Jumbo Editorial Team
Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy has made Karachi in particular and Pakistan in general proud by winning the prestigious Oscar award for her documentary ‘Saving Face’ on February 26. Now she has been decorated with one of the country’s highest civil awards Hilal-e-Imtiaz (Crescent of Excellence) on March 23 (Pakistan Day) for her services in the field of Arts and media and being the first female director of the country to touch such heights.
The eldest of five sisters and one brother, Sharmeen was born to a well-placed family of Karachi in 1978. After schooling at the Karachi Grammar School, she went on to do her graduation from the Smith College and then masters from the Stanford University.
She was interested in investigative journalism, having written her first article for Pakistan’s leading English newspaper at the age of 14. She ventured into film-making, in which she had no professional training, in an effort to bridge the gulf created between the East and the West.
Self- and on-the-job-trained, Sharmeen’s first documentary was on the lives of Afghan refugee children living in Pakistan, bagging a couple of awards which kick-started her career. She now has 16 documentaries to her name in the last 10 years many of whom have been acknowledged. Prior to the Oscar, the Emmy was the biggest award she won in 2009. She is the first non-American to win the Livingston Award for Young Journalists.
“Daniel and I want to dedicate this award to all the heroes working on the ground in Pakistan, including Dr Mohammad Jawad who is here with us today. The plastic surgeon working on rehabilitating all these women, Ruksana and Zakia, who are our main subjects of the film, whose resilience and bravery in the face of such adversity is admirable. And to all the women of Pakistan who are working for change don’t give up on your dreams. This is for you,” the 33-year-old Sharmeen remarked at the stage after winning the Oscar award which gladdened the hearts of everyone back home, ecstatic to be acknowledged positively in Hollywood.
Her co-director, Daniel Junge, was also credited to have recognized the significance of the moment and having allowed Sharmeen to take the spotlight.
Upon her return home, on March 11, Sharmeen informed the media at the Karachi Press Club that she felt like a star at the ceremony and narrated how her heart stopped when the announcer fumbled a little after saying “and the winner is…”
“When I heard the name of Saving Face, at first I thought I was repeating the name myself. It was only when Daniel got up to receive the award, then I felt that ‘Yes, we have won.’ There is no other feeling I can describe, it was the most incredible feeling ever,” she added.
Sharmeen’s accomplishment was also cheered loudly outside of Pakistan, as Angelina Jolie, the 1999 Academy Award winner for Best Supporting Actress, praised her and expressed the desire to watch the documentary. Harvey Weinstein, co-founder of Miramax Films, told her that it made him “feel good to know the kind of work we do as filmmakers.”
Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy has made Karachi in particular and Pakistan in general proud by winning the prestigious Oscar award for her documentary ‘Saving Face’ on February 26. Now she has been decorated with one of the country’s highest civil awards Hilal-e-Imtiaz (Crescent of Excellence) on March 23 (Pakistan Day) for her services in the field of Arts and media and being the first female director of the country to touch such heights.
The eldest of five sisters and one brother, Sharmeen was born to a well-placed family of Karachi in 1978. After schooling at the Karachi Grammar School, she went on to do her graduation from the Smith College and then masters from the Stanford University.She was interested in investigative journalism, having written her first article for Pakistan’s leading English newspaper at the age of 14. She ventured into film-making, in which she had no professional training, in an effort to bridge the gulf created between the East and the West.
Self- and on-the-job-trained, Sharmeen’s first documentary was on the lives of Afghan refugee children living in Pakistan, bagging a couple of awards which kick-started her career. She now has 16 documentaries to her name in the last 10 years many of whom have been acknowledged. Prior to the Oscar, the Emmy was the biggest award she won in 2009. She is the first non-American to win the Livingston Award for Young Journalists.
“Daniel and I want to dedicate this award to all the heroes working on the ground in Pakistan, including Dr Mohammad Jawad who is here with us today. The plastic surgeon working on rehabilitating all these women, Ruksana and Zakia, who are our main subjects of the film, whose resilience and bravery in the face of such adversity is admirable. And to all the women of Pakistan who are working for change don’t give up on your dreams. This is for you,” the 33-year-old Sharmeen remarked at the stage after winning the Oscar award which gladdened the hearts of everyone back home, ecstatic to be acknowledged positively in Hollywood.Her co-director, Daniel Junge, was also credited to have recognized the significance of the moment and having allowed Sharmeen to take the spotlight.
Upon her return home, on March 11, Sharmeen informed the media at the Karachi Press Club that she felt like a star at the ceremony and narrated how her heart stopped when the announcer fumbled a little after saying “and the winner is…”“When I heard the name of Saving Face, at first I thought I was repeating the name myself. It was only when Daniel got up to receive the award, then I felt that ‘Yes, we have won.’ There is no other feeling I can describe, it was the most incredible feeling ever,” she added.
Sharmeen’s accomplishment was also cheered loudly outside of Pakistan, as Angelina Jolie, the 1999 Academy Award winner for Best Supporting Actress, praised her and expressed the desire to watch the documentary. Harvey Weinstein, co-founder of Miramax Films, told her that it made him “feel good to know the kind of work we do as filmmakers.”
No comments:
Post a Comment