Arranged

Summary: Arranged: Ditmas Park, Brooklyn. A young Orthodox woman, Rochel Meshenberg, is about to begin her first year as a special education teacher at the local public school. She is also about to begin the process of finding a husband via the time-tested method of using a "shadchen," or matchmaker. As the school year gets underway, Rochel meets Nasira Khaldi, a Muslim woman of Syrian descent. Nasira is also a first-year teacher. The two young women - Rochel in long skirt and conservative blouse, Nasira in headscarf - stand out in this public school context. The principal is forever reminding them that although they are some of her smartest, most gifted teachers, they are also stunted by their outmoded customs, religions, and by their patriarchal worldviews. As the school year progresses, Rochel and Nasira realize they share much in common, not least of which is that they are both going through what the outside world calls "arranged marriages." They develop a friendship that transcends their insular Brooklyn communities and the religions that seem so at odds and, as their friendship deepens, they are exposed to each other's worlds.