‘Some rise by sin, and some by virtue fall’ – Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure
Lahore at an imaginary time….
A kindly Governor goes into hiding after appointing a younger, puritanical Deputy in his place who is convinced that Lahore needs harsher punishments and strict implementation of laws.
Fear begins to grip the city as a young man is condemned to death after getting his fiancé pregnant on the accusations of her parents. Sameena, his sister, begs the Deputy for mercy.
He refuses at first but can’t resist her beauty and offers her a deal that requires Sameena to dishonour herself in exchange for commuting the death sentence on her brother. Sameena has to outwit him, and, with the help of the disguised ex-Governor they attempt to turn the tables in a gripping climax.
From Director Ahmed Jamal and Writer/Producer Mahmood Jamal Rahm is part of
the emergence of cinema from Pakistan. This is a timely and much needed story on tolerance and forgiveness, cutting across national and cultural boundaries reaching out to our common humanity.
With rising star Sanam Saeed (Sameena) – an actress making waves in Pakistan and now internationally – and well renowned Pakistani actor Sajid Hasan (Governor), Rahm is the first Sufi adaptation of a Shakespeare play.
As a unique interpretation of Measure for Measure shot on location in Lahore, Pakistan, it continues his indelible legacy on screen.
Synopsis
A kindly Governor goes into hiding after appointing a puritanical deputy in his place who is determined to bring Lahore under con-trol from the moral depravity rampant in the city. Public floggings for drinking alcohol, arrests of dancing girls, shutting down of brothels and massage parlours and exemplary death sentences for adultery are passed.
Sameena, a young woman on a spiritual quest, discovers that her brother is to be executed for getting his fiancée pregnant. She pleads for his life with Ahad, the new Deputy Governor who is tak-en in by Sameena’s striking looks. Over subsequent dramatic en-counters between them, she is told that her brother’s life can be spared if she agrees to dishonor herself and lie with Ahad.
When she informs her condemned brother about Ahad’s proposal, he is outraged at first but changes his mind for fear of death, citing his concern for his unborn child and pregnant wife. He begs his sis-ter to give into the Ahad’s demand. Sameena has to decide wheth-er to preserve her honour or to save her brother’s life.
Help comes in the way of the old Governor (in disguise) who visits the prison to offer comfort to the condemned prisoners and where he learns of Sameena’s predicament. Together with Marium, (Ahad’s abandoned wife), the Governor and Sameena conspire to save her honour and set a trap for Ahad who now considers him-self above the law. But time is not on her side and Ahad is deter-mined to hang her brother.
