the first homebound vaccination programs in the entire United States, Tarik, and his friend Anna Perng, volunteer their time to step up and protect the most vulnerable.

Screens on the 25th of March at the Living Arts Centre at 1 PM

Slam, Dunk , Sehaj!

Director: Asis Sethi

Set in her ways as a stay at home mom, Sehaj revisits her dream of playing basketball, despite her traditional husband being completely against it, but when she is pushed too hard, she pushes back to re-discover herself.

There Are No Children Here

Director: Shehrezade Mian

While attending the dholki at her cousins house, Saima experiences a traumatic event and turns to the women in her life for guidance, learning some hard life lessons.