165 DAYS
A REMARKABLE TRUE STORY
Karim Hashmi makes his living shooting documentary films in war zones.

For this latest assignment, he’s travelling deep into Taliban territory for a world exclusive, an operation so clandestine he’s abandoned his usual army backup.

Forced to accept a last-minute change of guide, Karim and his three colleagues make their uneasy way into the heart of darkness.

But their new guide is a traitor who leads them into the lion’s den – they’re ambushed, beaten, and their driver is shot in the head. For Karim, the nightmare begins.

His brother Imran, abandoned and betrayed by the very people sent to support him, becomes Karim’s desperate lifeline in a frantic battle of wills.

This is a gripping, haunting, deeply moving tale of two brothers pushed to the limits of human endurance.

The ultimate true story of survival, 165 DAYS is a powerful reminder of the incredible strength of the human spirit.
A UNIQUE VIEWPOINT
165 DAYS is based on the personal experience of director Asad Qureshi. As one of only a handful of people in the world to survive Taliban captivity, he brings a unique vision to this powerful drama.

"The main character, Karim, is an ordinary guy who’s pulled into a world beyond his control. I think we all wonder how we’d cope in extreme situations. I want to explore that, in a film that will be part personal drama, part psychological drama and will also have elements of the tense thriller and the action movie."

We'll adopt a naturalistic style to the material. "Presenting the bleak aspects of the human condition in the stark reality of captivity. We want audiences to lean forward and feel pulled into the action."

He'll use pacing to underline urgency and fear but also loneliness and despair. Shot selection and camera movement will complement tempo. "There’ll be a lot of handheld scenes in captivity to capture our protagonists’ mental turmoil and extreme close-ups will be used for key details that fill the audience with the fear and revulsion the characters are feeling – a floor crawling with insects, a scorpion darting across the room, a filthy hole in the ground that serves as a toilet."

And sound will be a hugely important element of the film. Working with composer Kevin Godley, (drummer of 10cc) Asad will ensure the marriage of vision and sound will go well beyond what audiences are used to experiencing at the cinema. "From the outset, Kevin had a very thoughtful and creative response to the script and his approach to the soundscape is highly innovative, blurring the line between the sounds of the action and the sounds he'll create, reflecting the character’s psychological state. He's the ideal composer to enhance and develop the power of what we're seeing on the screen."

It’s going to be a very interesting ride for filmmaker and audience alike.
Powerful Imagery
The Story
In the world’s most lawless region, Karim, a British filmmaker, is lured into a terrorist trap. Abandoned by the TV channel who sent him, he now has a ransom of ten million dollars on his head. Only his brother Imran can save him.
The World
In the tribal lands between Pakistan and Afghanistan, normal rules don't apply. The police and the army have no authority. Life is governed by warlords who follow codes of behaviour laid down centuries ago. If you displease them, you pay an appalling price.
The Squalor
Karim and his colleagues are held in huts that are dark, cramped and blistering hot. The mud floor is crawling with ants, beetles and scorpions. Their toilet is a stinking hole thick with the grime of the hundreds who went before them. For Karim, it's just too much.
The Family
The news that his brother's been kidnapped by the Taliban hits Imran like a hammer in the chest. But he'll have to stay strong for everyone else: fragile parents tormented by fear, and Karim's wife Amy, now hating herself for planning a new life on her own.
The Brutality
Karim's captors deprive him of food and sleep. They press the barrel of a rifle into his temple. They fire bullets into the wall just inches from his head. And, for fun, they beat him across the back with a fearsome weapon: the transmission chain from a truck, nailed to a wooden baton.
The Betrayal
When negotiators arrive to support Imran, he hopes it won't be long before his brother is free. But these so-called experts hide an important truth that will cause a needless loss of life. They'll have blood on their hands.
The Conflict
Karim's world is plagued by fighting and infighting. His Taliban captors launch missile attacks on border checkpoints, they come under fire from US drone strikes, and they settle their own domestic disputes by shooting each other in the head.
The Misinformation
When Pakistan's newspapers publish reports of headless corpses dumped in a tribal village, the news is more than Karim's fragile mother can bear. There's a week of agony before Imran discovers that a venal media desperate to boost sales has printed a cruel fabrication.
The Horror
Karim's friend and colleague Hafeez is plucked from captivity and allowed a hot shower and fresh clothes. His captors take him into the village for Friday prayers. Then they walk him down to a stream and shoot him in the head. His blood mixes with rubble and dirt.
The Isolation
Karim spends months alone in a stinking cell, with thoughts of failure and suicide for company. Imran too is imprisoned in his mind, his brother's life slipping through his fingers. And Amy runs back to her family home for comfort but, there, she's never felt more alone.
The Mind Games
Almost worse than the brutality and the deprivation are the mind games Karim has to endure. One minute, his captors are sadistic tormentors, the next they're old friends popping in for a chat. Night and day. Black and white. Karim never knows what's going on behind their eyes.
The Hope
After a tense standoff that's lasted for months, the kidnappers know they need to cut their losses if they're to get any money from Imran. Early one morning, they drag Karim to a village payphone and force him to call Imran. The sound of his brother's voice gives Imran hope.
The Final Terror
As the car carrying Karim to safety pulls away from the handover site, a missile thunders into the ground a few feet away, killing the Al Qaeda warriors who've been Karim's unlikely saviours. It seems the road to freedom is far from smooth. But Karim's driver is philosophical.
The Joy
The ordeal has dragged on for half a year. Karim's been starved, beaten, deprived of sleep. Imran's wrestled with physical and mental exhaustion. Their mother's forgotten how to smile. Now, after a final macabre reminder of the fragility of life, the healing can finally begin.
The Movie
165 DAYS is a mature drama for a global audience.
Part family drama, part psychological thriller, part action movie, 165 DAYS is a gripping, haunting, deeply moving true story of two brothers pushed to the limits of human endurance.
The ultimate story of survival, 165 DAYS is a powerful reminder of the strength of the human spirit.
Pre-Production Teaser
INDEPENDENCE
This film is envisaged to be an independent production so that we retain creative control.

