Leaving with Questions: The Screening Experience of Abbas Kiarostami

The heat had not yet subsided, though it was already five o'clock. One by one, people took their seats.

The film began.

When the movie ended and the lights came on, a mix of calm and tension lingered on everyone's faces. People got up and walked here and there. some had tea, while others stretched their bodies. Some looked heavy-eyed.

There was, perhaps, a sense of relief.

Just outside the door, one could see one of Chennai’s busiest, most congested roads. Yet here, in this secluded room, we had experienced Abbas Kiarostami’s The Wind Will Carry Us.

Everyone shared their thoughts on the film and highlighted moments that had moved them, expressing how they had personally internalized the work.

For many, the experience left behind a trail of questions and confusion—though these very things may well have stirred their thoughts. Why did the protagonist leave without doing what he had intended? Who knows?

Kiarostami posed questions, and the audience carried those questions with them.