A Conversation on Indie and Experimental Cinema + Film Screening: Shajar (The Tree)

‘Shajar’ follows a young boy growing up in a world that has little patience for dreaming. Around him, life moves to practical rhythms – work, survival, and the quiet erosion of wonder into routine – while he carries an inner landscape of imagination: open fields, rain, flowers, a book left unread.

As the world presses in, demanding he conform, grow up, and set aside what cannot be measured or sold, the boy is forced to confront a quiet, aching question – whether it’s still possible to remain connected to what he loves, the way a tree remains connected to its roots even through the harshest season.

About the Director:

Ashir Shehzad is a Pakistani filmmaker, photographer, and screenwriter based in Islamabad, drawn to the quiet spaces between words – the memories, emotions, and silences that often remain unspoken. Working in the arthouse and social realist traditions, he approaches cinema as a space for reflection, finding meaning in ordinary moments and emotions that are difficult to express, and creating images and stories that stay with an audience beyond the screen.

He holds a BA from Gomal University and a diploma in film and documentary from NIFTH. His documentary Safar Chalta Rahay was a runner-up at the DW/Dawn Documentary Film Festival. His work draws on the influence of filmmakers including Abbas Kiarostami, Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Payal Kapadia, Satyajit Ray, and Asghar Farhadi and reflects a long-standing engagement with Pakistani and South Asian independent cinema – including the structural barriers facing independent filmmakers in local and international distribution. Shajar continues his journey of exploring deeply personal and human stories through cinema.

About the Panelists:

• Ashir Shehzad
  (Filmmaker, Screenwriter, Photographer, Director of ‘Shajar’)
• Irfan Ahmed Urfi
  (Author, Screenwriter)
• Jamil Iqbal
  (Filmmaker, Cinematographer)
• Hunain Amin
  (Journalist, Film Enthusiast — Moderator)

This session is free and open to all. Just visit the venue to attend it.

The Black Hole
Plot 5H, Street 100, G-11/3, Islamabad.
Click here for Google Maps Location