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Special Features
- Director Interview
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Editorial Reviews
Review
Revealing and moving...notable for its depiction of the tenacity with which its subjects hold on to their faith despite the wall of bigotry, often homicidal, that confronts them. --Wall Street Journal
Lifts the veil of secrecy... frankly brave. --NPR, Talk of the Nation
Lifts the veil of secrecy... frankly brave. --NPR, Talk of the Nation
Product Description
In a time when Islam is under tremendous attack from within and without, A JIHAD FOR LOVE is a daring documentary filmed in twelve countries and nine languages. Muslim gay filmmaker Parvez Sharma has gone where the silence is loudest, filming with great risk in nations where government permission to make this film was not an option.
A JIHAD FOR LOVE is the world's first feature documentary to explore the complex global intersections between Islam and homosexuality. Parvez enters the many worlds of Islam by illuminating multiple stories as diverse as Islam itself. The film travels a wide geographic arc presenting us lives from India, Pakistan, Iran, Turkey, Egypt, South Africa and France. Always filming in secret and as a Muslim, Parvez makes the film from within the faith, depicting Islam with the same respect that the film's characters show for it.
A JIHAD FOR LOVE is the world's first feature documentary to explore the complex global intersections between Islam and homosexuality. Parvez enters the many worlds of Islam by illuminating multiple stories as diverse as Islam itself. The film travels a wide geographic arc presenting us lives from India, Pakistan, Iran, Turkey, Egypt, South Africa and France. Always filming in secret and as a Muslim, Parvez makes the film from within the faith, depicting Islam with the same respect that the film's characters show for it.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
18 of 18 people found the following review helpful
By James Morris
Format:DVD
Director Parvez Sharma spent more than five years traveling throughout the Muslim world and interviewing lesbians and gay men about their life, their faith and their fears as followers of Islam. The results are enlightening, heart rendering and, at times, shocking. Like the documentary about gay people in the Orthodox Jewish world, Trembling Before G-D, A Jihad For Love restricts itself to the paradox of religious followers of a faith that seemingly rejects their existence. Of course, the penalty for homosexuality is far more severe in countries ruled by Sharia law, but it is amazing to see and learn how the faithful deal with what must seem like overwhelming obstacles in simple things that gay people in the Western world take for granted.
I learned quite a bit from this film that I was previously unaware of, such as the fact that Turkey, although overwhelmingly Muslim, has no laws forbidding homosexuality, and attitudes there concerning homosexuality have always been more relaxed than other parts of the Muslim world. I also was under the false impression, as many Westerners are, that jihad means "Holy war". It actually means "struggle". Thus the film's title is quite apt, and because the film's creator / director is himself a member of the Muslim faith, the film exudes an aura of self-assured confidence, familiarity and respect for its subject matter that many documentaries cannot hope to achieve. In modern Pakistan, of all places, the Sufi sect celebrates the love of a 16th century poet and Sufi saint, Shah Hussain, for a Brahmin boy named Madho Lal. Each year on his urs (death anniversary) their love is celebrated through ritual dances held in the shrine near the tomb of the two lovers. The scenes of Muslims dancing and celebrating this love are jarring, and totally at odds with what many in the West have come to expect from the Muslim world.
One of the most striking things about this documentary is how Mr. Sharma managed to get the men and women interviewed in the film to openly talk about themselves, although most of their faces are not shown. Even though a gay Muslim himself, it must have been very difficult to gain their trust. More striking still is the devotion to their religion that these people still have, and one contrast with Western culture is how close they still are to their parents, and how accepting their fundamentalist parents seem to be, despite the cultural and religious taboos against same-sex love. That is to say, many of the gay people profiled in the film are still close to their families, whereas in Fundamentalist Christian families, many gay children are rejected by their parents completely. There is even a wonderful segment where a Turkish lesbian brings her partner to meet her mother.
