The Breadwinner: Afghan Cuisine & Film!

This Event was made possible by generous support from The Arts Council of Windham County Town Arts Fund. Rated PG-13, the film is recommended by Common Sense Media for audiences 11+ (The age of the film's heroine) .

Established in 2014, ArtLords is a grassroots movement of artists and volunteers motivated by the desire to pave the way for social transformation and behavioral change through employing the soft power of art and culture as a non-intrusive approach. Based in Kabul, Afghanistan, they have painted more than 2,100 murals and gained international recognition, including from the United Nations. Recently, a group of Afghani refugees participating in the ArtLords movement, Negina, Abdullah, Meetra, Zuhra, and Marwa, resettled in here in Brattleboro (they use their first names in the press for legal protections). This group of exceptional artists are currently bringing their talent and expertise to the High Street Mural project transforming a dilapidated wall downtown in collaboration with local artists.

Afghani Cuisine Offered at Tonight's Event:

• Bolani is a stuffed flatbread from Afghanistan, usually filled with a mix of potatoes, cilantro, and green peppers, but it can also be filled with pumpkin, red lentils, or chives. It is usually served with a green chutney and enjoyed as a side dish, or as a snack with a cup of tea.
• Manto is one of the most popular Afghani foods, dumplings of seasoned beef and onions, tucked away in a tender wrapper, and topped with an herby yogurt or tomato sauce.
• Served with Chatni, a flavorful cilantro-based chutney.

Curator Bio:

Abdullah was born in Panjshir, Afghanistan, migrated to Pakistan and grew up there, where he studied painting, traditional calligraphy, Persian Miniatures, learned and taught English as a second language and graduated from high school. He moved back to Kabul Afghanistan, completed his bachelor degree in computer science as well as worked as an IT Trainer for three years. He also painted wall murals with themes of social transformation and peace building with the artist collective, Artlords as a part-time profession.  When the Taliban took over the control of Kabul, he had to flee and found himself in Brattleboro, Vermont. He’s now rebuilding his life and finding new ways to make cross cultural collaborative murals with different regional artists using different mediums. He is also producing individual personal artwork using oil, acrylic and other mediums using different genres.

Why Abdullah chose the film "The Breadwinner"

"This film depicts some of the current situation of Afghanistan. So I selected this film for screening to use it as a tool to be the voice of Afghanistan's people. Because people in Afghanistan are not in safe hands right now. The story of this film narrates about the mid and late 90's era but it is the same as the 90s' again right now, where the Taliban are suppressing women, not allowing them to get education and to work. Just stay at home! People are fighting for their really basic rights. Men are forced to  wear traditional clothes and keep their beards. People are suffering through poverty and hunger. They do not have jobs . Many industries have fallen down like the film industry. There is no art, art is evil for them. People including children's' studies and educations are mostly focused on religious subjects which can impact the children's mentality against non-Muslim and west and keep their head very conservative and bounded in a box. Because the subjects narrate very ill and wrong information. Everyday Taliban create new rules and impose them on the people which are for their own benefits in order to stop people from speaking against them. People are going through a lot of mental and psychological disorders because Taliban force people to do most of the things, even the very personal things of their lives."

"This film also narrates the history of Afghanistan through the storytelling of father to his daughter, the girl to his little brother and best friend and why this land has been used for war and battle. It also shows the very warmth and gathering of families, the love and care of parents for their children, the relation of a father with his daughters the old Kabul, the little quarrels between sisters, the story telling, friendship, bravery of women and the little girl, the stand up and never give up of people against every hard moment and still having hope for the future."