My unprecedented journey, which forms the core of a sinner in mecca, reveals for the first time some of those secrets. The journey of indianborn filmmaker parvez sharma began in 2011, when he embarked on the annual pilgrimage known as hajj. In order to navigate out of this carousel please use your heading shortcut key to navigate to the next or previous heading. This shopping feature will continue to load items when the enter key is pressed. A sinner in mecca will go on cinema release in new york on friday but the story started almost four years ago. The saudi arabia they dont want you to see check out bring a sinner in mecca to you. Parvez sharma is now a 2018 guggenheim fellowplease do visit our onestop designed from scratch website at. Sharma, who is also gay and muslim, takes viewers on his 2011 hajj, or pilgrimage, to islams most sacred sites. Video archive for the film a sinner in mecca, which has a domestic theatrical release in the year of 2015. The movie itself starts with a chat room conversation on a homosexual website with a saudi who just witnessed an execution of a gay man. A sinner in mecca is sharmas selfdirected documentation of his struggle to reconcile his sexuality with his devout muslim beliefs and to assuage the guilt he feels over having been. A sinner in mecca for filmmaker parvez sharma, however, these were risks he had to assume as he embarked on his hajj pilgrimage, a journey considered the greatest accomplishment and aspiration within islam, his religion.
For a gay filmmaker, filming in saudi arabia presents two serious challenges. In his followup to a jihad for love, parvez sharma makes himself the focus while fulfilling his islamic duty by making a pilgrimage to mecca. A sinner in mecca documents gay muslim pilgrimage the times of. A work of vital social and political import, a sinner in mecca chronicles director parvez sharmas crisis of faith as he makes a hajj to mecca, an annual pilgrimage that muslims are obligated to undertake at least once in their lives. A sinner in mecca 2015 stream and watch online moviefone. The trailer for parvez sharmas new film, a sinner in mecca, with its pulsating music, tortured bodies, and scary news clips, depicts a sensationalism worthy of the most crass of islamophobic films. After exploring the gay muslim community in a jihad for love, filmmaker parvez sharma turns the camera on himself as he clandestinely films his pilgrimage to mecca sharmas journey shines a light on saudi arabia, a world where aggressive modern capitalism and an oppressive interpretation of islam sit sidebyside. The film chronicles sharmas hajj pilgrimage to mecca, saudi.
A sinner in mecca 2015 filmmaker parvez sharma embarks on the hajj, the pilgrimage to mecca, saudi arabia. A sinner in mecca movie for a gay filmmaker, filming in saudi arabia presents two serious challenges. Contemporary discussions in western media of the place of gays and lesbians within. This undated handout photo provided august 24, 2015 courtesy of murphy pr.
This is a provocative roadtrip through the heart of islam. Nonetheless, a sinner in mecca is an important and rare film that discusses islam from the perspective of a gay man who wants to find his place within it, despite the threats of violence and death that have suppressed many of his fellow muslim gays into hiding. For filmmaker parvez sharma, however, these were risks he had to assume as he embarked on his hajj pilgrimage, a journey considered the greatest. To bring us all closer to the heart of his faith, a filmmaker is willing to put his life on the line. For filmmaker parvez sharma, however, these were risks he had to assume as he embarked o. On these neverbeforefilmed streets of ancient mecca, he joins 4 million muslims, from the majority, peaceloving pilgrims fulfilling a lifelong calling, to brutal jihadists for whom violence is. Haram films, 2015 an afghan hajji pilgrim raises his index finger to denote a central precept of islam, while holding a quran in the other hand, during a scene from parvez sharmas film a sinner in mecca.
A sinner in mecca is a suitably messy mix of the gritty and the surreal, the wrenching and the transcendent, from the midst of the trek to islams holiest site. A sinner in mecca audaciously enters a world that has been forbidden to nonmuslims for 14 centuries. Guggenheim fellow, filmmaker parvez sharma, who made a jihad for love takes you inside a hidden saudi arabia in his brave film shot on an iphone in mecca. We snuck a handicam into mecca, saudi arabia to film the islamic tradition of hajj, the worlds largest annual pilgrimage and the biggest gathering of people in the world at any given time. For gay filmmaker parvez sharma, filming in saudi arabia presents two serious challenges filming is forbidden in the country and homosexuality is punishable by death. Sinner in mecca, a on dvd 738329203955 from kino video. A sinner in mecca documents gay muslim pilgrimage director of film giving inside glance into hajj, filmed on iphone, calls for reform in islam, saying its imploding upon itself. A sinner in mecca official trailer 1 2015 documentary. Some may find sharmas pilgrimage too introspective to be accessible, but his bravery in making a film like a sinner in mecca cannot be denied. Given the perception that the middle east is largely hostile to the lgbtq community, parvez sharmas spiritual memoir a sinner in mecca is shocking in. Risking his life, parvez embarks on a jihad of the selffilming his experience along the way. For gay filmmaker parvez sharma, filming in saudi arabia during the hajj. Watch a sinner in mecca 2015 on netflix in singapore. A sinner in mecca documents gay muslim pilgrimage the.
Sharmas spiritual search is intimate and careful, and ultimately one of understanding. For filmmaker parvez sharma, however, these were risks he had to assume as he embarked on his hajj pilgrimage, a journey. A sinner in mecca official trailer 1 2015 documentary hd. A gay filmmaker, filming in saudi arabia faces two challenges, filming is forbidden in the country and homosexuality is punishable by death. The film premiered at the 2015 hot docs canadian international documentary festival to. For centuries, muslim pilgrims were the only keepers of the secrets of mecca. A gay muslim films his hajj pilgrimage to mecca huffpost. A sinner in mecca official trailer 1 2015 documentary hd for a gay filmmaker, filming in saudi arabia presents two serious challenges. A sinner in mecca challenging faith in the face of. For gay filmmaker parvez sharma, filming in saudi arabia presents two serious challenges. Recently recognized with the 2015 outfest grand jury award for best documentary feature, a sinner in mecca follows director parvez sharma a jihad for love as the openly gay muslim filmmaker documents his pilgrimage to mecca in saudi arabia, where filming is strictly prohibited and homosexuality is a crime punishable by death. For parvez sharma he faced these challenges when he embarked on his hajj pilgrimage. The film chronicles sharmas hajj pilgrimage to mecca, saudi arabia as an openly gay muslim. Watch a sinner in mecca online watch online anytime.
Mecca is the most visited city in the world, yet forbidden to all but followers of islam. View hd trailers and videos for a sinner in mecca on rotten tomatoes, then check our tomatometer to find out what the critics say. A new film made by a gay muslim pilgrim offers a englishspeaking western audience a wartsandall view of the annual pilgrimage to mecca in a documentary that has attracted death threats and an. Here, we enter the city of mecca that has been forbidden to nonmuslims for 14 centuries. A sinner in mecca year 2015 genre documentary type movies idmb rating 4. A sinner in mecca is a 2015 documentary film from director parvez sharma a jihad for love. And yes, a sinner in mecca, the nyt critics pick film and later very dissimilar book book with the same title, and the film a jihad for love are still changing minds globally.
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