Film Screening of “Hava, Maryam, Ayesha”

 Film synopsis:

Three Afghan women from different social backgrounds, living in Kabul, are facing a big challenge in their lives. Hava, a traditional pregnant woman whom no one cares about, is living with her father and mother in law. Her only joy is talking to the baby in her belly. Maryam, an educated TV news reporter, is about to get a divorce from her unfaithful husband, but finds out she is pregnant. Ayesha, an 18-year-old girl accepts to marry her cousin because she is pregnant with her boyfriend's child, who has disappeared after hearing the news. Each of them has to solve her problem by herself for the first time.

 

Sahraa Karimi is an award-winning Afghan-Slovak film director, screenwriter, and university lecturer whose work focuses on women’s rights and social justice. She earned her Doctorate in Film Studies from the Film and Television Faculty of the Academy of Music and Performing Arts in Bratislava, Slovakia. Karimi is best known for her feature film Hava, Maryam, Ayesha, which premiered at the Venice Film Festival and was selected as Afghanistan’s official submission to the Academy Awards. She also served as the first female chairperson of Afghan Film, the country’s national film organization. Following the return of the Taliban to power in 2021, Karimi was forced into exile and has continued her creative and academic work internationally. She is currently developing her next feature film, Flight from Kabul, an international co-production involving the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Italy, Finland, and Germany. Sahraa is currently a lecturer in Film and Media Studies at Yale University.

 

Zarqa Yaftali is an internationally recognized peacebuilder, women’s rights advocate, and legal expert committed to advancing education, justice, and women’s empowerment in Afghanistan and globally. Since 2009, she has served as Executive Director of the Women and Children Legal Research Foundation (WCLRF), leading legal reform, research, and advocacy to strengthen women’s rights, access to education,  justice, and the Women, Peace and Security agenda. In 2023, she founded the Women and Children Research and Advocacy Network (WCRAN) in Canada to expand global advocacy and innovative education initiatives for Afghanistan women and girls. She has twice briefed the United Nations Security Council about situation of Afghnaistan women and serves as Co-Chair of the Women, Peace and Security Working Group, Board Member of Women Living Under Muslim Laws, and member of the  ICAN, and the Malala Fund’s Education Champion Network.

Ms. Yaftali is also the Founder of Kabul Online School, a high-capacity virtual academy providing structured digital education for girls in Grades 7–12 in Afghanistan. Built as a professional online campus with rigorous standards, live instruction, verified academic records, and credible transcripts

She received the 2019 N-Peace Award and the 2026 Zayed Award for Human Fraternity.

 

A discussion and Q&A following the screening took place with Sahraa Karimi and Zarqa Yaftali.