Arab readers yearning for modern Persian novels: publisher

November 25, 2014, 12:17 pm

≫ Next: Istanbul universities to screen Iranian films

≪ Previous: Historical novels share Jalal Al-e Ahmad Literary Award

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TEHRAN -- An Iranian publisher participating in the Arabic Books Exhibition, which is currently underway in Kuwait, said that visitors frequently ask for novels by Iranian writers.

 

“Many people visiting the exhibition often asked for Persian novels and literary books,” Hamid Dehdashti, the deputy director of Iran’s Alhoda International Publishing Institution, said in press release on Tuesday.

 

Representing Iranian publishers, Alhoda is displaying Arabic versions of 120 books by Iranian writers at the exhibition.

 

“This exhibition is not a specialized book fair at all and general works are offered more by publishers,” Dehdashti said and added, “Visitors lamented the lower numbers of books offered by Iranian publishers at the exhibit.”       

 

The Arabic Books Exhibition opened on November 19 and runs for eleven days.

 

MMS/YAW

END

 

---

Istanbul universities to screen Iranian films

November 25, 2014, 12:20 pm

≫ Next: Iranian animation “Scale” wins award at Munich festival

≪ Previous: Arab readers yearning for modern Persian novels: publisher

$

0

0

TEHRAN -- Five universities in Istanbul are screening a selection of Iranian films that were shown at Iran’s 13th Resistance International Film Festival in September.

 

The films are being shown at the Yildiz Technical University, Bogazici University, Istanbul University, Istanbul Technical University and Marmara University, and the screenings run until November 28.

 

The films are Ali Ghaffari’s World War II drama “Restitution”, Ehsan Abdipur’s anti-war movie “All Alone” and Vahid Musaian’s “The Fourth Child”.

 

The festival was held in Tehran and other Iranian cities from September 23 to 30 to commemorate the anniversary of the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war during the Sacred Defense Week.

 

Moscow hosted the 13th edition of Iran’s Resistance Film Festival in early October.

 

SB/YAW

END

 

 

 

Iranian animation “Scale” wins award at Munich festival

November 25, 2014, 12:23 pm

≫ Next: Culture minister asks Muslim and Christian clergy to fight against extremism

≪ Previous: Istanbul universities to screen Iranian films

$

0

0

TEHRAN – Iranian short animation “Scale” directed by Amin Rahbar has won the Climate Clips Award at the 34th Munich International Festival of Film Schools.

 

The award is presented to the short film that best deals with the topic of climate change and sustainable energy at the festival, which was held from November 16 to 22. 

 

“Amin Rahbar’s enchanting animated film ‘Scale’ shows us the dramatic changes industrialization has wrought upon our planet,” the jury said in a statement.

 

The Climate Clip Award includes €5000 prize money.

 

SB/YAW

END

 

 

 

Culture minister asks Muslim and Christian clergy to fight against extremism

November 25, 2014, 12:25 pm

≫ Next: Historical novels share Jalal Al-e Ahmad Literary Award

≪ Previous: Iranian animation “Scale” wins award at Munich festival

$

0

0

TEHRAN -- Iranian Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Ali Jannati has asked Muslim and Christian clergymen to unite in standing against extremism.

 

Jannati made the remarks in a meeting with French Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, president of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, held at the ministry yesterday, Persian media reported on Tuesday.

 

Jannati said that the meeting led to a better understanding and helped remove obstacles in making proper decisions to confront the problems.

 

“Violence and extremism is one of the major issues that Muslims and other religions are involved in especially in the Middle East, the region we live in,” Jannati added.

 

The behavior of violent groups toward people– Christians, Muslims, in churches and mosques–is not accepted by Muslims. “In this situation we need to sit down and discuss, and find a solution,” Jannati stated.

 

Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran said that the recent events occurring in the region have not been carried out by Muslims but by criminals.

 

ICRO director Abuzar Ebrahimi-Torkaman also attended the meeting.
 

RM/YAW

END

 

Historical novels share Jalal Al-e Ahmad Literary Award

November 25, 2014, 12:31 pm

≫ Next: Kamran Shirdel is a pioneer of Iranian documentary cinema: critic

≪ Previous: Culture minister asks Muslim and Christian clergy to fight against extremism

$

0

0

TEHRAN – Mohammad-Kazem Mazinani and Abutorab Khosravi have shared the Jalal Al-e Ahmad Literary Award in novel category for “The Ah with a Sheen” and “Angels of Punishment”, which both focus on part of contemporary Iranian history.

