Film: "What Will People Say"
A first-generation Norwegian teen clashes with the traditional values of her Pakistani émigré parents in this compelling coming-of-age drama.
Sixteen-year-old Nisha lives a double life. At home with her conservative Pakistani family she is the perfect, compliant daughter. But when out with her friends, she is a typical Norwegian teenager, partying and exploring relationships. When her father discovers her with a boy in her room, the only way for him to restore the family honor in the eyes of their emigré community is to make an example of her. He forcibly removes her from Oslo’s corrupting Western influence and sends her to live with relatives in Pakistan. She starts to appreciate some of the simple joys of her new home—flying kites, visiting the market, her handsome cousin…but the slightest deviation from her family’s strict rules could have dire consequences.
This semi-autobiographical film from Norwegian-Pakistani filmmaker Iram Haq offers complex portraits of a proud, but conflicted father and a strong-willed daughter caught between two cultures, trying to live on her own terms.
D: Iram Haq, Norway, subtitled, 2018, 1h46m
