Heart rending Yemeni movie “I Am Nojoom, Age 10 and Divorced” (2014) directed by Khadija-Al-Salami and starring Reham Mohammed and Adnan Alkhader among others.
This is a true story that happened in Yemen of Nujood Ali who was married off at age nine to a man who was thirty years old. She was repeatedly abused and sexually assaulted by her husband and treated badly by her in laws. She was made to clean the house, fetch the water from the pond, cook food all at a tender age.
She did not want to get married and on the marriage day she was carrying a doll. When she got a chance, she escaped and went off to a court to seek divorce from her husband. A kindly judge heard her story, took pity on her and allowed her to stay in his house with his wife and daughter.
The trial became a sensation in Yemen as she was the youngest ever to be granted a divorce. She had her father and husband arrested and the father narrated his part of the story that she was married off, because his other daughter was raped and had to be forcibly married to the rapist.
In Yemen the local tribal customs and culture prevailed and allowed child marriage. But the court took a strict view and gave divorce to Nujood Ali. A lot of Muslim social movies are coming out of the Arab world itself. Previously India used to produce many Muslim socials but in the last 3 to 4 decades we are not seeing any such movies.
Brilliant acting by Reham Mohammed as the young Nojoom and superb cinematography as well. Director Khadija Al-Salami has not deviated much from the original plot and kept it simple. Must watch movie. IMDB 7/10
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