 

The award consists of 110 Bahar Azadi gold coins and each writer received 55 Bahar Azadi gold coins during a ceremony at Tehran’s Vahdat Hall on Monday.

 

The award, named after the prominent Iranian writer Jalal Al-e Ahmad (1923-1969), is Iran’s most lucrative literary award. Each winner in the four categories of fiction, short stories, memoirs and literary reviews receives 110 Bahar Azadi gold coins.

 

“The Ah with a Sheen” is a second part of a trilogy about the political life of Iran’s last monarch, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. “The Shah without a Sheen” is the first part of the trilogy. 

 

The title of “The Shah without a Sheen” is a play on words. Sheen is a letter of the Persian alphabet that represents the sound of “sh” in English. Only “ah” remains if the “sh” is dropped from the word “shah”. “Ah” means sorrow in Persian. “Ah” with a “sheen” makes the Persian word “shah”.

 

“Angels of Punishment” narrates the lives of three generations in an Iranian family, whose fates are tied together. A major part of the story is set in the 1950s when Iran witnessed major political events.

 

In the memoir category, the prize was also shared by “Prison of Rashid” (Mohammad-Mehdi Behdarvand) and “Passed Journey” (Mohammadreza Tavakoli Saberi).

 

In addition, 110 gold coins of the literary critic section went to Hossein Payandeh for his book “Opening a Novel”.

 

The jury did not select a winner in the short story category.

 

A large number of literati including Iranian Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Ali Jannati attended the ceremony.

 

In his short Jannati speech asked the organizers to invite authors from Persian speaking countries to compete in the coming editions of the awards.

 

 

RM/YAW

END

 

 

 

Kamran Shirdel is a pioneer of Iranian documentary cinema: critic

November 26, 2014, 10:17 pm

≫ Next: Art news in brief

≪ Previous: Historical novels share Jalal Al-e Ahmad Literary Award

$

0

0

TEHRAN – Film critic and actor Omid Rohani has called documentarian Kamran Shirdel one of the founders of Iranian documentary cinema.

 

He made the remarks during a review session that the Iranian Artists Forum (IAF) held for Shirdel’s four short documentaries on Tuesday.

 

“The Mirrors”, “Dubai”, “Silver Canvas” and “The Paykan” were the four films screened during the session.

 

“Filmmaking is quite easy in Iran, perhaps it is only in Iran where an individual can easily decide to make a film in a short time with a low budget,” Rohani said.

 

“That is why there are so many productions that even supermarkets sell CDs of the films,” he added.

 

“On the contrary, making a documentary is quite difficult, since it requires thoughts and ideas,” he said and added that documentary cinema in Iran began with Shirdel, Khosro Sinaii and Sohrab Shahid-Sales.

 

He said, “Shirdel is one of the pioneers in documentary cinema in Iran, an individual who has made a lasting impression on documentary cinema.”

 

Critic Khosro Dehqan also attended the session and said that Shirdel has made over 100 films and added, “Watching these films will surely be a good workshop for film students and film lovers.”

 

“His artistic career has given credit to our cinema, there are not many like Shirdel who has made this much of an impression on an artistic movement,” Dehqan stated.

 

Since the mid-1960s, Shirdel has made bold documentary films that address everyday issues of his native Iran, influencing an entire generation of contemporary Iranian filmmakers. 

 

“Women’s Prison” (1965), “Tehran Is the Capital of Iran” (1966-1979), “The Women’s Quarter” (1966–1980), and “The Night It Rained” (1967–1974) are among his other productions.

 

RM/YAW

END

 

 

 

 

 

Art news in brief

November 26, 2014, 10:39 pm

≫ Next: “Mokhtarnameh” cinematographer Azim Javanruh dies at 69

≪ Previous: Kamran Shirdel is a pioneer of Iranian documentary cinema: critic

$

0

0

Serbian university to offer Persian language course

TEHRAN – Persian language and literature will be offered as an elective course at Megatrend University in Belgrade, Serbia.

