Inside Pakistan: A close-up look at a troubled, and troubling, ally.

When Pakistani filmmaker Sabiha Sumar chose to make a film about democracy in her country, she didn't just request a traditional interview with President Musharraf: She insisted on a formal dinner. To her surprise, the man who ran Pakistan for nearly eight years agreed, and Sumar spent the evening grilling Musharraf about the state of affairs in their sharply polarized culture. Sumar's documentary "Dinner With the President: A Nation's Journey," airing October 28, 2008, on PBS' INDEPENDENT LENS, intercuts the dinner discourse with candid interviews with a wide range of Pakistanis, from religious fundamentalists to partiers on a Pakistani beach. NOW's David Brancaccio talks with Sumar about the film, about our cultural and political relationship with Pakistan, and about Musharraf's desire to democratize his nation while functioning as its dictator.

The NOW on PBS Web site (www.pbs.org/now ) will feature extended clips from the film.