March 25, 1998
The Iranian

The following, in order, have received the most votes as the Iranian of the Year, 1997, in the field of arts and literature. Also see voters' comments below. Also see related links.

* Abbas Kiarostami: Film maker
* Mohsen Makhmalbaf: Film maker
* Simin Behbahani: Poet
* Shahrnoush Parsipour: Writer
* Ahmad Shamloo: Poet
* Shirin Neshat: Photographer
* Lily Afshar: Classical guitarist

Comments on Kiarostami
Comments on Makhmalbaf
Comments on Behbahani
Comments on Parsipour
Comments on Lily Afshar

Iranian of the Year 1997 index

Comments on Kiarostami

Very Zen
"Age of Kiarostami"
Fans in Spain
Recognition

Comments on Makhmalbaf

Vision & beauty
Promoted image

While alive & free...
Free speech
Not just a poet

Very Zen

* Kiarostami: For his beautiful, peaceful, soulful and very Zen (for lack of a better word) presentations of everything Iranian.

Taraneh Amin
<amint@hotmail.com>

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"Age of Kiarostami"

* Kiarostami: Because he is a gem...a real one. He is opening the eyes of the world to who we really are. Humans with human concerns. As all the movie critics know, this is the "Age of Kiarostami".

<AArasta@aol.com>

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Fans in Spain

* Kiarostami: His films were seen in many countries and now a lot of people meet him and know that he comes from Iran. I live in a small city in Spain with 100,000 inhabitants. I went and saw "Zir-e derakhtaan-e zeytun" (Under the Olive Trees) here and the cinema was full of people. And now the "Taste of Cherry" ...

Farzad Jafari Yousefi
<fjy.ig@alumne.etse.urv.es>

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Recognition

* Kiarostami: Recognition for an artistic accomplishment can not be taken away.

Elham Panahi
<epanahi@umich.edu>

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Vision & beauty

* Makhmalbaf: Because of his vision and the beauty of Iran he shared with the rest of the world.

Faranaz Kashefi
<fkashefi@alexandria.lib.utah.edu>

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Promoted image

* Makhmalbaf: On the way, he has grown and promoted the image of Iran and Iranians with his movies.

Parviz Dousti
<dousti+@andrew.cmu.edu>

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While alive & free...

* Simin Behbahani is the most notable of all Persian authors in the post-revolutionary era. She has managed to publish works (six books) of fine artistic value without any compramise in her principles despite almost weekly denounciations in the Iranian press. On occasions when she has been allowed to talk in public (which have been very few in the past 19 years) she has spoken without fear and hesitation.

She also has managed to publish works of poetry and fiction in USA which have been banned in Iran. Some of her lesser known colleagues have been arrested and their publications banned for publishing her poems.

To lose this opportunity to hail her accomplishments while she is alive and free would mean succumbing to the age old Persian tradition of acknowledging our notables only when they pass away.

<korosh.khalili@utoronto.ca>

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Not just a poet

* Behbahani: Not only is she a great poet & writer, her everyday life is harmonized with her beliefs on freedom and human values.

Jamileh Davoudi
<jamilehd@eng.adaptec.com>

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Free speech

* Behbahani: [I vote for her because] freedom of speech is the most important thing in a democratic society.

Iraj Bastar
<iraj.bastar@capgemini.dk>

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Positive attention

* Lily Afshar: She has brought positive attention towards Iranians across the world. Her beautiful classical guitar performances have brought widespread support for Iranians. She publicly supports the Iranians across the world. She is currently working on a record of classic Persian music, which will definitely bring great publicity towards Persian traditions in music.

<Msmss5@aol.com>

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Intelligent

* Parsipour: The only Iranian women I know who is intelligent, good in her field of expertise, and one with good vision on women's rights, with exceptional strength and courage to say what she thinks.

M. M.

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Related links

* Kiarostami bio and information on "Taste of Cherry"
* Searchers: New Iranian Cinema By Ahmad Sadri
* Behbahani's poetry (in Persian)
* Interview with Parsipour (in Persian)
* Shirin Neshat's photography
* Lily Afshar's music

* Arts & Literature
* Cover stories
* Who's who
* Bookstore

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