 

The decision to offer the course was made according to an agreement, which has recently been signed between Iran’s cultural attaché in Belgrade Mahmud Shaluii and the vice-rector for internationalization at Megatrend University, Ana Jovancai.

 

The course, which is scheduled to begin in December, will be organized by Iran’s cultural attaché’s office.

 

Contrabassist Alireza Khorshidfar dies at 67

TEHRAN – Veteran contrabassist virtuoso Alireza Khorshidfar died of heart attack on Wednesday. He was 67.

 

He was the principal of the contrabass group at Iran’s National Orchestra since 1998 and was in this position at the Tehran Symphony Orchestra from 1969 to 2004. 

 

He also played the tin whistle in Majid Entezami’s popular soundtrack for Ebrahim Hatamikia’s movie “From Karkheh to Rhein” and Piruz Arjomand’s soundtrack for “A Journey to Chazabeh” directed by Rasul Mollaqolipur.

 

Warsaw hosting Iranian film festival

TEHRAN – The 4th edition of Iranian film festival is currently underway in Warsaw.

 

Organized by Iran’s Visual Media Institute and the Embassy of Iran in Poland, the festival runs until November 29.

 

The films are “A Separation” by Asghar Farhadi, “Here without Me” by Bahram Tavakkoli, “I Am His Wife” by Mostafa Shayesteh, “Mr. Yusef” by Ali Rafiei, “The Sinners” by Faramarz Qaribian and “So Close, So Far” by Seyyed Reza Mirkarimi.

 

SB/YAW

END

 

“Mokhtarnameh” cinematographer Azim Javanruh dies at 69

November 26, 2014, 10:42 pm

≫ Next: Presidential advisor comments on rush for Pashaii’s funeral

≪ Previous: Art news in brief

$

0

0

TEHRAN – Azim Javanruh, the cinematographer of “Mokhtarnameh”, an Iranian TV series about the uprising of Mokhtar Saqafi after the events of Ashura, died of colon cancer on Tuesday. He was 69.

 

Javanruh underwent heart surgery before he found out about his colon cancer, “Mokhtarnameh” producer Mahmud Fallah told the Persian service of MNA on Wednesday. 

 

He next began the cancer chemotherapy treatment, which led to failure and he died on Tuesday evening, Fallah said.

 

His funeral procession will begin at the Iranian House of Cinema on Friday, Fallah said and added, “His family is not living in Iran and the memorial service will be set after they arrive home.”

 

“Mokhtarnameh” by director Davud Mirbaqeri took about eight years to be filmed and completed. The 40-episode TV series was broadcast on IRIB’s Channel 1 in 2011.

 

Born in 1945 in Ardebil, Javanruh collaborated with Mirbaqeri in his other productions including “The King Eared” and “The Lost Innocence”.

 

He also worked in many other projects and TV series such as “The Majid Stories” directed by Kiumars Purahmad, “Mulla Sadra” by Hassan Fat’hi and “Practicing Love” by Bahram Bahramian.

 

RM/YAW

END

 

---

Presidential advisor comments on rush for Pashaii’s funeral

November 26, 2014, 10:51 pm

≫ Next: Beizaii to present “Ardaviraf’s Report” at Stanford University

≪ Previous: “Mokhtarnameh” cinematographer Azim Javanruh dies at 69

$

0

0

TEHRAN -- Presidential advisor Seyyed Reza Salehi-Amiri has commented on the rush to participate in the funeral of Iranian pop singer Morteza Pashaii, who died two weeks ago at 30 after battling cancer.

 

A crowd of over 30,000 people, most of them youths, attended Pashaii’s funeral procession, which began at Tehran’s Vahdat Hall. The rush for the ceremony has been in the limelight over the past two weeks. 

 

“One of the most important points in this issue is the unpredictable nature of Iranian people,” said Salehi-Amiri, who is also the director of the National Library and Archives of Iran, in a press conference on Tuesday.

 

“This event also showed that our society and the new generation have a need for social vibrancy and a mechanism to let them release their energy,” he added.

 

He lamented Iranian social experts’ inability to give a proper analysis about the issue and said that there should be no worry about the formation of social gatherings for different purposes.

