Face the Music in Kazakhstan

The Kazakh band Ninety One stirred up the conservative waters of the local music scene and the strictly hierarchical society. Although the musicians wearing makeup, earrings and dyed hair enchanted tens of thousands of fans, in their home country they are facing waves of hatred, concert cancellations, and threats. The band breaks the stereotypes Kazakh traditionalists and appeals to those who do not want to be told how to live. With their original style and effort to redefine contemporary Kazakh pop music, they are rousing the open opposition of the mainstream public. Almata native Katerina Suvorova’s new film shows that being a Ninety One fan is becoming a way to express a desire for greater openness, tolerance, and a truly free Kazakhstan in what is an unfree country. What price are the band willing to pay for this? (One World)