{"id":642913,"date":"2026-10-11T06:24:08","date_gmt":"2026-10-11T06:24:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/642913\/"},"modified":"2026-10-11T06:24:08","modified_gmt":"2026-10-11T06:24:08","slug":"pakistans-wakhri-rolls-out-in-france-u-k-australia-and-brazil","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/642913\/","title":{"rendered":"Pakistan’s ‘Wakhri’ Rolls Out in France, U.K., Australia and Brazil"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tIram Parveen Bilal<\/a>\u2019s award-winning Pakistani thriller \u201cWakhri<\/a>\u201d has landed distribution in several international territories. Its theatrical and broadcast releases are rolling out this fall across France, the U.K. and Ireland, Australia and Brazil, and more territories will follow over the coming months.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn France, the film is heading to cinemas this October through Salon Indien, a traveling film society devoted to South Asian women filmmakers. Curatorial platform Contre-courants has partnered with Fran\u00e7ois-Xavier Durandy to launch the initiative, which will take its selections to venues around the country.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe film draws on Pakistani women who have stood up to the patriarchy, among them social media star Qandeel Baloch<\/a>. Baloch was murdered by her brother in 2016 for what he deemed bringing dishonor on the family through online posts that would be considered mild by Western standards. \u201cWakhri\u201d rests on strong turns from two first-time leads: Faryal Mehmood as Noor, a young widow raising money to open a girls\u2019 school, and Gulshan Majeed as Gucchi, her cross-dressing best friend.<\/p>\n

\n\tHelene Kessous, who co-founded Salon Indien with Nemesis Srour, said \u201cWakhri\u201d was among the society\u2019s first selections. \u201cFunny, defiant and necessary, Iram Parveen Bilal\u2019s film explores what social media offers to those who dare to speak out, and what it costs them. It belonged in this program from the start.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tBilal, who wrote, directed and co-produced the film, said a French theatrical run was a dream come true. \u201cWe searched and waited for the right partners for a film too special to fit a cookie-cutter distribution model. \u2018Wakhri\u2019 is a unique and daring representation of Pakistani cinema, and we are excited to break the mold of the usually expected cinematic fare from the Global South,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\n\tAbid Aziz Merchant of Sanat Initiative, one of the film\u2019s producers, said the French release proved the story could not be shut down. \u201cIt is about the cost of a woman daring to take up space, a conversation that resonates far beyond Pakistan. We are delighted to find our French audience through Salon Indien. For a film inspired by Qandeel Baloch\u2019s courage to be part of a traveling showcase championing South Asian women directors, in a country that truly cherishes cinema, is a proud moment for Pakistani cinema and the right next chapter for \u2018Wakhri,\u2019\u201d Merchant said.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn the U.K., \u201cWakhri\u201d is part of Channel 4\u2019s 2026 South Asian Film Season. It sits alongside \u201cAll We Imagine as Light\u201d and \u201cSongs of Forgotten Trees,\u201d and is available to watch on the broadcaster this October. SBS has acquired the film for Australia, and Filmicca has picked it up for Brazil.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIndependent films are built on conviction, collaboration and inventive co-production models that enable meaningful distribution journeys. We are excited to see \u2018Wakhri,\u2019 our big-hearted and critically acclaimed independent production, continue to connect with audiences seeking distinctive cinema. Our regional partners are extending the film\u2019s visibility, relevance and release life. This long-tail approach allows singular stories to travel on their own terms and build enduring audiences worldwide,\u201d said Apoorva Bakshi of Awedacious Originals, also a producer on the film.<\/p>\n

\n\tBilal is a producer on Pakistan\u2019s \u201cDancers,\u201d which is currently participating in the Busan International Film Festival\u2019s Asian Project Market. <\/a><\/p>\n

\n\tReleases in North America and other markets are expected in the months ahead.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Iram Parveen Bilal\u2019s award-winning Pakistani thriller \u201cWakhri\u201d has landed distribution in several international territories. Its theatrical and broadcast…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":642914,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[289448,22260,146,85,289495,46,289496],"class_list":["post-642913","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-asian-project-market","tag-busan-international-film-festival","tag-entertainment","tag-il","tag-iram-parveen-bilal","tag-israel","tag-wakhri"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/642913","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=642913"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/642913\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/642914"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=642913"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=642913"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=642913"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}