 

Salehi-Amiri said, “The cultural taste of our society has changed and we need to be familiarized with informal cultural issues and to analyze them.

 

“The social networks should be recognized and of course they should be channelized. The most important function of the networks is to change an atomized society into a socially integrated community.

 

“Consequently, Iranian society has shifted from political areas to social issues. So, during the splendid ceremony, we did not witness any protest or hear any intense mottos. But they wanted to express this request: ‘I want to live’. There is no reason to consider the gathering a protest. It was only a movement conveying a message – the message of life.” 

 

MMS/YAW

END

 

Beizaii to present “Ardaviraf’s Report” at Stanford University

November 26, 2014, 10:48 pm

≫ Next: Arab readers yearning for modern Persian novels: publisher

≪ Previous: Presidential advisor comments on rush for Pashaii’s funeral

$

0

0

TEHRAN -- Prominent Iranian playwright and director Bahram Beizaii will stage reading performances of his latest play “Ardaviraf’s Report” at Stanford University on January 24 and 25.

 

The play is Beizaii’s theatrical rendition of an ancient Zoroastrian text that chronicles the journey of pious Ardaviraf to the other world where he travels through paradise, purgatory and the inferno. Ardaviraf meets many of the mythic and historic figures of Iran on his journey

 

The play is based on “The Book of Arda Viraf”, a Zoroastrian religious text from the Sassanid era in the Middle Persian language. It is considered an early precursor to Dante’s “Divine Comedy”. 

 

“Ardaviraf’s Report” will be performed at the Cubberley Auditorium of the university in the Persian language.

 

Beizaii previously performed a shadow play performance of “Jana and Baladoor” at the university in June 2012.

 

“When We Are All Sleeping” was the last film Beizaii directed in Iran in 2006. A few years after, he left the country to pursue an educational career at Stanford University as a visiting professor of Persian studies in the United States of America.

 

Considered as one of the most intellectual auteurs in Iranian cinema, Beizaii has written and directed several films including “Killing Mad Dogs”, “Travelers”, “Bashu, the Little Stranger”, “The Journey” and “The Downpour”.

 

SB/YAW

END

 

Arab readers yearning for modern Persian novels: publisher

November 25, 2014, 12:17 pm

≫ Next: Istanbul universities to screen Iranian films

≪ Previous: Beizaii to present “Ardaviraf’s Report” at Stanford University

$

0

0

TEHRAN -- An Iranian publisher participating in the Arabic Books Exhibition, which is currently underway in Kuwait, said that visitors frequently ask for novels by Iranian writers.

 

“Many people visiting the exhibition often asked for Persian novels and literary books,” Hamid Dehdashti, the deputy director of Iran’s Alhoda International Publishing Institution, said in press release on Tuesday.

 

Representing Iranian publishers, Alhoda is displaying Arabic versions of 120 books by Iranian writers at the exhibition.

 

“This exhibition is not a specialized book fair at all and general works are offered more by publishers,” Dehdashti said and added, “Visitors lamented the lower numbers of books offered by Iranian publishers at the exhibit.”       

 

The Arabic Books Exhibition opened on November 19 and runs for eleven days.

 

MMS/YAW

END

 

Istanbul universities to screen Iranian films

November 25, 2014, 12:20 pm

≫ Next: Iranian animation “Scale” wins award at Munich festival

≪ Previous: Arab readers yearning for modern Persian novels: publisher

$

0

0

TEHRAN -- Five universities in Istanbul are screening a selection of Iranian films that were shown at Iran’s 13th Resistance International Film Festival in September.

 

The films are being shown at the Yildiz Technical University, Bogazici University, Istanbul University, Istanbul Technical University and Marmara University, and the screenings run until November 28.

 

The films are Ali Ghaffari’s World War II drama “Restitution”, Ehsan Abdipur’s anti-war movie “All Alone” and Vahid Musaian’s “The Fourth Child”.

 

The festival was held in Tehran and other Iranian cities from September 23 to 30 to commemorate the anniversary of the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war during the Sacred Defense Week.

 

Moscow hosted the 13th edition of Iran’s Resistance Film Festival in early October.

