Ahmad Khan Mahmidzada
Encyclopedia
Ahmad Khan Mahmoodzada an ethnic Hazara, is a child actor
from Afghanistan
. He played the role of Hassan, the loyal friend and servant of the richer boy Amir, in the movie The Kite Runner
.
In one scene Hassan is attacked and it is suggested that he is raped. The filmmakers wanted Ahmed to take off his pants for the shooting, but his father refused to let him do that. The boy has said that he would never have taken the role had he known Hassan would be raped. Reports vary on whether he and his family were properly informed in advance. The scene has now been depicted in a less harrowing manner than originally planned, and there is no nudity in it. Nevertheless a body double
was used to show the boy's pants being tugged slightly down.
Because of cultural misunderstandings there has been concern about the safety of him and the other two main boy actors. Therefore Paramount Pictures
relocated them and their relatives to the United Arab Emirates
.
Child actor
The term child actor or child actress is generally applied to a child acting in motion pictures or television, but also to an adult who began his or her acting career as a child; to avoid confusion, the latter is also called a former child actor...
from Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
. He played the role of Hassan, the loyal friend and servant of the richer boy Amir, in the movie The Kite Runner
The Kite Runner (film)
The Kite Runner is a 2007 drama film directed by Marc Forster based on the novel of the same name by Khaled Hosseini. It tells the story of Amir, a well-to-do boy from the Wazir Akbar Khan district of Kabul, who is tormented by the guilt of abandoning his friend Hassan, the son of his father's...
.
In one scene Hassan is attacked and it is suggested that he is raped. The filmmakers wanted Ahmed to take off his pants for the shooting, but his father refused to let him do that. The boy has said that he would never have taken the role had he known Hassan would be raped. Reports vary on whether he and his family were properly informed in advance. The scene has now been depicted in a less harrowing manner than originally planned, and there is no nudity in it. Nevertheless a body double
Body double
A body double is a general term for someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character in any recorded visual medium, in shots where the character's body is shown but the face is either not visible or shown indistinctly, or in shots where the image of the credited actor's face is joined,...
was used to show the boy's pants being tugged slightly down.
Because of cultural misunderstandings there has been concern about the safety of him and the other two main boy actors. Therefore Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
relocated them and their relatives to the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates, abbreviated as the UAE, or shortened to "the Emirates", is a state situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, and Saudi Arabia, and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran.The UAE is a...
.
Sources
- Official site of the film The Kite Runner
- January 14, 2007 Dean Nelson, "Kabul kite boys feel Hollywood backlash", The Sunday TimesThe Sunday TimesThe Sunday Times is a British Sunday newspaper.The Sunday Times may also refer to:*The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times...
. Accessed 8 January 2008. - December 3, 2007 David M. Halbfinger, "‘Kite Runner’ Boys Are Sent to United Arab Emirates", New York Times. Accessed 8 January 2008.
- The Herald Sun (MelbourneMelbourneMelbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
) The Kite Runner actors flee country over controversy, December 06, 2007. Accessed 8 January 2008. - Jay Stone, "Child actors' performances keep The Kite Runner aloft", The Vancouver SunThe Vancouver SunThe Vancouver Sun is a daily newspaper first published in the Canadian province of British Columbia on February 12, 1912. The paper is currently published by the Pacific Newspaper Group, a division of Postmedia Network. It is published six days a week, Monday to Saturday...
, December 21, 2007. Accessed 8 January 2008. - The Evening StandardEvening StandardThe Evening Standard, now styled the London Evening Standard, is a free local daily newspaper, published Monday–Friday in tabloid format in London. It is the dominant regional evening paper for London and the surrounding area, with coverage of national and international news and City of London...
(London), December 27, 2007. Accessed 8 January 2008.