ISLAMABAD: The Swiss embassy and Fatima Jinnah Women University (FJWU) hosted the screening of an interfaith soccer documentary that put a spot light on women soccer players.

The jointly organised special screening was held at the FJWU auditorium in Rawalpindi.

Swiss Ambassador Georg Steiner, in a keynote speech, accentuated the need for further uplifting the women of Pakistan. He emphasised the need to engage women, especially university students, to capitalise on their talent through such interactive dialogues.

The filmmaker of award-winning documentary,Barefoot with Godfather of Soccer – Unwanted but Undaunted, Khalid Hasan Khan introduced the documentary project, which encompassed the young underprivileged footballers, especially sportswomen from different faiths and social classes of Pakistan.

The documentary focused on young sportswomen, who narrated their stories of discrimination on the field. The football players from Bannu in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa shared their experiences of keeping their passion alive despite threats of terrorism. Similarly, soccer players from poor neighbourhoods from Lyari aka Harlem of Karachi, had their own heart-wrenching stories.

Khalid Hasan Khan shared how the stories of unsung womenfolk and young footballers went into oblivion when they got unfair treatment due to ethnic, religious and gender biases.

“Football is not just a sport but it is a gel that bridges the gap between people of different faiths and social classes along with providing a healthy entertainment to the new generation by eliminating intolerance and class difference from the society. Barefoot doesn’t mean you can’t go far,” Mr Khan said while describing the production as an interfaith soccer documentary with inspirational stories.

The event was attended by the dean, department heads of the FJWU and the Swiss embassy officials, which included an engaging question and answer session. Khalid Hasan Khan is an award-winning filmmaker, a graduate from New York Film Academy, Los Angeles, California. His maiden documentary, An Early Sunset, was telecast on Ten Sports TV channel. His debut psycho-thriller feature film HOTAL won two awards from the Delhi International Film Festival.

The filmmaker had won 12 international awards for unmasking a short film on vaccine hesitancy to mention some of his achievements.

Published in Dawn, March 14th, 2024