“Impressive. . . . One of several recent docus that give credence to the old feminist saw that if women were given power, they would speedily put an end to war” (Ronnie Scheib, Variety). Filmed over three years during the most historic and pivotal time in Nepal’s modern history, The Sari Soldiers is an extraordinary story of six women’s courageous efforts to shape Nepal’s future in the midst of an escalating civil war against Maoist insurgents, and the King’s crackdown on civil liberties. When Devi, mother of a fifteen-year-old girl, witnesses her niece being tortured and murdered by the Royal Nepal Army, she speaks publicly about the atrocity. The army abducts her daughter in retaliation, and Devi embarks on a three-year struggle to uncover her daughter’s fate and see justice done. The Sari Soldiers follows her and five other brave women, including Maoist Commander Kranti; Royal Nepal Army Officer Rajani; Krishna, a monarchist from a rural community who leads a rebellion against the Maoists; Mandira, a human rights lawyer; and Ram Kumari, a young student activist organizing the protests to establish democracy. The Sari Soldiers intimately delves into the extraordinary journey of these women on all sides of the conflict, through the democratic revolution that reshapes the country’s future. – Human Rights Watch International Film festival

Julie Bridgham will introduce tonight’s screening.

Rated 14A