Asmaa (Egypt; 2011)
Even though many armchair critics adamantly allege that the 2015 Tamil movie, 'Aruvi' was copied from this Egyptian movie, after watching it one can realise that it is all a fabricated lie. The only little thread of similarity between the two films is that AIDS and TV interviews form the backbone of the story.
It is a realistic drama depicting the plight of an HIV-positive single mother. Because of the social stigma that is attached to the disease, she has to keep illness a secret, even from her daughter. The society is quick to judge the victim on their sexual behaviour and quickly determines that their affliction is their own doing.
'Asmaa' is based on a real event.
Asmaa, an airport cleaner, is harassed by her employer for her medical report. After dodging it for quite a while, she has to cave. Her contract is terminated. Her finances dwindle. She has a daughter to educate and her medications to buy. In between all these, she has now to gallbladder problem that needs urgent surgery. She is on the operating table. She decides to do the conscientious thing by revealing her HIV status, which is not known to the surgeon. Hold behold, the surgeon cancels the surgery and sends her home. She continues to suffer from her bouts of colic.
Through her support group, she comes across a TV channel that wants to highlight her plight for a fee. She wants to find a doctor who would be willing to operate on her. The catch of the thing was that she could not hide her identity. After yoyoing on this, she finally appears on TV without revealing her face (but she did show it later on!).
Interspersed between the film are the flashbacks of her life story. We are told of an energetic, self-confident young lass growing up in the village who falls for the village hunk. After a market place squabble over a business area, she is slapped by a male trader. Asmaa was selling home-woven carpets. Asmaa's husband came in her defence, and a fistfight ensued. The Assailant died, and Asmaa's husband goes to jail. He acquired AIDS whilst in prison.
Quite a gripping story in the way that it is realistic in their approach to storytelling. In the real event, Asmaa never revealed her identity but had the surgery done overseas sponsored by an overseas donor. In the film version, the TV channel anonymously gives her funds for the operation to be done abroad. Her appearance on TV gives her newfound courage to face the public. The public perception never changed, but it gave her the self-confidence to meet the challenges. Somehow, what others felt did not matter anymore.
A review of another classic Egyptian movie
https://www.riflerangeboy.com/2015/07/what-lurks-beneath.html
Even though many armchair critics adamantly allege that the 2015 Tamil movie, 'Aruvi' was copied from this Egyptian movie, after watching it one can realise that it is all a fabricated lie. The only little thread of similarity between the two films is that AIDS and TV interviews form the backbone of the story.
It is a realistic drama depicting the plight of an HIV-positive single mother. Because of the social stigma that is attached to the disease, she has to keep illness a secret, even from her daughter. The society is quick to judge the victim on their sexual behaviour and quickly determines that their affliction is their own doing.
'Asmaa' is based on a real event.
Asmaa, an airport cleaner, is harassed by her employer for her medical report. After dodging it for quite a while, she has to cave. Her contract is terminated. Her finances dwindle. She has a daughter to educate and her medications to buy. In between all these, she has now to gallbladder problem that needs urgent surgery. She is on the operating table. She decides to do the conscientious thing by revealing her HIV status, which is not known to the surgeon. Hold behold, the surgeon cancels the surgery and sends her home. She continues to suffer from her bouts of colic.
Through her support group, she comes across a TV channel that wants to highlight her plight for a fee. She wants to find a doctor who would be willing to operate on her. The catch of the thing was that she could not hide her identity. After yoyoing on this, she finally appears on TV without revealing her face (but she did show it later on!).
Interspersed between the film are the flashbacks of her life story. We are told of an energetic, self-confident young lass growing up in the village who falls for the village hunk. After a market place squabble over a business area, she is slapped by a male trader. Asmaa was selling home-woven carpets. Asmaa's husband came in her defence, and a fistfight ensued. The Assailant died, and Asmaa's husband goes to jail. He acquired AIDS whilst in prison.
Quite a gripping story in the way that it is realistic in their approach to storytelling. In the real event, Asmaa never revealed her identity but had the surgery done overseas sponsored by an overseas donor. In the film version, the TV channel anonymously gives her funds for the operation to be done abroad. Her appearance on TV gives her newfound courage to face the public. The public perception never changed, but it gave her the self-confidence to meet the challenges. Somehow, what others felt did not matter anymore.
A review of another classic Egyptian movie
https://www.riflerangeboy.com/2015/07/what-lurks-beneath.html
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
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