 

SB/YAW

END

 

 

 

Iranian animation “Scale” wins award at Munich festival

November 25, 2014, 12:23 pm

≫ Next: Culture minister asks Muslim and Christian clergy to fight against extremism

≪ Previous: Istanbul universities to screen Iranian films

$

0

0

TEHRAN – Iranian short animation “Scale” directed by Amin Rahbar has won the Climate Clips Award at the 34th Munich International Festival of Film Schools.

 

The award is presented to the short film that best deals with the topic of climate change and sustainable energy at the festival, which was held from November 16 to 22. 

 

“Amin Rahbar’s enchanting animated film ‘Scale’ shows us the dramatic changes industrialization has wrought upon our planet,” the jury said in a statement.

 

The Climate Clip Award includes €5000 prize money.

 

SB/YAW

END

 

 

 

Culture minister asks Muslim and Christian clergy to fight against extremism

November 25, 2014, 12:25 pm

≫ Next: Historical novels share Jalal Al-e Ahmad Literary Award

≪ Previous: Iranian animation “Scale” wins award at Munich festival

$

0

0

TEHRAN -- Iranian Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Ali Jannati has asked Muslim and Christian clergymen to unite in standing against extremism.

 

Jannati made the remarks in a meeting with French Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, president of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, held at the ministry yesterday, Persian media reported on Tuesday.

 

Jannati said that the meeting led to a better understanding and helped remove obstacles in making proper decisions to confront the problems.

 

“Violence and extremism is one of the major issues that Muslims and other religions are involved in especially in the Middle East, the region we live in,” Jannati added.

 

The behavior of violent groups toward people– Christians, Muslims, in churches and mosques–is not accepted by Muslims. “In this situation we need to sit down and discuss, and find a solution,” Jannati stated.

 

Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran said that the recent events occurring in the region have not been carried out by Muslims but by criminals.

 

ICRO director Abuzar Ebrahimi-Torkaman also attended the meeting.
 

RM/YAW

END

 

Historical novels share Jalal Al-e Ahmad Literary Award

November 25, 2014, 12:31 pm

≫ Next: Kamran Shirdel is a pioneer of Iranian documentary cinema: critic

≪ Previous: Culture minister asks Muslim and Christian clergy to fight against extremism

$

0

0

TEHRAN – Mohammad-Kazem Mazinani and Abutorab Khosravi have shared the Jalal Al-e Ahmad Literary Award in novel category for “The Ah with a Sheen” and “Angels of Punishment”, which both focus on part of contemporary Iranian history.

 

The award consists of 110 Bahar Azadi gold coins and each writer received 55 Bahar Azadi gold coins during a ceremony at Tehran’s Vahdat Hall on Monday.

 

The award, named after the prominent Iranian writer Jalal Al-e Ahmad (1923-1969), is Iran’s most lucrative literary award. Each winner in the four categories of fiction, short stories, memoirs and literary reviews receives 110 Bahar Azadi gold coins.

 

“The Ah with a Sheen” is a second part of a trilogy about the political life of Iran’s last monarch, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. “The Shah without a Sheen” is the first part of the trilogy. 

 

The title of “The Shah without a Sheen” is a play on words. Sheen is a letter of the Persian alphabet that represents the sound of “sh” in English. Only “ah” remains if the “sh” is dropped from the word “shah”. “Ah” means sorrow in Persian. “Ah” with a “sheen” makes the Persian word “shah”.

 

“Angels of Punishment” narrates the lives of three generations in an Iranian family, whose fates are tied together. A major part of the story is set in the 1950s when Iran witnessed major political events.

 

In the memoir category, the prize was also shared by “Prison of Rashid” (Mohammad-Mehdi Behdarvand) and “Passed Journey” (Mohammadreza Tavakoli Saberi).

 

In addition, 110 gold coins of the literary critic section went to Hossein Payandeh for his book “Opening a Novel”.

 

The jury did not select a winner in the short story category.

 

A large number of literati including Iranian Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Ali Jannati attended the ceremony.

 

In his short Jannati speech asked the organizers to invite authors from Persian speaking countries to compete in the coming editions of the awards.

 

 

RM/YAW

END

 

 

 

---

Kamran Shirdel is a pioneer of Iranian documentary cinema: critic

November 26, 2014, 10:17 pm

≫ Next: Art news in brief

≪ Previous: Historical novels share Jalal Al-e Ahmad Literary Award

$

0

0

TEHRAN – Film critic and actor Omid Rohani has called documentarian Kamran Shirdel one of the founders of Iranian documentary cinema.

