I remember watching ‘The Children of Heaven’, award winning Iranian movie, with my elder siblings years ago, when I’d have been in my early 10s. I loved that movie so much for its simplicity and heart. Even as child, or because I was child, I related so deeply with the brother and sister in that movie, and the beautiful bond between them that enabled them for sacrifices made from each end. The parents too, although harsh, were so relatable; I too lived in a poor household back then, and could understand why fathers behave so cruelly, and mothers so cold sometimes.
Ever since, I regularly watch Iranian cinema whenever I feel the urge to gift me something really beautiful. After the ‘Children of Heaven’, I have had countless other movies from Iran that have become staying residents of my heart: The Color of Paradise, A Separation, The Taxi, The White Balloon, The Song of Paradise, and many others.
So, it was only expected of myself that I, at some point during my reading journey, turn to Iranian Literature as well. What I loved so much in her movies were not their advanced tech or amazing filmmaking, but rather the existence of such simple and pure lifestyles which were captured and presented with acute and wholesome lenses. This was my evidence that Iranian Literature would be just as deliciously heartwarming as her cinema, if not more so.
Sometimes I wish I was born an Iranian.
Anyways, what started me on my hunting and reading Iranian Literature was an article from ‘Lithub’ where 35 of Iranian Literature’s ‘essential works’ were listed. I ordered what I could find online, and from the rest I picked what appealed to me, downloaded the eBooks, and started reading.
Parisa Reza’s book, of which I knew nothing about prior to reading it, was the possible start I could’ve had for this month. Simple, true to its culture, sophisticated, and a brilliantly told story in five parts, Reza’s novel has won me all over. Narrated in third-person, the story starts with Sardar and Talla, who live opposite to each other’s villages in Khasran, a place completely detached from the evolving world of 1900s. After Sardar asks for Talla’s hand, and succeeds, he leaves for Tehran to make a living of his own.
Returning three years later, he weds and takes his wife with him. However, the story is told in five chapters that are the name of five women, which are like supporting actors in the story. Though not at Tehran, the Amir family (Sardar and Talla and their newborn baby Bahram) settle in Shemiran, somewhere near Tehran, with its beautiful and consoling gardens.
As Bahram ages, he becomes the new protagonist, and we are told his journey as he gets education, something his father specifically left his home-village for. Bahram is a gifted kid, not only in studies but also in sports. Equally as gifted, too, is Bahram in matters of girls, where he cherishes the loyalty of many girls, yet unfortunately wins none.
The novel, both throughout but especially towards the end, gets political as the unrest begins in Iran in 1950s, where different parties, Communists, Labors, Traditionalists, Fundamentalists, and Reza importantly imparts the true political events and struggles of Iran in her fictional story, so that it becomes both heartful and intellectual.
Reza’s novel resonated with me on so
many levels: Bahram’s sexual frustrations within his religious boundaries, his
parents’ simplicity and faith, his own political ambition and academic
brilliance, and the overall geography of the novel with its gardens, and
mountain, and quiet siestas… all of it felt deeply like home to me – I want
home I am yet to live in. Simply majestic!
Ratings: 5/5 ***** March 10, 2021_