‘Mariyam’ screened at Italy’s Religion Today Film Festival

Chaitali Somadder’s short film “Mariyam” was recently screened at the 29th Religion Today Film Festival in Trento, Italy.

Produced and directed by Somadder with a grant from the Bangladesh government, the film has previously been screened at international festivals in Kolkata, Pune, Brussels, Senegal and Dhaka. It has also received two international awards.

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The film follows Mariyam, a teenage girl from a village whose life changes after she is found unconscious and injured near a river. Rashed, a hijra villager, discovers her while rowing his boat and brings her to her parents.

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The situation takes a further turn when a group of perpetrators records a video of the assault and circulates it online, causing the footage to spread among people in the village.

“Mariyam” explores the girl’s physical and psychological trauma, her parents’ distress and the social pressure surrounding the incident. The film also looks at the consequences of violence against a young woman within a close-knit rural community.

The film was named Best Short Film at the National Film Awards 2023, announced in 2026.

Most of the cast comprises theatre practitioners from Barishal and local residents. Jannatul Priti, Boishakhi Somadder and Saiful Islam Panna play the principal roles.

Somadder directed and produced the film.