Directed by Janyl Jusupjan • 2023 • Kyrgyzstan

Buzkashi is a traditional sport of Central Asia in which teams of horsemen battle to carry a goat carcass across a goal line. In this strictly gendered world, only men can play the game – but there are windows of opportunity for enterprising women. Set against the stunning mountains and plains of Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, Janyl Jusupjan’s charming observational documentary follows the efforts of Atirkül Arzyldabekova to build her own buzkashi team. As we watch Arzyldabekova trade for horses and manage the livelihoods of her young players, a complex portrait of gender relations emerges that moves beyond the ethnographic into the deeply personal.

ATIRKÜL IN THE LAND OF REAL MEN
Written and directed by Janyl Jusupjan
Cinematography by Christian Lelong and Janyl Chytyrbaeva
Music by Altai Kai

In Kyrgyz with English subtitles