The Place of Art and Iranian Artist in Today’s Iran
By Abdolrahman Mahabadi, political analyst and writer
With the mullahs’ regime coming to power in 1979, Iran’s art breathed its last as most Iranian artists either had to leave the country or were isolated by the regime and died in obscurity.
By the order of Khomeini, music, dance and any related job or business were banned as being religiously forbidden. Visual arts, drawing, poetry and literature were confined to the mullahs’ backward ideology, with the country’s real artists either being held in prison or living a lonely sorrowful life at home.
Performing arts and cinema were also banalized under the mullahs’ regime, with regime’s so-called favorite artists taking place of real, popular ones.
While the art is supposed to help societies flourish, in Iran under the rule of mullahs, however, it’s turned into an oppression tool that helps the dictatorship survive.
Mohammad-Ali Fardin was a popular Iranian actor who was isolated ever since the mullahs took power, and eventually died while mourning over his country’s art.
Pointing to mullahs’ art-killing culture, Fardin once said in a ceremony hosting Iran’s veteran artists “where is life? We’re dying every moment to live a day.”
After going through years of isolation, Fardin passed away on April 7, 1999. His magnificent funeral was attended by thousands of people who were apparently protesting against the regime.
May his soul rest in peace!
May his soul rest in peace!
Recently passed away ‘Naser Malek-Motiee’ was another popular actor with a similar fate. Sobbing at Fardin’s burial ceremony, Malek-Motiee modestly spoke about how his fate was similar to his deceased friend’s.
Attended by thousands of his fans, Malek-Motiee’s funeral on May 27, 2018, turned into an anti-regime protest rally.
Infuriated by regime’s behavior towards Malek-Motiee, the demonstrators chanted “down with the dictator.”
Malek-Motiee passed away on May 25, 2018, at the age of 88.
It’s too heart-wrenching knowing that most of Iranian noble, veteran artists experienced a similar fate.
Iran’s well-known poet Ahmad Shamloo had countless poems in praise of freedom, freedom-seeking and Iranian revolutionaries while denouncing the dictatorship. In addition to being under pressure from the mullahs’ regime, Shamloo was severely suffering from diabetes towards the end of his life, and even lost one foot due to his illness.
Throughout his fruitful life, Shamloo was censored and persecuted by both Shah and Khomeini’s dictatorships. Nonetheless, he never stopped raising his voice against regime’s policies and its censorship machine.
After years of suffering from pain and physical restrictions, Shamloo passed away on Sunday night, July 23, 2000, in Iran.
Tens of thousands of Iranian people attended Shamloo’s funeral and bid farewell to Iran’s great poet who never gave in to the terrorist and religious dictatorship despite being under tremendous pressures.
Along with late Dr. Gholamhossein Saedi, Shamloo was Resistance of Iran’s invaluable friend.
Gholamhossein Saedi was one of Iran’s most distinguished screenwriters. In protest against mullahs’ dictatorship, Saedi left Iran and died in 1985 abroad.
It should also be pointed out that the mullahs’ hostility towards the country’s art is not limited to the artists who are still alive, but the mullahs have repeatedly destroyed deceased artists’ grave sites across the country.
Iran’s classic singer Gholamhossein Banan was another popular artist who passed away on February 27, 1986 in Tehran. Banan’s house was destroyed on October 24, 2013 by the regime.
Many Iranian artists have been joining the PMOI during the dark era of mullahs’ rule; while some of them, including Ashraf-o-Sadat Mortezaei aka Marzieh, Manoucher Sakhaei, Andranik Asaturian, Emad Raam, painter Bahram Alivand and Mansour Ghadrkhah, sadly died in exile, there are still many others who are involved in activities against the mullahs’ regime at the forefront of the Resistance. These include Manouchehr Hezarkhani, Shahla Safizamir aka Marjan, Mohammad Shams and Reza Olia, to name a few.
After being isolated for 15 years, Lady Marzieh left Iran in 1994 for good. After being granted asylum in France, Marzieh immediately joined the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) following her meeting with Mrs. Maryam Rajavi in Paris. Iran’s ‘art and music lady’ passed away in 2010, due to illness.
As an inseparable part of human life, art was among the first victims of the mullahs’ regime. Instead of being employed to flourish and evolve Iranian society, Iran’s art was degraded to mullahs-specific banality. That’s the main reason why Iran’s noble artists never gave in to mullahs’ regime and, thanks to people’s assistance, joined the Resistance of Iran in different ways, as they consider themselves being raised by people and belonging to people. There are many instances in this regard.
There were a significant number of popular artists among the 120,000 Iranians executed by the Iranian regime, as they had discovered an artist’s true place while finding the real art in standing against the regime.
Now, if we want to know the real place of Iran’s art and artists, it would suffice to take a look at this year’s NCRI Grand Gathering due to be held in Paris on June 30, and see how Iranian artists will play their part and display their presence and support for Iranian people’s uprising and their Resistance.
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