Bangladeshi films ‘Dui Shaw’, ‘Saba’ nominated at Raindance Film Festival

Two Bangladeshi films have been officially selected for the 33rd edition of the Raindance Film Festival in the United Kingdom. Nuhash Humayun's "Dui Shaw" and Maksud Hossain's "Saba" will be screened under the Narrative Feature category at the prestigious event.

Nuhash previously won the Jury Award for Best International Feature Film at the 2023 edition of Raindance for his Chorki Original anthology series "Pett Kata Shaw". The nominated "Dui Shaw" is the second instalment of that series, which was released on Chorki last year.

Speaking about the nomination, Nuhash shared that he had known about it for some time. When asked whether he would attend the festival, he said, "Several festivals are scheduled during the same period, so I'm not sure if I'll be able to attend in the UK. But I'm happy with the nomination."

Meanwhile, "Saba", which marks Maksud Hossain's debut as a feature director, has also been nominated for the Discovery Award. On receiving the news, the director said, "The journey of 'Saba' has been a long one. It feels great to receive the Raindance nomination. Our film will compete alongside several significant international titles, which is an honour. We're looking forward to sharing the experience with audiences and critics alike."

Earlier, speaking to Prothom Alo, Nuhash noted that "Dui Shaw" explores modern-day horrors beyond folklore and superstition. "Today, social fears have surpassed the fear of ghosts—both at home and abroad. These fears have haunted people for generations. With 'Dui Shaw', I tried to uncover the darker side of the human psyche." 

The film features four stories and stars Afzal Hossain, Mosharraf Karim, Sumaiya Shimu, Kazi Nowshaba Ahmed, among others.

On the other hand, "Saba" is based on the aftermath of a road accident that took place two decades ago. The story follows a 12-year-old girl and her mother—both survivors of the crash. While the girl suffers emotional trauma, the mother becomes wheelchair-bound. The film's narrative progresses through the impact of that incident. 

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