NIRVANA

My aunt, Nirvana Zeljković, died in 1995 during the Siege of Sarajevo. A year earlier, Kurt Cobain, the lead singer of Nirvana, had also died. Their shared name creates an unexpected connection between two completely different deaths — one shaped by war, the other by fame, isolation, and self-destruction.

This video moves between these two realities, exploring grief through memory, music, and family testimony. Guided by my grandmother’s voice, it tells the story of my aunt while contrasting the cultural image of Nirvana with the violence of real life during the siege. As Kurt sings and Nirvana performs, another Nirvana is remembered through fragments, stories, and loss.

This is her story.