THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Minister Saji Cherian announced that Kenyan director Wanuri Kahiu will be felicitated with the Spirit of Cinema Award at the 28th IFFK organized in Thiruvananthapuram from December 8 to 15. The prize money is five lakh rupees. Wanuri will receive the award at the opening ceremony of the fair on December 8 at 6 pm at Nishagandi.
Wanuri Kahiu is a filmmaker fighting against conservative values ​​in Kenya.

Wanuri Kahiu is the founder of 'Afrobubblegum', a collective dedicated to correcting common perceptions and creating a new perspective on Africa. Wanuri's first Kenyan film 'Rafiki' to be selected at the Cannes Film Festival brought Wanuri to international attention. The film, which tells the love story of two girls, was banned by the country's conservative government.

Wanuri waged a legal battle against the Censor Board for denying the constitutional right to freedom of expression. The High Court granted temporary permission to screen the film to qualify for Oscar submissions, but a week later the ban was extended and the Court ruled in favor of the Censor Board in 2020. She received her master's degree in directing from the University of California. Her first film 'From a Whisper', based on the terrorist attack on the American Embassy in Nairobi in 1988, won the African Movie Academy Award in 2009.