AFGHANISTAN, THE VALLEY MERCHANTS | France 5 | Les Routes de l'Impossible

Afghanistan is one of the most closed countries on the planet, a secret country with few images… The crews from Impossible Roads accompanied those Afghan drivers who are struggling for their survival and that of their families. Essential heroes without whom goods and provisions would not circulate. Rail transport is non-existent and air freight is far too expensive. In a country where everything needs to be rebuilt, the drivers take on roads that are  barely maintained with some reaching altitudes of over 4,000 metres. Azathoula and his Bedford truck are well up to the task… The truck may date back to 1966, but the driver pushes hard with 17 tonnes of bananas… As tradition requires, the English steel has disappeared under layers of paintings, tassels, mirrors and other calligraphic art and the doors are even carved out of wood! A journey packed with pitfalls awaits Azathoula and his motorized work of art! Up in the mountains, on the roofs of collective taxis, people, animals and goods sway precariously. Inside the vehicle, they are no more comfortably installed… 20 people for 12 seats! None of the passengers complains, they have no choice! Ali Assan is one of the few who dares to drive in the snow along this narrow track alongside a ravine. 6 hours of dangerous road to cover just 50 km. Afghanistan may well have been ravaged by war, but its people have a saying: “They may kill all the swallows, but they won’t prevent Spring from coming.”. One of them is still flying in the Bamyan valley. All around the giant Buddhas destroyed by the Taliban are dozens of caves dug by Buddhist monks in the 5^th century. Various conflicts have driven Afghans to take refuge there. Freshta, 25, occupies one of these cavities with her entire family. She has also set up a school for the cave children. Without Freshta they would have no education. This documentary reveals a sumptuous country and a people of exemplary courage despite the war and poverty that have gripped Afghanistan.