The story of a teenage Pakistani girl, who gathers courage to stand up against the discriminatory male-dominated system, continues to resonate with film and art critics as ‘A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness,’ won the Emmy Award as the Best Documentary.
Last year, Pakistani filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy’s film had won an Oscar, her second.
“A 17-year-old girl had the bravery to stand up and a commitment to fight a system. And because of that a law was changed in Pakistan. And you had newspapers and channels reporting honor killings in a different way,” Chinoy said, passionately speaking about the cause dear to her heart.
“So, it only took the commitment of one single person to do that,” she said after receiving the award for her production at Lincoln Center’s Frederick P. Rose Hall in New York City on Thursday.
Chinnoy credited the entire HBO production team for the acclaim the documentary has won.
Pakistan’s Ambassador to the UN Dr. Maleeha Lodhi congratulated Chinoy on adding another feather to her cap.
Delighted that Sharmeen's film won such an imp Emmy award @sharmeenochinoy pic.twitter.com/xyoAh8NDl0
— Maleeha Lodhi (@LodhiMaleeha) October 6, 2017
A Girl in the River tells the story of a woman who faces immense hardships, in fact, the ultimate risk to her life but escapes miraculously after she is thrown into the river.
The story of the Pakistani woman Saba Qaiser, who survives a chilling honor killing attempt by her father and uncle after she marries against their wishes, triggered an intense debate in the Pakistani society.
Human rights organizations say hundreds of women are killed in deeply conservative parts of Pakistan in the name of honor every year.
Efforts by civil society organizations and media discussions on the social ill have made the Parliament pass legislation to protect women against the inhuman practice.
