Movie about bride kidnapping in Kyrgyzstan nominated for Academy Award

In rural Kyrgyzstan, an estimated 1 in 3 marriages begin with an abduction, researchers and rights groups say.

Unaware of abductors waiting for them outside their workplace or home, women are forcibly shoved into a vehicle, often in broad daylight, and driven to a man’s village for marriage, they say.

At times, these men kidnap the wrong woman. But once they set out to bring home a bride, it doesn’t matter who she is, as one fictional character finds in “Ala Kachuu - Take and Run,” one of the films nominated for best live-action short at this year’s Academy Awards.

“Why did you pick me, of all people?” the character, Sezim, asks. Her new husband replies, “What was I supposed to do? I was looking for your colleague but I couldn’t find her. Back home, the wedding was already prepared. I couldn’t return empty-handed.”