Bangladesh is witnessing a rare moment on the international film festival circuit. Rubaiyat Hossain’s fourth feature, The Difficult Bride, has embarked on an unprecedented global journey after making history with its world premiere in the Orizzonti Competition at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival.
Within just one month, the film has been invited to nine major festivals across Europe, North America and Asia. No Bangladeshi feature film has previously had such an extensive festival run.
Rubaiyat Hossain previously directed Meherjaan (2011), Under Construction (2015) and Made in Bangladesh (2019). Made in Bangladesh was screened at the Toronto International Film Festival, while Rubaiyat won the National Film Award for Best Director for the film. The Difficult Bride is her fourth feature.
Festival journey at a glance
82nd Venice International Film Festival, Italy — Orizzonti Competition | World Premiere
50th Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), Canada — Centrepiece | North American Premiere | 16, 17 and 18 September
Vancouver International Film Festival, Canada — Panorama | 1–11 October
58th Sitges International Fantastic Film Festival, Spain — Noves Visions Competition | Spanish Premiere | 9–18 October
70th BFI London Film Festival, UK — Official Competition | In contention for Best Film | 7–18 October
La Roche-sur-Yon International Film Festival, France — French Premiere
62nd Chicago International Film Festival, USA — International Feature Competition | US Premiere
38th Tokyo International Film Festival, Japan — Main Competition | Asian Premiere
63rd Viennale, Vienna International Film Festival, Austria
At the centre of The Difficult Bride is Zainin, a lower-middle-class mother of two who regularly visits a beauty salon in Dhaka. There, she faces constant pressure to become fairer, slimmer and more “bride-like”.
Home remedies, charms, diets, makeovers, family expectations, society and television serials gradually turn her body into a product to be monitored and judged.
Rubaiyat explores how a woman’s body is constantly subjected to surveillance, judgement and control. The film asks what happens when that body learns to say “no”. It is not the story of a fairytale bride, but of a bride who refuses to conform.
The film grew out of an idea Rubaiyat has carried for seven years. When she was seven, she heard a story about a bride who died in a beauty salon in Dhaka. The incident stayed with her and eventually became the inspiration for the film.
The cast includes Jainin Chowdhury Karim, Rikita Nandini Shimu, Sunerah Binte Kamal, Azmeri Haque Badhan, Damer Khan, Shatabdi Wadud, Saberi Alam and Mohammad Bari.
The film is a co-production between Bangladesh’s Khona Talkies and partners in France, Portugal, Norway and Germany.
It received support from Eurimages of the Council of Europe; France’s CNC and Cinema du Monde; Portugal’s Instituto do Cinema e do Audiovisual; Italy’s Fondazione Prada Film Fund; Norway’s Sorfond; and Germany’s World Cinema Fund.
“I am truly grateful that the film is touching so many people. Festivals are important because people who attend them do not see cinema only as entertainment. They see it as a way of thinking about life differently. I am happy that within just one month, the film has reached such diverse audiences,” Rubaiyat said.
The Difficult Bride has brought a Bangladeshi woman filmmaker’s personal experience and questions about imposed beauty standards, the body and folk traditions to audiences across the world.
Its journey from genre cinema at Sitges to one of the world’s oldest film festivals in Venice reflects the wider relevance of those questions.
