Bosnian Female Muslim Rituals – Learning, Reciting, and Teaching in Sarajevo

The documentary film about Muslim rituals of Bosnian women titled "Bosnian Female Muslim Rituals – Learning, Reciting, and Teaching in Sarajevo" premiered last night in the crowded hall of the Bosniak Institute in Sarajevo, organized by the TPO Foundation, reports the Patria News Agency.

The film, by authors doc. dr. Zilka Spahić Šiljak and prof. dr. Catharine Raudvere, produced by the University of Copenhagen with the support of the Carlsberg Foundation, speaks about the ladies of Sarajevo's mevlud tradition, such as bula Ramiza Šećerović, bula Enisa Meštrovac, and particularly highlights the work of hadži Aiša hanuma Fočakovka and Mediha hanumi Silajdžić, who have been leading mevlud and tevhid rituals for over forty years and are today the only two women who graduated from the Madrasa in 1948.

Thanking the audience for attending, author prof. dr. Catharine Raudvere emphasized that filming the documentary was a long journey.

-I am very grateful that we can present our film to you tonight. In this process, we had the opportunity to meet truly wonderful ladies who selflessly shared their stories and experiences with us. I think this film shows a different side of Islam compared to the perception of the Western world, said Raudvere, and specifically thanked the University of Copenhagen and the Carlsberg Foundation for their support.

Emphasizing that the film has an educational purpose above all, author doc. dr. Zilka Spahić Šiljak said she hopes the film will be primarily watched by young people from BiH and abroad.

-This film is a great testimony to the formal and informal education of Muslim women in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It tells us the story of how our customs and traditions have been preserved. That is why I most hope that our young people will also watch the film, stated Spahić Šiljak.

After this premiere, the film will be available on the official website of the University of Copenhagen and in the archival material of the Bosniak Institute – Adil Zulfikarpašić Foundation.

The TPO (Transcultural Psychosocial Educational) Foundation in Bosnia and Herzegovina has existed since 2004, with the aim of contributing to the building of a civic and democratic society, strengthening awareness of gender equality, and establishing an ethic of partnership and responsibility in the family, society, and political life of BiH through the implementation of educational, research, psychosocial, and intercultural program activities.