Brigid Grauman
Nariman Aliev (born 1992) is a film director from Ukraine. Born into a Crimean Tatar family, his grandparents were deported to Uzbekistan in May 1944 during the ethnic cleansing of Crimea ordered by the Stalinist regime.
Nariman Aliev studied film in Kiev.
"Homeward" (in Ukrainian: "Додому", in Crimean Tatar "Evge") is his first feature film. It is a road movie that describes the journey from Kiev to Crimea of Mustafa (the father) and Alim (the younger son). Nazim (the elder son) was killed in the Donbass. The father wants him to be buried in the land of his ancestors. So the body has to be transported despite bureaucratic prohibitions and the occupation of Crimea by Russian troops.
Nariman Aliev also directed:
- Return to Dawn (2013, in Ukrainian: "Повернутись зі світанком" in Crimean Tatar Tan Atqanda Qaytmaq).
- I Love You (2014, in Crimean Tatar Seni Sevem)
- Without You (2016, in Crimean Tatar Senzis)
In this interview Nariman Aliev talks about his film, his double commitment as a Crimean Tatar for the right of his people to survive and return to their native land and as a Ukrainian. He explains that his membership of Ukraine is a political citizenship. His family history illustrates that of his people, massively deported in 1944 in conditions that killed between 30 and 40% of the total population, forbidden to return to Crimea until the 1980s.
This interview is part of a series of videos produced by the Belgian RESU Committee to promote Ukrainian cinema.
In 2023, screenings will be organised in different places (cinemas, universities, festivals, etc.). If you wish to screen Ukrainian films in Belgium in an association, a school, a neighborhood, do not hesitate to contact us: resu.enso@gmail.com
Nariman Aliev's various films can be seen on the independent Ukrainian film platform Tak Flix.