• Qandeel (2017) - KHAJISTAN™
  • Qandeel (2017) - KHAJISTAN™

    Qandeel (2017)

    The life, death and impact of Pakistan's working-class icon Qandeel Baloch, killed in 2016 after becoming a social media celebrity. This film tells Qandeel's story through her own videos and media appearances. A young, fearless woman who collided with Pakistan's mainstream media, Qandeel exposed the religious right and challenged middle-class morality. From her life before stardom in a rural village to her early days in entertainment as a model and actor, Qandeel gained attention by making provocative web videos. We get to know Qandeel through her family, admirers and those she interacted with and inspired. The film also analyses her life through the lens of class and power politics and connects it to women's continuing struggle for self-expression in Pakistan.

    Genre: Documentary

    Runtime: 24:50

    Directed by: Saad Khan, Tazeen Bari

    Produced by: Saad Khan for SAVTA

    Exec. Producers: Charlie Phillips and Lindsay Poulton for the Guardian

    Year: 2017

    Release date September 22, 2017 (United Kingdom)

    Countries of origin: United Kingdom, Pakistan, United States

    Languages: Urdu, English, Punjabi

    Filming locations: Pakistan

    Note: Email info@khajistan.com for acquisitions and licensing.

    MANIFESTO——

    Our Publications

    Exhibition Catalog

    View all

    Madrassa

    1. Read more: Khajistan Portal Opens at Recess, Brooklyn
      The Khajistan Institute for Advanced Research and Necessary Development reception room in the house yellow and green — the pigeon in atom orbits over KHAJISTAN in heavy caps, balloons on the floor

      Khajistan Portal Opens at Recess, Brooklyn

      Khajistan is moving part of the archive into a room in Brooklyn for two months and building the rest of it in front of whoever walks in. September 19 to October 24, 2026, at Recess.
      Read more
    2. Read more: Khajistan Press at Printed Matter's NY Art Book Fair, 2026
      Printed Matter's NY Art Book Fair 2026 key art, September 24–27 at MoMA PS1

      Khajistan Press at Printed Matter's NY Art Book Fair, 2026

      Khajistan Press exhibits at table M13 at Printed Matter's NY Art Book Fair, MoMA PS1, 25–27 September 2026. Four books launch at the table: Hunting Homosexuals in Occupied Iraq, Karachi, After Midnight: Volume 3, No Unnecessary Contact, and An Erection in Pakistan.
      Read more
    3. Read more: No Myth Here — Khajistan in Pioneer Works' Broadcast
      Khajistan: Office of War Information (O.W.I.) at Pioneer Works

      No Myth Here — Khajistan in Pioneer Works' Broadcast

      Saad Khan and Joey Chriqui in conversation with Megan Fernandes for Pioneer Works Broadcast — how the archive began, why the O.W.I. office was built to feel like your uncle's, and what the leaflets were actually for.
      Read more
    MANIFESTO—