Art Captured by Ideology: How the Taliban Silenced Afghanistan’s Cinema Industry

This story by Elina Qalam from Hasht-e Subh Daily originally appeared on Global Voices on January 15, 2026.

Over the past five years, the Taliban have prohibited cinema activities in the country and demolished a cinema building in the capital, Kabul. Since taking control of Afghanistan in August 2021, the Taliban began gradually removing films and television series from domestic broadcasters, and then shut the doors of cinema halls to the public. Through systematic policies, they eliminated women from films.

This article is based on Hasht-e Subh Daily’s investigation and interviews with several filmmakers and former Afghan Film employees inside and outside the country. The Taliban shut down the Afghan Film, the only official institution for film production, support, and archiving in Afghanistan. Several exiled filmmakers have expressed concern about the fate of the Afghan Film Archive, with fears that it may be destroyed.

The importance of Afghan Film lies not only in its role in the arts and cinema, but also in its role as a significant repository of Afghanistan’s visual history. The archive contains documentary films dating back to the early 20th century, covering major political events in the country’s modern history.

Elimination of the Afghan Film

With the Taliban’s takeover, the country’s cultural and artistic sphere underwent extensive and severe restrictions. From the first days of their control over the capital Kabul, this group moved step-by-step to suppress art, particularly cinema.

As the first measure, on November 21, 2021, the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice issued an eight-article directive, which led to the widespread removal of women from the media.

Continuing this trend, on March 22, 2023, the Taliban-run Kabul Municipality announced that the historic Khairkhana Cinema would be demolished to make way for a commercial market, a mosque, and residential blocks. This cinema was one of the oldest and most recognized in the capital.

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On September 26, 2023, the Taliban decided to lease the historic Aryub Cinema building. This cinema, which had previously been converted into a parking lot, was considered a key symbol of Afghanistan’s cinema scene owing to its distinctive architecture.

Finally, on May 13, 2025, the Taliban officially dissolved Afghan Film, the only state cinema institution in the country. With this disbandment, the last remaining hopes for the revival of formal cinema in Afghanistan were extinguished, and one of the most important institutions of the national cinema industry was consigned to history.

Here is a YouTube video about the demolition of the Ariana Cinema hall in Kabul.

Contradictions in the Taliban’s cultural approach

The Taliban have attempted to present themselves as supporters of culture and art through measures such as organizing the Did-e Naw film festival. Film experts state that these actions by the Taliban are largely for propaganda purposes and do not contribute to any genuine change in the group’s cultural outlook.

Over the past four years, the group has produced nine films and one television series. Women are absent from all of these productions. The content of these films promotes the Taliban’s ideology, denigrates the former government, condemns democratic values, and glorifies suicide attacks and the group’s warfare.

According to Hasht-e Subh Daily’s findings, Taliban films, such as “Bagram Prison,” “Pul-e Company,” “Kabul Retaining Walls,” “State Gardener,” “A Working Day of a Police Commander,” and “Ninth of Sunbula,” constitute only part of the productions made with government funding.

These films were produced to legitimize the Taliban’s rule and highlight the failures of the previous government. Most of these films are propagandistic in nature rather than artistic narratives, and their production was largely carried out by inexperienced filmmakers or novice students.

Sayed Ahmad Shekab Mousavi, a professor in the Department of Cinema at the Faculty of Fine Arts, Kabul University, who is currently a visiting researcher at Columbia University in New York, notes:

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Filmmaking in exile

Although filmmakers from Afghanistan in exile describe filmmaking as “the best form of revenge” against the Taliban, they state that they face numerous challenges in the countries where they have sought refuge.

They add that financial constraints, lack of access to technical facilities, residency difficulties, and the absence of professional opportunities have made it difficult to produce their work.

Forced migration has severed their connection with domestic audiences, leaving the country's cultural space out of reach. Ahmad Aryubi, former head of the Aryub Cinema Hall, says:

Marinan, an Afghan a filmmaker residing in France, says:

The difficult lives of filmmakers in Afghanistan

Hasht-e Subh Daily’s findings show that conditions for filmmakers and cinema halls in Afghanistan under the Taliban are significantly more critical than in the past. Severe censorship, ideological restrictions, and the declaration of cinema as forbidden by the Taliban have effectively made all cinematic activity impossible.

Sabera Sadat, a film actress, describes the harsh conditions of her life:

Ms. Sadat offers a grim forecast: “The situation is very bad. In my view, under the current circumstances, there is no hope for the revival of cinema.”

Hasht-e Subh Daily’s findings reveal that the Taliban allow filmmakers to operate only under strict conditions. The first requirement is that the film’s script must initially be submitted to the Taliban, and that, after completion, the film be reviewed again.

Permission to screen the film is granted only if it fully aligns with the group’s demands. Additionally, the participation of women in films is completely prohibited.

Under these conditions, Afghanistan’s film industry has effectively been shut down, leaving no hope for reopening or the resumption of free artistic activity. Many filmmakers have left the country, and those who remain live in poverty and despair.

(SY)

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