Molly and Mobarak

Molly and Mobarak focuses on the situation of Mobarak Tahiri, a young Hazara refugee, who is living in the town of Young, in rural NSW. Categorized as an illegal immigrant by the Australian government, Mobarak was initially detained in the Curtin Detention Centre near Derby, WA, before being granted a Temporary Protection Visa (TPV) that allowed him to live and work in the general Australian community.
At the start of the documentary, Mobarak and a small group of other Hazaras are working at the Burrangong abattoirs. They are paid slightly above award wages and their English skills are improving rapidly—largely due to the efforts of volunteer English teachers organized by Ann Bell, an instructor at the local TAFE.
Despite several racist incidents, Mobarak has begun to feel a part of the local community and has become especially close to Lyn Rule and her daughter Molly. Like a number of other local people, they have befriended the Hazara refugees and offered them support.
Mobarak's life becomes even more complicated when he falls in love with Molly, a teacher at the local high school. However Molly insists that she has a boyfriend in another town and Lyn tells Mobarak that he and Molly cannot be together. The documentary creates a delicate tension as the hopes and uncertainty of the relationship between Molly and Mobarak run parallel to the hopes and uncertainties Mobarak feels as he waits to know whether he will be allowed to stay permanently in Australia.
With themes of human rights, refugees, racism and rural communities, Molly and Mobarak is a compassionate and thought-provoking film that will engage viewers in important issues facing contemporary Australia.
The documentary is of specific interest and relevance to teachers and students of:
• Studies of Society & Environment (SOSE/HSIE)
• English
• Politics
• History
• Media Studies