Iran: several actresses deprived of work for having removed their veil

“Those who do not respect the law are not allowed to work,” declared the Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance, Mohammad Mehdi Esmaeili, after the council of ministers. He thus confirmed comments made the day before by a manager in the cinema sector, Habib Il Beigi, according to whom more than twelve actresses could no longer film for not having respected the law on the hijab. “They can no longer act in a new film,” he said, specifying that the films in which they had already appeared could be released so as not to financially affect the production houses.

A number of actresses and celebrities have appeared bareheaded on social media since the protest movement sparked by the death, on September 16, 2022, of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old young woman who died after being arrested for non-compliance. respect the strict dress code in force in Iran. Among the actresses affected by the work ban include Taraneh Alidoosti, Katayoun Riahi and Fatemeh Motamed-Aria, according to the website of the daily Hamshahri.

Taraneh Alidoosti, who was briefly arrested in 2022, is one of the most famous actresses still living in Iran. Having notably filmed for director Asghar Farhadi, she posted on social networks a photo of herself bareheaded and a message in Kurdish in support of the Woman-Life-Freedom movement.

Several hundred people, including members of security forces, were killed during the protests in late 2022. Thousands more were arrested for participating in demonstrations described by authorities as orchestrated "riots." by Western countries.