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A visually stunning, culturally fascinating, politically timely film based on the director’s own childhood, THE CLAY BIRD has been called one of the most important works to come out of the Muslim world. Set against the backdrop of Pakistan during the turbulent 1960s, a family is ripped apart by religious beliefs and civil war. Anu, a shy young boy from rural East Pakistan (now Bangladesh), is sent away by his father Kazi, an orthodox Muslim, to a Madrasah. Far from his family and the warmth of his region’s vibrant Hindu festivities, Anu struggles to adapt to the Islamic school’s harsh monastic life. As political divisions in the country intensify, a split develops between moderate and extremist forces within the Madrasah. In the village, these same tensions create a growing divide between the stubborn Kazi and his increasingly independent wife, Ayesha.