Aboard the top deck of a cruise ship, Baran, a young wealthy girl, notices a native boy who is dancing joyfully to beating drums.
Baran arrives at a plush hotel on the mainland, however she seems somewhat disconsolate. Later she finds the native boy again and they begin to bond, playfully exploring the beach resort together.
Later, the two go aboard a row-boat and the native dives down into the water to collect a pearl from the seabed for her.
However, the ending leaves the audience to wonder if he was a figment of Baran’s longing imagination all along. Well-shot and with a strong performance from Baran Kosari, this film perfectly captures the bittersweet pangs of young love.
R. Bani-Etemad: "After I'd been to Kish, I reviewed my notes…and certain vivid images came to mind: the turquoise water, the golden sand, the palm trees, but especially the rugged and sunburnt faces of the natives as they passed by, completely ignoring the hordes of tourists. An idea sparked: Does anything last of all these events on the island? A memory of a casual meeting? Or perhaps love?…I glanced at my teenage daughter, who would experience love sooner or later. Perhaps her introduction to love could be in an unknown island such as this, perhaps a faraway dream."
About this movie
Title: Baran and the Native | Baran-O-Bumi (1998)
Directed by: Rakhshan Bani Etemad
Date of birth: 3 April 1954, Tehran, Iran
Writing credits: Rakhshan Bani Etemad & Asghar Abdollahi
Year: 1998
Country: Iran
Language: Farsi
Runtime: 19 min.