The film Kurak has been awarded the July Memorial Medal of Bangladesh at the Busan International Film Festival. On Thursday (September 25, 2025), Cultural Affairs Advisor Mustafa Sarwar Farooqui officially handed over the award to the film’s director Erke DZHUMAKMATOVA.
Incidentally, the week-long international film festival has started in Busan, South Korea, from September 19. Kurak was selected for the Bangladesh July Memorial Medal from among the competing films in the ‘Vision Asia’ section of this film festival.
The July Memorial Prize was introduced under the patronage of the Ministry of Cultural Affairs from this year, considering the theme of social justice, freedom of speech and expression, civil rights or the struggle against inequality. This award was introduced to commemorate the July 2024 mass uprising. The prize money is 100,000 won in South Korean currency.
The film opens with scenes from the 2020 women’s protest in Bishkek, where the gathering is broken up by men attacking and arresting police. From there, the story follows the lives of two young women—secret webcam model Mirim and newly in love Nargiza. Their stories are interwoven with archive footage of women’s rights movements, exhibitions, and performance art, creating a backdrop for the current reality. True to its name—‘Kurak’ (patchwork in Kyrgyz)—the film shows how diverse women’s voices come together to create a powerful voice that breaks through the walls of oppression.
