A week ago, I was among an audience of over 400 people who watched the much-anticipated MENA debut of Cotton Queen (2025) at the Doha Film Festival (DFF) 2025, which received a much-deserved standing ovation. The feature film received the Audience Award at the DFF 2025.
Cotton Queen is a tender and socially-charged coming-of-age tale about women’s resilience, self-determination, and the fight to shape their destiny. In a cotton-farming village in Sudan, teenage Nafisa finds herself torn between tradition and change. When a businessman arrives with genetically modified cotton and a marriage proposal, she becomes the centre of a struggle for her village’s future. As her grandmother, Al-Sit, clings to old hierarchies, Nafisa begins to awaken to her own power.
There were many laughs, but also moments of silence and awkwardness. The discomfort could be felt during scenes exploring themes of romance and biological realities. Sitting among family, from my parents, aunt, and mother-in-law to my brother-in-law and husband, I felt the tension during a scene where a young woman faced the threat of circumcision. I experienced the same discomfort when one of the girls got her first menstrual period, and even during moments of innocent adolescent intimacy, like when Nafisa was held by the hip by her crush, Babikir. The feelings of discomfort and awkwardness stem from experiences that are rarely seen or discussed publicly, let alone portrayed on the big screen for the world to witness.
Dubbed a feminist film by international critics, Cotton Queen subtly highlights the struggles of young Sudanese women, from their personal choices to intimate physical experiences, including when and where they can go out, marriage decisions, menstruation and female genital mutilation (FGM).
This is likely the first time menstruation and FGM have been portrayed in this way—publicly, in a Sudanese film intended for international audiences. Yet, as noted earlier, the scenes are implicit and subtle; while they may make viewers slightly uncomfortable, they do not shock.
What did shock many viewers, however, was the award-winning and widely acclaimed You Will Die at 20 (2019). The film featured the first kissing and sex scene ever shown in a Sudanese production, prompting objections from many viewers for its challenge to cultural norms. My mother was among them when we attended the film’s screening in Doha in 2019 together with my father. She found it unacceptable, saying things like, “This is not like us.” Such reactions are largely rooted in Sudan’s conservative, Muslim-majority context, where modesty and traditional values are widely held and practiced.
While similar content may be accepted in other film industries, such as Egypt’s cinema, India’s Bollywood, or Hollywood, Sudanese viewers often consider such depictions inappropriate in their own films, believing they do not reflect Sudanese culture or social norms. For some, these scenes are seen as pushing an agenda or serving a kind of propaganda aimed at non-Sudanese, particularly Western, audiences. And in today’s hyper-sexualised global film and television landscape, their concerns may feel understandable.
Even though the controversial scenes that appear in Sudanese films are far less explicit than those in global cinema, they remain uncomfortable for many Sudanese viewers. It is important to remember that Sudanese cinema, and the broader filmmaking industry, is still relatively young and evolving rapidly, especially in recent years. As a result, audiences are often highly critical and discerning of films and documentaries portraying Sudanese life.
However, many of these scenes depict realities that do occur in Sudan, such as FGM, but they confront audiences with uncomfortable truths that they may not be ready to face, or at least not in a public setting. As seen in the first kissing and sex scene in You Will Die at 20, the film presents the uneasy reality that premarital romance and sexual advances do exist, challenging traditional perceptions and sparking discomfort among viewers.
Are Sudanese audiences ready for Sudanese films that may contain scenes with sexual themes, strong language, or other challenging elements? No, at least not yet. However, Sudanese filmmakers are beginning to push the boundaries of a traditionally conservative and self-censoring storytelling culture. They are making audiences uncomfortable, forcing them to confront aspects of Sudanese life that are often hidden or unspoken.
Films do not always need to mirror reality, nor must they adhere to cultural norms. If anything, films should challenge norms and make us uncomfortable. But are controversial scenes necessary? Maybe, maybe not. Ultimately, it is up to the filmmakers to decide how to tell the stories they believe need to be told, and what elements are essential to telling them authentically. However, they should also expect and understand that their work may face scrutiny or objection if it challenges or does not reflect Sudanese cultural norms.
Ola Diab is the new founder and editor of 500 Words Magazine, and the deputy editor of Marhaba Information Guide, Qatar’s premier information guide. Based in Qatar, the Sudanese journalist graduated from Northwestern University in Qatar (NU-Q) in 2012 with a Bachelor of Science in Journalism and has since built a successful career in the print and digital media industry in Qatar. Find her on X (formerly Twitter) @therealoladiab or on LinkedIn.
