Prince Aly Muhammad Aga Khan ( ar, علي محمد آغا خان; born March 7, 2000) is a British cinematographer, the fourth child of
Aga Khan IV and his second wife,
Gabriele Renate Homey.
Early life and education
Aly Muhammad Aga Khan was born on March 7, 2000, in
Paris, France. His father, current
Nizari Ismailis Imam
Imam (; ar, إمام '; plural: ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a worship leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Islamic worship services, lead prayers, ser ...
Karim Aga Khan
Shāh Karim al-Husayni (born 13 December 1936), known by the religious title Mawlānā Hazar Imam by his Ismaili followers and elsewhere as Aga Khan IV, is the 49th and current Imam of Nizari Ismailis, a denomination within Shia Islam. He h ...
, is the founder and chairman of the
Aga Khan Development Network. His mother,
Gabriele Renate Homey, a member of the
Thyssen family, is a lawyer of
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
descent. His paternal grandmother was
Joan Yarde-Buller, daughter of
John Yarde-Buller, 3rd Baron Churston.
From his father's first marriage to
Sarah Croker-Poole, Aly has three older half-siblings;
Zahra,
Rahim
Rahim (''Raḥīm'' , also anglicized as Raheem) is one of the names of Allah in Islam, meaning "Merciful", from the root ''R-Ḥ-M''. It is also used as a personal male name, short for Abdu r-Raḥīm "Servant of the Merciful". Spellings include ...
, and
Hussain. From his mother's first marriage to
Prince Karl Emich of Leiningen, he has an older half-sister, Theresa. Much of his childhood was spent in Europe, where he completed secondary education. In September 2019, he commenced an undergraduate study at
Harvard University in
Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Career
He directed the 2018 short film "Close To Home," shot in
Gilgit-Baltistan
Gilgit-Baltistan (; ), formerly known as the Northern Areas, is a region administered by Pakistan as an administrative territory, and constituting the northern portion of the larger Kashmir region which has been the subject of a dispute bet ...
, part of the conflict-torn state of
Kashmir
Kashmir () is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term "Kashmir" denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. Today, the term encompas ...
, subject to a
United Nations Security Council dispute, and
freedom struggle. The movie which documents the plight of a poverty stricken community plagued by natural disasters, was screened at Jubilee Arts International Film Festival in
Lisbon
Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...
, Portugal.
While speaking at the
University of Central Asia, in
Kyrgyzstan, Prince Aly said he would "plan to continue adding to the "Close to Home" series, in the hope that these films will help shed light on issues that I believe are important to young people today.”
In 2018, after turning 18, Prince Aly gave an opening speech at
Pecaut Square
Pecaut Square (formerly known as Metro Square) is a large concrete-and granite-clad plaza located in front of Metro Hall in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The square supports the PATH (Toronto), PATH network connection between Metro Hall and nearby bui ...
,
Toronto for the 34th annual, World Partnership Walk, organized by the
Aga Khan Foundation, which raised over CA$6 million.
While speaking on the foundations efforts in alleviating poverty in conflict stricken Kashmir, Prince Aly stated, "one thing we cannot ignore, and that is
climate change and its long lasting effects on the people living in these regions."
Prince Aly in October 2018, visited Gilgit Baltistan
Hunza district, to oversee rural development projects, relating to education and health care by the Aga Khan Foundation. On his arrival at
Islamabad airport, he was publicly greeted by Hafiz Sherali, President of the
Ismaili
Isma'ilism ( ar, الإسماعيلية, al-ʾIsmāʿīlīyah) is a branch or sub-sect of Shia Islam. The Isma'ili () get their name from their acceptance of Imam Isma'il ibn Jafar as the appointed spiritual successor (imām) to Ja'far al-Sa ...
National Council for
Pakistan.
In 2020, Prince Aly released the feature length documentary "Al-Khimyah,"
which explores the work of the
Aga Khan Historic Cities Programme
The Historic Cities Programme (HCP) of the Aga Khan Trust for Culture (AKTC) promotes the conservation and re-use of buildings and public spaces in historic cities of the Muslim world. HCP undertakes the restoration and rehabilitation of histori ...
in
Cairo. The documentary shines a spotlight on the 30-hectare
Al-Azhar Park — converted from a mound of rubble — and the stories of local residents of the adjacent
al-Darb al-Ahmar neighbourhood.
References
{{reflist
External links
"Close to Home" Official Movie Website"Close to Home" Official Movie Instagram
2000 births
Living people
British film directors
Noorani family