PRESS RELEASES
​MAJOR NEW FILM TO TELL TRUE STORY OF TALIBAN HOSTAGE
For London-based filmmaker Asad Qureshi, every passing year throws up painful reminders of his harrowing ordeal at the hands of the brutal Taliban.

"In March, I relive the dark day I was captured. In September, I remember how sweet the air smelled on the day of my release. And in February, I remember the terrible day Daniel Pearl was beheaded by those monsters."

It’s several years since the gruesome murder of Daniel Pearl. In January 2002, the US journalist was abducted near Karachi's Metropole Hotel. He was beheaded a week later.

These are unsettling memories for Asad Qureshi, who was second unit director on the 2006 HBO film The Journalist and the Jihadi, which tells the story of Daniel Pearl’s final days. Four years later, while filming a documentary, Qureshi found himself a captive of a rogue Taliban faction.

"Like Daniel, we were betrayed by people we trusted. Our guide led us into the lion’s den."

Now Asad Qureshi is telling this remarkable story on the big screen in the blockbuster thriller 165 DAYS, which he’s directing. He’s also co-written the script, together with Scotland-based screenwriter Howard Sargeant.

The production will be led by Asad’s company Avant-garde Films and will have, at the helm, veteran producer Nigel Wooll (Willow, GI Jane, W.E.). This major film will feature some of the biggest names in the business both in front of and behind the camera.

MAJOR NEW FILM TO TELL TRUE STORY OF TALIBAN HOSTAGE
165 DAYS is a compelling drama that tells the true story of one man’s harrowing ordeal.

Asad Qureshi was kidnapped by the Taliban while making a documentary on secret peace negotiations between the notorious paramilitary movement and the Pakistani government. He and three colleagues were brutally tortured for six months in a nightmare that ended in triumph but also in tragedy.

Now he’s telling his story on the big screen in a gripping thriller which he’s directing. He’s also co-written the script, together with Scotland-based screenwriter Howard Sargeant. The production will be led by Asad’s company Avant-garde Films and will have distinguished producer Nigel Wooll at the helm. The blockbuster will feature some of the biggest names in the business both in front of and behind the camera.

Producer Nigel Wooll is fired up about the project: "We have a fantastic, fast-paced, high-octane script and we’re putting together a terrific team of creative individuals with very impressive credentials. And telling this incredible story is the guy it actually happened to! It’s cinematic gold dust and we all feel privileged and excited to be involved."


ASAD QURESHI INTERVIEW
In an episode of Chris Thrall's Bought The T-Shirt podcast, Asad is interviewed about his harrowing experience as a hostage of the Taliban. See the full Taken In Afghanistan interview here.
THE BOOK
The movie is based on Asad Qureshi's gripping memoir published by Schiffer.
Schiffer Publishing
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