Tales Of Banishanta
The film is a cinematic anthology on prostitution on Banishanta Island in Bangladesh where about 150 girls and women depend on the sex trade inside a state-licensed brothel on the banks of the river Pashur and constantly battle with bad weather and the climate. In Banishanta, men go to a ghetto of love to satisfy their unfulfilled desires on indentured girls. This is a world where the most intimate act has become a commodity. For this, the girls and women have always received money, but it has not made their lives rich in anything but stories.
Cast
- Reena
- Reena Akhter
- Popy
- Popy Begum
- Rupali
- Rupali Farzana
Tales Of Banishanta
Md Shahadat Hossain
- Documentary
- Production Country / Year
- Bangladesh 2024
- Language
- bn. OF mit en. UT
- Format
- DCP, Color, 66min
1.78:1 (16:9), Stereo PCM
- Original Title
- বানিশান্তার গল্প Tales Of Banishanta
Director & Crew
Md Shahadat Hossain
Born in 1982 in Narayanganj/Bangladesh. Worked as a photographer for an English newspaper in Bangladesh and as a cinematographer and producer. Active as a consulting filmmaker for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Filmography
2024 AATHA, Kurzfilm
TALES OF BANISHANTA, Dokumentarfilm HOF 2024
“Over the course of filming this film, we came to know our characters’ endured past, present trade, survival, and future dreams. The conflict of living in a brothel, declining sex-trade, and being shunned by the conservative patriarchal society shows the strength of these women’s character who dream of taking control of their future.
As a filmmaker, I devote myself to telling stories of people whose existence is ignored but whose services are not. I am always searching for better ways to apply my creative work that breaks the noose of isolating morality. For that, I have taken on the challenge to bring stories from the people whose voices need to be heard worldwide. I invite my audiences to join with me in questioning the ‘reductive paternalism’ which nurtures widespread contempt.”
Md Shahadat Hossain
- Director of Photography
- Md Shahadat Hossain
- Editor
- Sujan Mahmud
- Sound Designer
- Sujan Mahmud
- Executive Producer
- Himel Tariq
- Producer
- Md Shahadat Hossain