Don’t think of me as a woman: an election story for the margins was screened in Trincomalee and Batticaloa on the 26 and 27 of May. The screenings picked up positive feedback from the audience. While many congratulated Aynoon Beebi, the female candidate featured in the film, other women who contested in the same elections and failed to get nominated said that they were inspired by Aynoon.
The film was screened for women activists and women who had a keen interest in participating in politics. Women from community based organizations, community leaders and local government officials from the Kinniya Pradeshiya Sabha, Trincomalee and Batticaloa also attended the event.
The film was also screened in Colombo.
Film Synopsis
Don’t think of me as a woman, documents the electoral struggle of Aynoon Beebi, a 39-year old Muslim woman from Kinniya, in Trincomalee, at the 2011 local government elections. While celebrating Aynoon’s political ambitions, the film explores the ways in which she challenges mechanisms of power and dominance that are naturalised within her community and political party structures. Women account for a mere 2 per cent of over 4,400 elected local government representatives in Sri Lanka today, and only 3 of them are Muslim.
Screening in Trincomalee
Screening in Batticaloa