Nayab will officially participate in the SCO Film Festival 2025
Pakistani film Nayab starring Yumna Zaidi, which tells the story of a middle-class girl who dreams of making it big in the competitive world of cricket, has been nominated for the official competition at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Film Festival 2025, the film’s director, Umair Nasir Ali, announced.
The film festival will take place in Chongqing’s Yongchuan district from July 3 to 7. This marks the festival’s comeback to China after a seven-year break following its inaugural edition in Qingdao, Shandong province, in 2018, according to a press conference held in the southwestern municipality, China Daily reported.
In an Instagram story, Ali shared that Nayab was included in a “significant cultural and diplomatic gathering this year” and was nominated for the SCO Film Festival, which was “taking place as part of the larger Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in China.”
The director added that this was possible with the support of the Government of Pakistan.

“The SCO is one of the world’s largest intergovernmental alliances, bringing together countries including Pakistan, China, Russia, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.
“Beyond political and economic cooperation, this year’s summit places a strong focus on media diplomacy, regional storytelling and cultural exchange — with cinema playing a central role,” Ali said.

In a second Instagram story, he said, “Nayab — it will always remain special to us. For what it is. For where it continues to go.”
As this year celebrates the 130th anniversary of world cinema and the 120th anniversary of Chinese cinema, the festival aims to promote the SCO member states’ civilisational values of equality, mutual learning, dialogue and inclusiveness through film, which is regarded as a universal artistic language, according to the organising committee, China Daily reported.
The five-day event will feature 11 film-themed activities, including a film awards festival, screenings, a cooperation forum, a technology exhibition, an outdoor market and a concert.
According to the publication, the opening and closing ceremonies will take place at the expansive 5,000-square-metre filming studio of Yongchuan Technology Studio, China’s largest digital technology studio that employs virtual shooting technology throughout the entire movie production process.
On the evening of July 7, a red carpet event will be held at the 3,000-square-metre virtual filming studio within the technology studio.
The film awards festival will present a total of 10 awards, from Best Feature to Best Director, with veteran filmmaker and playwright Ren Zhonglun serving as the jury president, China Daily detailed.
For the film screenings activity, the film festival organising committee has currently received 27 films from countries within the SCO. Selected films will be screened in cinemas in downtown Chongqing and Yongchuan, the publication reported.
Filmmakers from China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Belarus, Iran, Pakistan and Mongolia will present their country’s films.
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