Best Documentary
Lace, silk and warzones: Northern Iraq’s first lingerie store
Northern Iraq’s first lingerie store is more than just a place to buy bras—it has become a rare sanctuary where women gather to share their personal stories. In this intimate documentary by director Jacqueline van Vugt, ordinary Kurdish women open up about love, sex, shame, and the shadow of war.
Filmed inside the groundbreaking boutique of Dutch-Kurdish entrepreneur Shapol Majid in Suleimaniyah, the store offers more than lingerie. For women who have been disconnected from their bodies by conflict, trauma, and strict moral codes, it’s a place to rediscover sensuality and connection within the privacy of the fitting rooms.
Despite the region’s deeply rooted conservatism—where even a lingerie advertisement is forbidden—the women speak candidly and courageously. They find comfort in one another, away from the expectations of family and society. Rozhan reveals her fears surrounding her virginity, Shiaw recounts her forced marriage, and Tara bravely shares her experience of circumcision. War and repression are never far away, even within the walls of this shop. These women bear emotional scars, yet they also show remarkable resilience.
Alongside the boutique, Shapol Majid runs a sewing workshop where Nasrine and Medina, both Yezidi refugees, sew garments while carrying the weight of their own tragic histories. They tell of surviving ISIS attacks, with loved ones still missing.
Through their stories, we meet women who have endured war, lost family, and suffered under patriarchal control—from men and even their own mothers. And yet, inside the walls of this unlikely shop, where even showing a bare leg is taboo, these women laugh, connect, and reclaim pieces of themselves.
Original Title : Up to G-Cup - Inside the First Lingerie Shop in Iraqui Kurdistan
Director : Jacqueline van Vugt
Production : Revolver Amsterdam Production - Germen Boelens, Joachim Van Trommel, Raymond Van Der Kaaij
Published Apr 3, 2025