 

He made the remarks during a review session that the Iranian Artists Forum (IAF) held for Shirdel’s four short documentaries on Tuesday.

 

“The Mirrors”, “Dubai”, “Silver Canvas” and “The Paykan” were the four films screened during the session.

 

“Filmmaking is quite easy in Iran, perhaps it is only in Iran where an individual can easily decide to make a film in a short time with a low budget,” Rohani said.

 

“That is why there are so many productions that even supermarkets sell CDs of the films,” he added.

 

“On the contrary, making a documentary is quite difficult, since it requires thoughts and ideas,” he said and added that documentary cinema in Iran began with Shirdel, Khosro Sinaii and Sohrab Shahid-Sales.

 

He said, “Shirdel is one of the pioneers in documentary cinema in Iran, an individual who has made a lasting impression on documentary cinema.”

 

Critic Khosro Dehqan also attended the session and said that Shirdel has made over 100 films and added, “Watching these films will surely be a good workshop for film students and film lovers.”

 

“His artistic career has given credit to our cinema, there are not many like Shirdel who has made this much of an impression on an artistic movement,” Dehqan stated.

 

Since the mid-1960s, Shirdel has made bold documentary films that address everyday issues of his native Iran, influencing an entire generation of contemporary Iranian filmmakers. 

 

“Women’s Prison” (1965), “Tehran Is the Capital of Iran” (1966-1979), “The Women’s Quarter” (1966–1980), and “The Night It Rained” (1967–1974) are among his other productions.

 

RM/YAW

END

 

 

 

 

 

Art news in brief

November 26, 2014, 10:39 pm

≫ Next: “Mokhtarnameh” cinematographer Azim Javanruh dies at 69

≪ Previous: Kamran Shirdel is a pioneer of Iranian documentary cinema: critic

$

0

0

Serbian university to offer Persian language course

TEHRAN – Persian language and literature will be offered as an elective course at Megatrend University in Belgrade, Serbia.

 

The decision to offer the course was made according to an agreement, which has recently been signed between Iran’s cultural attaché in Belgrade Mahmud Shaluii and the vice-rector for internationalization at Megatrend University, Ana Jovancai.

 

The course, which is scheduled to begin in December, will be organized by Iran’s cultural attaché’s office.

 

Contrabassist Alireza Khorshidfar dies at 67

TEHRAN – Veteran contrabassist virtuoso Alireza Khorshidfar died of heart attack on Wednesday. He was 67.

 

He was the principal of the contrabass group at Iran’s National Orchestra since 1998 and was in this position at the Tehran Symphony Orchestra from 1969 to 2004. 

 

He also played the tin whistle in Majid Entezami’s popular soundtrack for Ebrahim Hatamikia’s movie “From Karkheh to Rhein” and Piruz Arjomand’s soundtrack for “A Journey to Chazabeh” directed by Rasul Mollaqolipur.

 

Warsaw hosting Iranian film festival

TEHRAN – The 4th edition of Iranian film festival is currently underway in Warsaw.

 

Organized by Iran’s Visual Media Institute and the Embassy of Iran in Poland, the festival runs until November 29.

 

The films are “A Separation” by Asghar Farhadi, “Here without Me” by Bahram Tavakkoli, “I Am His Wife” by Mostafa Shayesteh, “Mr. Yusef” by Ali Rafiei, “The Sinners” by Faramarz Qaribian and “So Close, So Far” by Seyyed Reza Mirkarimi.

 

SB/YAW

END

 

“Mokhtarnameh” cinematographer Azim Javanruh dies at 69

November 26, 2014, 10:42 pm

≫ Next: Presidential advisor comments on rush for Pashaii’s funeral

≪ Previous: Art news in brief

$

0

0

TEHRAN – Azim Javanruh, the cinematographer of “Mokhtarnameh”, an Iranian TV series about the uprising of Mokhtar Saqafi after the events of Ashura, died of colon cancer on Tuesday. He was 69.

