Zero Bridge

Regent Square Theater: May 8 @ 12:00PM, May 15 @ 1:00PM

Passes not accepted on Opening/Closing Night. Please arrive at least 15 minutes ahead of start time to ensure availability of seating. Film schedule and Q & A's are subject to change.

2008/India & US/Director: Tariq Tapa/96 min
Cast: Mohamad Imran Tapa, Taniya Khan, Ali Mohommad Dar (Language: Urdu, subtitles in English)
Festivals and Awards: Best Film: Leeds International Film Festival and Hidden Gems Film Festival, Audience Award: Mumbai International Film Festival 
Tariq Tapa’s vérité-style debut feature is a hopeful portrayal of Diliwar, a 17-year-old masonry apprentice turned pick-pocket, anxious to leave behind his double life in Srinagar City. Under the guardianship of his stern uncle, Ali, who housed Dilawar after being abandoned by his adoptive mother, he steals and completes friends’ homework for cash to make ends meet. The first film from the region in 40 years, Zero Bridge is a precious insight into the current Kashmiri landscape through the eyes of a troubled youth.
Diliwar’s sly endeavors are brought to a head when he meets Bani, an intelligent woman who had just returned to Srinagar from America. He immediately knows Bani as one of his pick-pocketing victims, but his own identity goes largely undetected. The pair form a dubious friendship based on Bani’s offer to help Diliwar with the homework she believes is his and their mutual desire for a more fulfilling life beyond mere survival. With discreet plans to return to his mother in Delhi, Diliwar’s illegal activity becomes increasingly frequent and strategic, resulting in consequences that endanger both of their futures.
The harsh social aspects surrounding Diliwar’s difficult position are not forgotten within the story, rather highlighted in many cases. Tapa’s raw interest and concern for the Kashmiri condition is portrayed through the forlornness and ambiguity of Diliwar’s character set on the milieu of the contemporary India controlled region. In the vein of realism and authenticity, Zero Bridge toys with the idea of independence both for the directionless Dilawar and for the no-man’s-land of Kashmir, with focus on how past events affect the current dim realities of Diliwar and Bani.