2 December 2025 – Silk Mirage: Through the Looking Glass in Uzbekistan

Description

Silk Mirage is a compelling portrait of Uzbekistan, a country at the heart of the ancient Silk Road and now the centre of a power struggle between reformers and reactionaries for the soul of this strategic land in Central Asia. In 2016, the long-ruling dictator Islam Karimov – one of the last Soviet-era strongmen – died, sparking a period of transformation under his successor, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, which became known as the ‘Uzbek Spring’. Lillis explores Uzbekistan’s politics, economics, history, arts and culture – and asks where the country stands nearly a decade after the death of its dictator, and 600 years since its ancient capital Samarkand was the centre of the world’s trade network. Conjuring up Uzbekistan as a place full of life and loss, Silk Mirage tells the stories of courageous people who probe to find the cracks in an authoritarian regime through which the light gets in.