Date:12/12/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/12/12/stories/2008121257860200.htm

Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram

‘Laila’s Birthday’ to open IFFK

Staff Reporter

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A former judge wanting to buy a birthday gift for his young daughter might not seem stuff enough for a movie. But juxtapose this simple theme with the settings of a land riven by conflict where the absurdities of life have transformed the judge to a taxi driver, and the subject indeed becomes fuel enough for a film.

‘Laila’s Birthday,’ Palestinian director Rashid Masharawi’s compelling tale picking out a single day in the life of taxi driver and former judge Abu Laila, will be the opening film at the 13th International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) beginning here on Friday. Masharawi has attempted to address the larger political and humanitarian issue of life in a conflicted land through his latest film.

“Laila’s Birthday is a very simple film dealing with contemporary issues in Palestinian society in the backdrop of its conflict with Israel. It basically gives a perception of Palestinian society and their attempts of resistance,” Chalachitra Academy chairman K.R. Mohanan said.

Rather than address international issues and wars, the Gaza-born director has chosen to depict a rather self-critical portrayal of the frustrations of Palestinian society in the wake of its lingering conflict with Israel. Masharawi has spent some of his formative years in U.N. refugee camps in Gaza. Arab actor and filmmaker Mohammed Bakri plays the role of Abu Laila in the film.