‘My film is a mix of real-life experiences of Kabul’s people’

Afghani director Syed Jalal Hussaini tells the story behind The Outpost.

It isn’t very often that a film gives you a chance to see reality. For Syed Jalal Hussaini who directed the short film The Outpost, making a movie that reflected happenings in Afghanistan, was top priority. “People back home could connect to my film,” he says.

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The Outpost is a movie about Ahmad, a middle-aged soldier, who is getting married. He is watching over an imprisoned Talib and guarding the outpost, while other soldiers are marching back. Ahmad faces a dilemma between duty and humanity.

Syed says, “I wanted to show Ahmad’s emotional journey as he is torn between duty, love and responsibility.”

Where did he get this idea from? “I had noticed that there was a National Police Festival. So I wrote a script about it,” he says. “When my film was nominated for the festival, I thought of developing the story to make it more complex and interesting.” He adds, “It’s an inspired film. Such things happen in Kabul daily. I have many relatives in the army and police, and I see them suffer. So it’s a mix of my real life experiences and stories of others.”

Syed plans to send the film to more festivals. “The Berlin Film Festival is my next stop. I also want to air it on television in Kabul so more people can see it. I want to do more and more movies on the challenges and problems faced by people in Afghanistan.”