Lights Camera Action!…  Another documentary film came into being. And the award goes to Sharmin Oaid Chinoy for best short subject documentary film of the year. “A Girl in the River- The Price of Forgiveness” thus becoming an Oscar winner for the second time.

The lady has again taken the entire Pakistan by storm. Giving voice to an issue which has always been unheard is her forte. “Saving faces” then and “A girl in the river” now.

“This is what happens when determined women get together,” Chinoy said as she holds the golden statuette.

Honour killing is a subject, or to be more precise an ugly reality of our society veiled under the black cloak and suppressed to the deepest roots, with a lot more hideous issues accompanying.

Honour killing, better known as Karo kari; in which yet again only a lesser powerful and clamped gender is overpowered- females. Where family members consider themselves to be authorized to kill her in order to restore family honour. In the majority of cases, the victim of the attacks is female and the irony is; attackers are the male members of her family or community.

The Chinoy’s film features; The 19-year-old Saba, a survivor of an attempted honour killing who was beaten up, shot and thrown into a river by her father and uncle for marrying a man without their approval. At the last moment, she tilted her head, meaning the bullet grazed her cheek instead of shattering her skull.

Now the question is, if this spine-chilling crime will be history in a few days’ time right after the fire cools down to ashes, as we don’t expect societal attitude towards gender-based violence to change overnight. But as they say better late than never, government vows to take step in order to eradicate the dreadful honour killing.