 

Javanruh underwent heart surgery before he found out about his colon cancer, “Mokhtarnameh” producer Mahmud Fallah told the Persian service of MNA on Wednesday. 

 

He next began the cancer chemotherapy treatment, which led to failure and he died on Tuesday evening, Fallah said.

 

His funeral procession will begin at the Iranian House of Cinema on Friday, Fallah said and added, “His family is not living in Iran and the memorial service will be set after they arrive home.”

 

“Mokhtarnameh” by director Davud Mirbaqeri took about eight years to be filmed and completed. The 40-episode TV series was broadcast on IRIB’s Channel 1 in 2011.

 

Born in 1945 in Ardebil, Javanruh collaborated with Mirbaqeri in his other productions including “The King Eared” and “The Lost Innocence”.

 

He also worked in many other projects and TV series such as “The Majid Stories” directed by Kiumars Purahmad, “Mulla Sadra” by Hassan Fat’hi and “Practicing Love” by Bahram Bahramian.

 

RM/YAW

END

 

Presidential advisor comments on rush for Pashaii’s funeral

November 26, 2014, 10:51 pm

≫ Next: Beizaii to present “Ardaviraf’s Report” at Stanford University

≪ Previous: “Mokhtarnameh” cinematographer Azim Javanruh dies at 69

$

0

0

TEHRAN -- Presidential advisor Seyyed Reza Salehi-Amiri has commented on the rush to participate in the funeral of Iranian pop singer Morteza Pashaii, who died two weeks ago at 30 after battling cancer.

 

A crowd of over 30,000 people, most of them youths, attended Pashaii’s funeral procession, which began at Tehran’s Vahdat Hall. The rush for the ceremony has been in the limelight over the past two weeks. 

 

“One of the most important points in this issue is the unpredictable nature of Iranian people,” said Salehi-Amiri, who is also the director of the National Library and Archives of Iran, in a press conference on Tuesday.

 

“This event also showed that our society and the new generation have a need for social vibrancy and a mechanism to let them release their energy,” he added.

 

He lamented Iranian social experts’ inability to give a proper analysis about the issue and said that there should be no worry about the formation of social gatherings for different purposes.

 

Salehi-Amiri said, “The cultural taste of our society has changed and we need to be familiarized with informal cultural issues and to analyze them.

 

“The social networks should be recognized and of course they should be channelized. The most important function of the networks is to change an atomized society into a socially integrated community.

 

“Consequently, Iranian society has shifted from political areas to social issues. So, during the splendid ceremony, we did not witness any protest or hear any intense mottos. But they wanted to express this request: ‘I want to live’. There is no reason to consider the gathering a protest. It was only a movement conveying a message – the message of life.” 

 

MMS/YAW

END

 

Beizaii to present “Ardaviraf’s Report” at Stanford University

November 26, 2014, 10:48 pm

≫ Next: Historical novels share Jalal Al-e Ahmad Literary Award

≪ Previous: Presidential advisor comments on rush for Pashaii’s funeral

$

0

0

TEHRAN -- Prominent Iranian playwright and director Bahram Beizaii will stage reading performances of his latest play “Ardaviraf’s Report” at Stanford University on January 24 and 25.

 

The play is Beizaii’s theatrical rendition of an ancient Zoroastrian text that chronicles the journey of pious Ardaviraf to the other world where he travels through paradise, purgatory and the inferno. Ardaviraf meets many of the mythic and historic figures of Iran on his journey

 

The play is based on “The Book of Arda Viraf”, a Zoroastrian religious text from the Sassanid era in the Middle Persian language. It is considered an early precursor to Dante’s “Divine Comedy”. 

 

“Ardaviraf’s Report” will be performed at the Cubberley Auditorium of the university in the Persian language.

 

Beizaii previously performed a shadow play performance of “Jana and Baladoor” at the university in June 2012.

 

“When We Are All Sleeping” was the last film Beizaii directed in Iran in 2006. A few years after, he left the country to pursue an educational career at Stanford University as a visiting professor of Persian studies in the United States of America.

 

Considered as one of the most intellectual auteurs in Iranian cinema, Beizaii has written and directed several films including “Killing Mad Dogs”, “Travelers”, “Bashu, the Little Stranger”, “The Journey” and “The Downpour”.

 

SB/YAW

END