Prisoner from Dagestan

Logline

A 23-year-old deaf and mute woman from Dagestan runs away from her home village with a beloved man hoping for a better life in the neighboring country of Georgia, where she ends up as a sex prisoner for 40 years, giving birth to 10 children to be sold for adoption. At the age of 63, Magemedov sisters release her from captivity and offer her a chance to an ordinary life, hoping to re-integrate into society as a deaf and mute woman that is living in a foreign country.

Synopsis

Aishad is a 63-year-old deaf and mute woman living in the Kvareli region of Georgia. Her story begins in Dagestan 40 years prior when she decides to run away from her home village with a beloved man. Upon migrating to Georgia with her partner, she begins integrating with the local villagers and meets the Magemedov family with two little girls. Shortly after, she disappears without a trace.

Magemdov sisters, now in their adulthood re-discover Aishad’s whereabout only to find out that she has been captive in an old house by the fforest as a sex prisoner, where she was physically and sexually abused for 40 years. Throughout these years Aishad gave birth to 10 children from multiple unknown men. Although Aishad remembers giving birth to 10 babies, they were all taken away from her and sold for adoption.

After 40 years of captivity, Magamedov sisters from the region of Kvareli, find Aishad and decide to give her a chance to live an ordinary life. The Magamedov sisters remember Aishad from their childhood when she first moved to Georgia. Aishad used to visit the Magemedov family, they remember that she was young and beautiful, knitting colorful traditional socks for other villagers. After 40 years of Aishad’s disappearance, as the sisters’ mother was approaching her death, she asked her daughters to try to locate Aishad and take care of her in her place.

After some time the Magamedov sisters find Aishad and decide to give her shelter and a new home. Although Magademov sisters do not have much for themselves, they share everything with Aishad and try to help her re-integrate into society. Aishad, being deaf and mute in a foreign country, uses gestures to tell her story.

Although Aishad’s case is known by authorities, due to the evidence being timeworn and her sign language being hard to interpret as a testimony for prosecution, no one is currently being taken accountable, nor are there any ongoing investigation.

The only hope for Aishad is to live the rest of her life in the Magamedov family and hope to find her children.

Producer's Note

Prisoner From Dagestan is a film about a woman, the story of which unifies multiple issues regarding ethnic diversity, sexual and physical violence, migration and integration of minorities in societies. Although we know these issues exist and are part of people’s lives, the story of Aishad is exceptionally cruel and shows how one helpless woman can experience a combination of problems such as rape, isolation, imprisonment, sexual and physical violence, forced child-selling, etc.

Due to the fact that these issues are well relevant for the region, we believe Aishad’s story express the urgency to tackle this issue and begin conversations about these themes. We believe that Aishad’s story deserves to have a more in-depth, documentary type of film.

We are planning to recreate Aishads’s journey from Dagestan to Georgia. Our goal is to start filming in Dagestan at her birthplace. Second part of the plan includes filming the path Aishad took to get to Georgia. We are also waiting of DNA test results from four different girls that may be Aishad’s daughters, we would like to include this part in the documentary, regardless of the DNA test results, this part will cover the broader issue of child-selling in the region that was taking place around 1970s to 1980s.

Finally, we would like to document Aishad life as she waits for the results.