Nelofer Pazira, was born in India, into an Afghan professional
family in 1973. The family returned to Kabul when Nelofer was
a child. Nelofer grew up in Kabul during the Russian occupation
of the country. The family fled to Pakistan in 1989, when Nelofer
was sixteen.
As a refugee, Nelofer lived in Pakistan for one year before
migrating to Canada. She obtained her degree in Journalism and
English Literature from Carleton University in Ottawa and is
working on her MA thesis at Concordia University, Montreal.
Since 1996, Nelofer has made two documentary films about Iran.
As a journalist, she has worked for the Canadian Broadcasting
Corporation (CBC) Radio, written for Sight & Sound (British
Film Institute Magazine), Elm Street, McLeans, The Ottawa Citizen,
The Toronto Star, Panorama, and EI Semanal.
Pazira played the lead role in Mohsen Makhmalbaf's film Kandahar –a
film based on Pazira's real life story. The film made her, unwittingly,
a representative of a cause –the need for the world to
stop ignoring the tragedy of the Afghan war. She was awarded "Prix
de interpretation" by the New Cinema, New Media – Montreal
Film Festival (October 2001).
Nelofer’s
memoir A Bed of Red Flowers was sold
to Martha Levin at Free Press (US rights) as well as Random House
Canada and Arena in the Netherlands.
Nelofer Pazira, was born in India, into an Afghan professional
family in 1973. The family returned to Kabul when Nelofer was
a child. Nelofer grew up in Kabul during the Russian occupation
of the country. The family fled to Pakistan in 1989, when Nelofer
was sixteen.
Nelofer’s
memoir A Bed of Red Flowers was sold
to Martha Levin at Free Press (US rights) as well as Random House
Canada and Arena in the Netherlands.