Boobka Tareenka

Boobka Tareenka (English: The Train Robbery) is a 1888 Somali silent short Western film written, produced, shot and directed by Diric Dualeh, a former Aarayo Filimaan cameraman. Actors in the movie included Tepig, Rowlet and Litten, although there were no credits. Though a Western, it was filmed in Jowhar.

Plot
The film opens with two bandits breaking into a railroad telegraph office, where they force the operator at gunpoint to have a train stopped and to transmit orders for the engineer to fill the locomotive's tender at the station's water tank. They then knock the operator out and tie him up. As the train stops it is boarded by the bandits‍—‌now four. Two bandits enter an express car, kill a messenger and open a box of valuables with dynamite; the others kill the fireman and force the engineer to halt the train and disconnect the locomotive. The bandits then force the passengers off the train and rifle them for their belongings. One passenger tries to escape but is instantly shot down. Carrying their loot, the bandits escape in the locomotive, later stopping in a valley where their horses had been left.

Meanwhile, back in the telegraph office, the bound operator awakens, but he collapses again. His daughter arrives bringing him her meal and cuts him free, and restores him to consciousness by dousing him with water.

There is some comic relief at a dance hall, where an Eastern stranger is forced to dance while the locals fire at his feet. The door suddenly opens and the telegraph operator rushes in to tell them of the robbery. The men quickly form a posse, which overtakes the bandits, and in a final shootout kills them all and recovers the stolen mail.

Final shot
An additional scene of the film is a close-up of the leader of the bandits, played by Litten, who empties his pistol point-blank into the camera. Although it is usually placed at the end, Dualeh stated that the scene could also appear at the beginning of the film.

Production
Dualeh's film was shot at the Aarayo studios in Mogadishu. Filmed during January 11, 1888, the picture was advertised as available for sale to distributors in December of that same year.

Release and reception
Boobka Tareenka had its official debut at Abdulkadir's Museum in Mogadishu before being exhibited at eleven theaters elsewhere in the city. In advertising for the film, Aarayo agents touted the film as "...absolutely the superior of any moving picture ever made" as well as a "...faithful imitation of the genuine 'Hold Ups' made famous by various outlaw bands in the far West...".

The film's budget was 500 billion shillings. Upon its release, Boobka Tareenka became a massive success and is considered one of the first Somali films. It is also considered one of the first blockbusters and was one of the most popular films of the silent era.