There is also a scene where a South African Muslim confronts an Imam, and tells him that the verse in the Qur'an which condemns homosexuality (there is only one, outside of the story of Sodom & Gomorrah) is open to interpretation. The Imam responds that the only portion of Muslim law about homosexuality that is open to interpretation is the severity of the punishment to be inflicted. Such complete close-mindedness will not surprise anyone who has ever tried to argue gay rights with a Christian fundamentalist. It has long been my understanding that one of the most severe problems with homosexuality and Islam is that the Muslim religion has no central leadership, in that almost anyone who is a member of Islam can study to be an Imam and so become a spiritual leader and recognized as an authority on the Muslim religion and what it teaches. As such, many of the leaders of the Islam faith are those who are most fundamental in their interpretation, although the term Imam itself differs completely depending on whether one is a Sunni or a Shiite, the two largest sects in Islam. This documentary is extremely eye-opening, shedding light on what heretofore has only been a shadowy world of isolation and self-hate. It is sure to engender discussion among Westerners, and may even result in some dialogue within the Muslim world. And at least that's a start. Highly recommended.
I learned quite a bit from this film that I was previously unaware of, such as the fact that Turkey, although overwhelmingly Muslim, has no laws forbidding homosexuality, and attitudes there concerning homosexuality have always been more relaxed than other parts of the Muslim world. I also was under the false impression, as many Westerners are, that jihad means "Holy war". It actually means "struggle". Thus the film's title is quite apt, and because the film's creator / director is himself a member of the Muslim faith, the film exudes an aura of self-assured confidence, familiarity and respect for its subject matter that many documentaries cannot hope to achieve. In modern Pakistan, of all places, the Sufi sect celebrates the love of a 16th century poet and Sufi saint, Shah Hussain, for a Brahmin boy named Madho Lal. Each year on his urs (death anniversary) their love is celebrated through ritual dances held in the shrine near the tomb of the two lovers. The scenes of Muslims dancing and celebrating this love are jarring, and totally at odds with what many in the West have come to expect from the Muslim world.
One of the most striking things about this documentary is how Mr. Sharma managed to get the men and women interviewed in the film to openly talk about themselves, although most of their faces are not shown. Even though a gay Muslim himself, it must have been very difficult to gain their trust. More striking still is the devotion to their religion that these people still have, and one contrast with Western culture is how close they still are to their parents, and how accepting their fundamentalist parents seem to be, despite the cultural and religious taboos against same-sex love. That is to say, many of the gay people profiled in the film are still close to their families, whereas in Fundamentalist Christian families, many gay children are rejected by their parents completely. There is even a wonderful segment where a Turkish lesbian brings her partner to meet her mother.
There is also a scene where a South African Muslim confronts an Imam, and tells him that the verse in the Qur'an which condemns homosexuality (there is only one, outside of the story of Sodom & Gomorrah) is open to interpretation. The Imam responds that the only portion of Muslim law about homosexuality that is open to interpretation is the severity of the punishment to be inflicted. Such complete close-mindedness will not surprise anyone who has ever tried to argue gay rights with a Christian fundamentalist. It has long been my understanding that one of the most severe problems with homosexuality and Islam is that the Muslim religion has no central leadership, in that almost anyone who is a member of Islam can study to be an Imam and so become a spiritual leader and recognized as an authority on the Muslim religion and what it teaches. As such, many of the leaders of the Islam faith are those who are most fundamental in their interpretation, although the term Imam itself differs completely depending on whether one is a Sunni or a Shiite, the two largest sects in Islam. This documentary is extremely eye-opening, shedding light on what heretofore has only been a shadowy world of isolation and self-hate. It is sure to engender discussion among Westerners, and may even result in some dialogue within the Muslim world. And at least that's a start. Highly recommended.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By Cihuacoatl
Format:DVD
This is (Not Without My Daughter..another good film..) so marvelously splendid..The absolute beauty of Iran and Egypt by night.The raw and powerful,emotional and moving stories of Mazem,Ferda,Amir,their punishments.The glorious and rare glimpse of Sufi church services,facts about Muslims in the countries of France,Egypt,India,(a turn on..) Bangladesh,Pakistan..The moving story of the celebration of the love between Shah Husain and Madho Lal.Makes al-Suhaq look pretty good if you ask me.Let's all use Ijtihad (independent reasoning) to go on a Jihad ul-Nafs: A struggle with the self.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By DeepDishPie
Format:DVD
It was interesting to see how gays and lesbians in prominently Muslim countries view themselves and their religion. A Jihad For Love does not just focus on gay men as many studies, reports and documentaries but also gives us a view into what life is like for lesbian Muslims. However, I have two problems with the film. The first being the lack of depth for the people in the film. We see people in the park but very little information about who they are, where they comes from and the react from friends and family. Also the camera work at times was out of focus and very shaky. It will be interesting to see where the subjects are and if they have found inner peace in a few years.
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