29 August 2007 | Cinematca AstraFilm la Muzeul Taranului Roman Bucuresti |

Rapirea mireselor

...de Astra Film Fest

Conform unui vechi obicei chirghiz care inca functioneaza in ciuda faptului ca a fost declarat ilegal cu cativa ani in urma, in Kirghistan, fosta republica sovietica, barbatii isi rapesc viitoarele sotii.

De obicei, viitorul mire convoaca cativa prieteni, inchiriaza o masina, urmareste fiecare miscare a fetei pe care a pus ochii si, la momentul oportun, o rapeste pur si simplu de pe strada si o duce la casa parintilor lui. Imediat, o delegatie pleaca la familia fetei pentru a-i pune in tema cu rapirea. in asteptarea unei hotarari din partea celor doua familii, fata ramane in casa rapitorului, pazita de rudele acestuia. Exista mai multe feluri de rapiri. Cateodata episodul este formal, pentru ca tinerii se cunosc si planuisera oricum sa se casatoreasca. Sunt insa cazuri cand fata nu vrea sa se marite si chiar situatii in care rapitorul ii este complet necunoscut. Studii recente estimeaza ca aproape jumatate din numarul casatoriilor din Kirghistan se fac pe baza traditionalei rapiri a miresei. in 50% din cazuri, femeile sunt casatorite impotriva vointei lor. Filmul spune povestea a patru fete rapite pentru a deveni mirese fara voia lor.

The film observes an ancient Kyrgyz custom,whichisstillactivetodayalthough it has been declared illegal some years ago. In Kyrgyzstan, one of the former Soviet Republics in Central Asia, a man would abduct the woman he has chosen for a wife. Typically, he takes several friends, hires a car, stakes out his bride-to-be‘s movements, snatches her off the street, and takes her to his family home. A delegation is then sent to her family to inform them of the kidnapping. The abducted woman is kept by the groom’s relatives until someone from her family arrives to discuss the marriage. The level of consent and the familiarity of the bride with the groom vary. Sometimes the kidnappings are consensual -the bride is engaged to the groom and agrees to the kidnapping. In this case, the kidnappings are merely playful rituals. In many other cases however, the bride does not want to marry her suitor, or has never even met him before. Recent studies estimate that about half of all marriages in Kyrgyzstan today are conducted through kidnapping and that in half of these cases the woman is forced into marriage against her will. This documentary follows the dramatic stories of four of non-consensual kidnappings.

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