Hive

Fahrije’s husband is one of the many men who disappeared during the Kosovo war of 1999. Instead of passively waiting for his return, she takes her life into her own hands. But in her conservative hometown, an independent woman causes hostility and even violence. Based on a true story.

Fahrije is a beekeeper in a small Kosovo town, living with her two children and her father-in-law Haxhi. Her husband Agim is missing after a massacre during the Kosovo war, seven years earlier. Fahrije makes a living selling honey, but lately the production of her bees is stalling. When she gets the opportunity to sell homemade ajvar to a big city supermarket, she decides to give it her best shot.

Fahrije – a beautifully subdued, intense role by Yllka Gashi – gets her driver’s license, which is frowned upon by the townspeople, and goes into business. But Haxhi doesn’t approve of her new choices, and her daughter Zana is bothered by the gossip in town. And when more and more women are rising up and start helping Fahrije, the reactions get increasingly threatening.