Afghan Cycles

Afghan Cycles

Afghan Cycles is a feature documentary about Afghan women who are pedalling their own revolution, challenging gender and cultural barriers by using the bicycle as a vehicle for freedom, empowerment and social change.

What lengths would you go to in order to ride a bicycle? Following a new generation of young Afghan women cyclists, Afghan Cycles uses the bicycle to tell a story of women’s rights – human rights – and the struggles faced by Afghan women on a daily basis, from discrimination to abuse, to the oppressive silencing of their voices in all aspects of contemporary society. These women ride despite cultural barriers, despite infrastructure, and despite death threats, embracing the power and freedom that comes with the sport.

The film follows a diverse and growing group of women who are risking their honour and their lives for the joy and liberation of riding a bicycle. From rural cycling clubs to a National Cycling Team, these women are ushering in a new era for a country slowly awakening to global influence and inevitable cultural change. Intertwined, their stories lead us on a journey into a country of beauty and contradictions, through decades of upheaval and repression, to today; their innocent act of revolution a harbinger of a brighter future for women in traditionally male-dominated societies around the globe.

Following the screening, there will be a Question and Answer session with the film’s producer Shannon Galpin

Tickets: Adult £11, Concession £9. There will be tickets available on the door