We close the last session of the festival on May 7 at Radio City with a highly varied line-up, from experimental shorts like “Boundless” to historical dramas like “Emotional Architecture 1959.” Among them, Raúl Lorite, a member of this year’s jury, wanted to bring us a little closer to “Birani” by Ashique Mostafa, one of the films selected for the occasion and about which he presents us with the following review:
At the end of the 80s, Spain was flooded with advertising posters with a dog in the middle of the road and an unforgettable phrase that read: “He would never do it. Don’t give it up.” This campaign did not eradicate the problem of abandonment, which unfortunately still persists, but it did establish the act as an abomination in the collective imagination. Because the dog is incapable of such a thing while the human being is.
It could be said that Birani is not a paragon of virtues; he spends the day asleep in the warmth of the sun’s rays. But what is special about Birani is not only that it gives its name to the latest short film by Ashique Mostafa, but that it is the only company that has the protagonist of it. And that in a country like Bangladesh, where dogs are considered impure beings and where tens of thousands roam the streets, thanks to the power of cinema, makes him the dog of all of us.
The fate of a stray dog in a society as turbulent as Bangladesh can be irrelevant, as much as the dignity of a man who does not abandon the one he loves. And any self-respecting society cannot be sustained by unworthy men.
“Birani” by Ashique Mostafa, along with the rest of the programmed short films, can be seen on May 7 at the Radio City International Short Film Festival. Admission is free.
Raúl Lorite