Bigana (The Stranger)

<h2>Synopsis</h2> <p>Sanowbar, a village woman with a beautiful voice, sings folk songs while working the land with her husband, Morad. When the village chief brings a foreign guest and demands a private performance, Morad sees it as a violation of tradition and honour. Under pressure from the powerful landlord Homayun, Sanowbar is forced to sing. Torn between faith, custom, and pride, Morad makes a desperate choice…</p> <h2>About the Director</h2> <p>Siddiq Barmak was born in Panjshir, Afghanistan in 1962. He earned an MA in cinema from VGIK in Moscow in 1987. His debut feature, <em>Osama</em> (2003), received accolades at numerous prestigious festivals such as Cannes, Busan, and London. It was also named the Best Foreign-Language Film at the Golden Globe Awards in 2004. Barmak’s second movie, <em>Opium War</em> (2008), achieved recognition as the best film at international film festivals in Rome, Batumi, Pristina, Kish and various other film festivals. Barmak played a pivotal role in publishing <em>Cinema, </em>the first Aghani film magazine, and taught cinema at Kabul University. He is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as well as Netpac.</p>