Renowned plastic surgeon Mohammad Jawad, the subject of Pakistan’s first Oscar winning documentary Saving Face, expressed disappointment about his work not being screened in his homeland.
“It is so sad that such a thing has happened ... It is such a beautifully-made documentary and the message and cause is far bigger than an individual,” said Jawad, in an interview with tabloid! prior to its screening at the Abu Dhabi International Film Festival on Saturday.
The documentary, which chronicles the painful yet inspiring lives of acid-attack victims and the work of UK-based Jawad who performs re-constructive surgery on those survivors, ran into controversy when the women featured in it sought a stay on its release in Pakistan fearing a backlash.
But Dr Jawad has not given up and says it’s just a matter of time before it is screened in his native land.
“In my dictionary, hope is not a strategy. We know it has to be seen in Pakistan. Massive campaigns are being held there so that such senseless violence is stopped. We are building a burns unit in Lahore by raising money. The mindset has to change and it’s just a matter of time before Saving Face is released there.”
He adds that this is a documentary which has no borders will find resonance in men and women the world over.
A few hours later, Jawad and his team seems to have already made progress as he received a standing ovation after its screening on Saturday. Pakistani ambassador to the UAE Jamil Ahmad Khan, who was present at the screening, gave his nod of approval.
“It’s enhancing the awareness. Sharmeen [Obaid-Chinoy] and her team through their research have been able to create that. In the subcontinent, acid attacks are not a new thing, it has been happening through centuries. There has to be an end to it and I am glad that the parliament of Pakistan could make an enactment of death sentence to all those who perpetrate the violence,” said Khan. As many as 150 acid attack cases are reported every year in Pakistan.
Asked if the documentary would release in Pakistan, he said all efforts would be made to convince the survivors to allow the screening.
“We have to really take into consideration of the victims and if the victims do not feel that problematic, we will encourage the survivors to allow [us] to screen this film in Pakistan,” he said.
On a lighter note, the inspiring documentary around a morbid crime evoked laughter and raised eyebrows when an exacting Dr Jawad was shown losing his cool at his Pakistani medical team at the operation theatre. “You guys can make nuclear bombs, but you can’t do this,” he said exasperatedly to one of the doctors for his shoddy work.
“When I heard it, I was like ‘man, that was so politically incorrect’. I even asked them to edit it, but they said it’s too late,” said Jawad, laughing.
Pakistan’s ambassador to the UAE also brushed it off, saying Jawad “said it in the heat of the moment.”
The UAE plays a role in the Oscar-winning film: Dubai-based anaplastologist Dr Daril B Atikins from Rashid Hospital assisted Jawad in restoring the faces of women through medical sculpture, while the Omniyati Prosthetics Arts Centre provided financial help.
“I am a senior member of the US-based International Anaplastology Association (IAA) and my name was recommended to director Daniel Junge by them. I am happy that I was a part of a film that will create awareness and re-build lives. Till then, those survivors were objects of morbid curiosity,” said Atkins.
