WADJDA is a 10-year-old girl living in a suburb of Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. Although she lives in a conservative world, Wadjda is fun loving, entrepreneurial and always pushing the boundaries of what she can get away with.
After a fight with her friend Abdullah, a neighborhood boy she shouldn’t be playing with, Wadjda sees a beautiful green bicycle for sale. She wants the bicycle desperately so that she can beat Abdullah in a race. But Wadjda’s mother won’t allow it, fearing repercussions from a society that sees bicycles as dangerous to a girl’s virtue.
So Wadjda decides to try and raise the money herself. At first, Wadjda’s mother is too preoccupied with convincing her husband not to take a second wife to realize what’s going on. And soon enough Wadjda’s plans are thwarted when she is caught running various schemes at school. Just as she is losing hope of raising enough money, she hears of a cash prize for a Koran recitation competition at her school. She devotes herself…
WADJDA
Director: Haifaa Al-Mansour Cast: Reem Abdullah, Waad Mohammed, Abdullrahman Al Gohani Genre: Drama Country: Saudia Arabia Release Date: 2013
‘Wadjda’ – A Beautiful, Nuanced Evocation of Saudi Life STEVE ROYSTON: It's the story of a young girl's everyday life in Riyadh. How many Saudis, though, will give up the chance to see the latest CGI blockbuster to view it? ...
Fear of Women: Endemic in Saudi Society? AMERICAN BEDU: It has one of the highest divorce rates in the world and separation of the sexes has led to utter alienation. ...
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