Moshari

Moshari
Poster
Bengaliমশারি
Directed byNuhash Humayun
Written byNuhash Humayun
Screenplay byNuhash Humayun
Produced by
  • Bushra Afreen
  • Nuhash Humayun
Starring
Music by
  • Dameer Khan
  • Sng Ye Min
Distributed by
Release date
  • 13 March 2022 (2022-03-13) (SXSW)
Running time
22 mins
CountryBangladesh
LanguageBengali

Moshari (lit. 'The mosquito net') is a 2022 Bangladeshi horror short film directed by Nuhash Humayun and produced by Little Big Films. Set in a fictitious world in the future, the film features Sunerah Binte Kamal, Nairah Onora Saif and Moyed Bhuiyan in lead roles.

Synopsis

This short film depicts a futuristic world where monsters are rampant and mankind has disappeared from all parts of the world except Dhaka. In that city, two sisters Apu and Ayra spend their nights inside a mosquito net to protect themselves from monsters. One night Ayra comes out of the mosquito net and is attacked by a monster. Her sister Apu comes forward to save her.[1]

Cast

Production

Nuhash Humayun produced the film in 2019 to be sent to film festivals.[2] This is the debut film of Nairah Onora Saif, who is the daughter of Shila Ahmed, sister of Nuhash.[3] In November 2022, Jordan Peele and Riz Ahmed joined as executive producers of the film on the behalf of Monkeypaw Productions and Left Handed Films respectively.[4]

Release

The film had its release on 13 March 2022 at South by Southwest.[2] On 15 October, 2022, Moshari was made available via Vimeo.[5][6] It was also screened at Marché du Film, Indie Meme Film festival,[7] Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles[5] and Sitges Film Festival in the same year.[8]

Reception

Critical response

According to Fatin Hamama of The Daily Star, the film is the perfect representation of a society where women become victims of the patriarchy.[9] Remnant Glimpses wrote, "As much as Moshari looks like a great horror movie, understanding its underlying message will also find relevance to today's society. Which makes the content even more enjoyable".[10] Panos Kotzathanasis of Asianmoviepulse.com thinks that the director wanted to show real issues such as climate change through metaphors. Through the line "I can't breathe" in the film, the filmmaker accuses the authorities of being responsible for these issues.[11] Siffat Bin Ayub of The Business Standard praised the filmmaking.[12] Calling it "the most visually striking short in Bangladesh", T. Aumia Khundkar of Ice Today also praised the film.[13] However, according to Siam Raihan of The Business Post, the film couldn’t evoke a sense of horror in the audiences. He criticised what he described as its mediocre screenplay and poor dialogue delivery.[6]

Accolades

List of awards and nominations
Organization Year Category Recipients & nominees Result Ref.(s)
South by Southwest 2022 Midnight short Nuhash Humayun Won [2]
HollyShorts Film Festival Best horror film Won [7]
Atlanta Film Festival Best Narrative Short Won [14]
Melbourne International Film Festival Best short fiction Won [8]
Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival Jury's Choice award Won [15]
Woodstock Film Festival Narrative film Won [16]
Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia Best Short and Governor of Tokyo Award Won [12]
Mark Braunstein Award Best Narrative Short Won

References

  1. ^ "Story". Moshari. Archived from the original on 5 October 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
  2. ^ a b c "আন্তর্জাতিক উৎসবে পুরস্কৃত নুহাশের 'মশারি'" [Nuhash's 'Mashari' awarded at international festival]. Banglanews24.com (in Bengali). 16 March 2022. Archived from the original on 16 March 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2022.
  3. ^ "'মশারি' বানালেন নুহাশ, ভেতরে আছেন সুনেরাহ" [Nuhash made 'Moshari', Sunerah is inside]. Samakal (in Bengali). 5 February 2022. Archived from the original on 20 October 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
  4. ^ Yossman, KJ (28 November 2022). "Jordan Peele, Riz Ahmed to Executive Produce Nuhash Humayun's Live-Action Short 'Moshari' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on 28 November 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
  5. ^ a b Sashi, Sabiha Jaman (17 October 2022). "ঝুঁকি নিয়ে মশারী বানিয়েছিলেন নুহাশ" [Nuhash producer produced Moshari with risk]. Bonik Barta (in Bengali). Archived from the original on 16 October 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
  6. ^ a b Ahmed, Siam (22 October 2022). "'Moshari' film review: Visually striking but boring". Businesspostbd.com. Archived from the original on 27 February 2023. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
  7. ^ a b "'মশারি' দিয়ে এবার যুক্তরাষ্ট্র থেকে এল সুখবর" [Good news came from the United States with 'Moshari']. Prothom Alo (in Bengali). 21 August 2022. Archived from the original on 22 August 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
  8. ^ a b "Nuhash Humayun's 'Moshari' shines again in Oscar-qualifying film festivals". The Business Standard. 21 August 2022. Archived from the original on 31 October 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
  9. ^ Hamama, Fatin (16 October 2022). "'Moshari': A chilling narrative on the reality of women". The Daily Star. Archived from the original on 8 November 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
  10. ^ Akbar, Pratik (16 October 2022). "নুহাশের 'মশারি' থ্রিলের সঙ্গে ভাবনাও দেবে" [Nuhash's 'Moshari' will also give thought along with thrill]. Newsbangla24.com (in Bengali). Archived from the original on 16 October 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
  11. ^ Kotzathanasis, Panos (24 July 2022). "Fantasia Short Film Review: Moshari (2022) by Nuhash Humayun". Asianmoviepulse.com. Archived from the original on 26 July 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
  12. ^ a b Bin Ayub, Siffat (25 October 2022). "Moshari: A layered horror short subtly questioning certain norms of society". The Business Standard. Archived from the original on 18 November 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
  13. ^ Khundkar, T. Aumia (23 November 2022). "Moshari Film Review: The Beginning of a New Era". Ice Today. Archived from the original on 30 November 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
  14. ^ "Nuhash's 'Moshari' wins Atlanta Film Fest Jury Award". Businesspostbd.com. 14 May 2022. Archived from the original on 27 February 2023. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
  15. ^ "'Moshari' wins Jury's Choice award at Bucheon International Film Festival". The Daily Star. 14 July 2022. Archived from the original on 21 August 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
  16. ^ Morfoot, Addie (2 October 2022). "'Last Flight Home,' 'As Far as They Can Run' Take Top Nonfiction Honors at Woodstock Film Festival 2022". Variety. Archived from the original on 14 December 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2023.