Tender and Cruel (2026)
Set during the days when all communication is cut off, the film follows a lover stranded in silence, aching for any sign of the woman he loves. With no news and no certainty, his longing stretches across distance and time. Wandering through the quiet, storied streets of Cambridge, he reflects on memory, absence, and the fragile threads that bind him and his beloved. As old streets and gentle rivers surround him, he reads a letter addressed to her, words that become both confession and prayer.
Director:
Bashir Sayyah
Writer:
Bashir Sayyah
![]() |
Bashir Sayyah as |
![]() |
Abhay Parmar as |
![]() |
John Keats as |
![]() |
Henry VIII as |
![]() |
Jane Austen as |
![]() |
Isaac Newton as |
![]() |
Yasamin Seif as |
| Directing | Bashir Sayyah | Director |
| Camera | Abhay Parmar | Director of Photography |
| Sound | Ludovico Einaudi | Music |
| Sound | Clavier | Music |
| Editing | Bashir Sayyah | Editor |
| Writing | Bashir Sayyah | Screenplay |