Bread & Roses – a documentary looking at the impact of female repression by the Taliban in Afghanistan – is finally dropping on Apple TV+ this week.
Produced by Jennifer Lawrence and executive produced by activist Malala Yousafzai and directed by Sahra Mani, it will look at how quickly women’s rights were stripped when the Taliban took control in 2021, including their ability to work, get an education and even appear in public without a chaperone.
It’s a devastating but important watch. Here’s everything we know so far about Bread & Roses.
What is Bread & Roses about?
According to Apple TV+, the documentary “offers a powerful window into the seismic impact that the fall of Kabul to the Taliban in 2021 had on women’s rights and livelihoods.
“The film follows three women in real time as they fight to recover their autonomy,” the synopsis reads. “Sahra Mani captures the spirit and resilience of Afghan women through a raw depiction of their harrowing plight.”
Courtesy of Apple TV
Bread & Roses release date
The documentary film will drop on Apple TV+ on Friday 22 November.
What have the team behind Bread & Roses said about the documentary?
Jennifer Lawrence has spoken about the impact the fall of Afghanistan had on her, and the other motivations that led her to co-producing the documentary.
“It all just collapsed and a matter of days,” she told Variety. “I was watching this from America, where Roe v. Wade was about to be overturned. We felt helpless and frustrated with how to get these stories off of the news cycle and into people’s psyches. To help people be galvanized and care about the plight of these women.”
Courtesy of Apple TV
Director Sahra Mani added that the story explored way more than what meets the eye when it comes to the Taliban’s repression of women.
“Closing girls’ schools in Afghanistan is not just a matter of feminist concern; rather, it is a matter of international security,” she said. “The Taliban recognises that the children of educated mothers are difficult to indoctrinate and are less susceptible to becoming their future soldiers. Ensuring that girls’ schools remain open in Afghanistan is crucial for the preservation and safety of our entire world.”