Award-winning filmmaker detained by immigration officials in US

An award-winning filmmaker from Kashmir who legally entered the U.S. and sought asylum has been detained by federal immigration officials, according to his family and supporters .

Arfat Sheikh was arrested Sept. 24 at Washington Dulles International Airport after arriving on a flight from California, the Department of Homeland Security confirmed.

The agency said in a statement that Sheikh “legally entered the US on a temporary basis and illegally overstayed his lawful admittance,” adding that a pending immigration application does not automatically grant legal status.

Sheikh moved to the U.S. in 2019 on a student visa to pursue a graduate degree in film at Georgia State University, according to his family. He applied for asylum the following year and had been living in Alexandria, Va.

His family maintains that he was authorized to live and work in the U.S. while his immigration case remained pending.

In August, the Trump administration announced it was working to identify and revoke the visas of more than 200,000 foreign nationals who entered the country on short-term visas and are currently seeking asylum to stay permanently.

Sheikh is best known for 2024 debut feature film, “Saffron Kingdom,” which examines the decades-long conflict in Kashmir through the experiences of members of a family whose journey takes them from Srinagar in the 1990s to Atlanta in 2019.

The film received several awards and accolades, including best feature film honors at the Chicago Filmmaker Awards, the LA Film and Documentary Awards, the Melbourne Independent Filmmakers Festival and the Wake Forest Film Festival.

Sheikh also received the emerging filmmaker activist award at the Teaneck International Film Festival.

His work has focused on Kashmir, a disputed Himalayan region claimed by both India and Pakistan. The two countries each administer portions of the territory and have fought in multiple conflicts over it.

Sheikh is in an immigration detention center, and his family and supporters are raising funds to help secure his release on bond and to cover his legal costs.