Ethnomusicology and world music studies
The film documents a living musical tradition rooted in Malawian street performance, raising questions about cultural authenticity, musical transmission and the globalisation of African music.
Education & University Partnerships
An award-winning documentary that opens conversations across ethnomusicology, African studies, documentary film, music education, migration studies and the creative industries.
The Banjo Boys follows Madalitso Band, Yobu Maligwa and Yosefe Kalekeni, two Malawian street musicians who built their own instruments from scratch and went on to perform at WOMAD, Sauti za Busara in Zanzibar and Joshua Tree in California. Directed by Johan Nayar, the film traces their journey from the streets of Lilongwe to international stages, and asks what it means to carry a culture across borders on instruments you built yourself.
“A film that deserves not only acclaim but a place in the broader discussion about how African art travels, survives, and transforms the world. It earns its emotional weight without manipulation, its inspiration without cliché.”
“What began as a road movie between two brothers has slowly become a kind of cult favourite, with audiences asking for encore screenings.”
“Don't miss this film. I'd bet you'll fall in love with Madalitso Band.”
The film in the classroom
The Banjo Boys has generated rich discussion wherever it has screened in academic settings. It has been used as a starting point for conversations across:
The film documents a living musical tradition rooted in Malawian street performance, raising questions about cultural authenticity, musical transmission and the globalisation of African music.
The band's journey from Lilongwe to international stages opens up questions of cultural mobility, representation and the circuits through which African cultural production travels and is received in the Global North.
The film offers a rich case study in ethical documentary filmmaking in the Global South, including questions of access, trust, representation and the editorial choices that shape how a story is told.
Yobu and Yosefe taught themselves entirely outside formal systems, building their own instruments from scratch. The film provides a vivid illustration of informal music learning, peer learning and intrinsic musical motivation.
The band's story is fundamentally about movement: physical, cultural and sonic. The film traces what music carries across geographical and cultural distances and what it costs to make that journey.
The film raises questions about the infrastructure, or lack of it, that surrounds grassroots musical talent in the developing world, and what it takes to navigate international touring circuits without institutional support.
The role of language, storytelling and song in Malawian cultural identity runs throughout the film, offering material relevant to courses exploring oral tradition and the relationship between language and musical culture.
Yobu is a pastor whose spiritual life runs through the film as a parallel narrative. Questions of faith, vocation and what it means to lead two lives run alongside the music throughout.
A former band member spent seven years in prison for murder, was acquitted, and is now a roadside labourer. The film follows the reunion and raises questions about justice, community and what happens after.
Past partnership events
We hosted a screening and Q&A at the Everyman Cinema in Bristol attended by academics from the University of Bristol's Film and Television and Music departments. The Q&A opened conversations around migration, music and cultural representation that ran well beyond the screening itself.
What we offer
All events are offered on a fee basis and designed around your department's needs and calendar.
A full screening of The Banjo Boys followed by a conversation with director Johan Nayar. The Q&A can be shaped around the specific interests of your students and colleagues, whether documentary practice, ethnomusicology, African studies, music education or any other disciplinary focus.
A structured talk by Johan Nayar on the making of The Banjo Boys, covering the practical and ethical dimensions of documentary filmmaking in the Global South. Topics include access and trust, representation and responsibility, editorial decision-making, and what it means to tell a story that is not your own.
A hands-on workshop for students working with or considering film as a research or practice tool. Drawn from Johan's experience making The Banjo Boys and tailored to participants from undergraduate to postgraduate level.
A broader event using the film as a starting point for conversation across departments. We have experience designing events that bring together colleagues from ethnomusicology, film studies, African studies, migration research and music education.
Subject to scheduling and logistics, it is occasionally possible to arrange a workshop or informal session with Yobu Maligwa and Yosefe Kalekeni from Madalitso Band. These events are unlike anything else we offer.
University of Bristol — confirmed screening and Q&A partnership, autumn 2026.
Get in touch
To discuss a partnership, request a screener, or find out more about how the film might work within your department or institution, get in touch.
www.banjoboys.com