Tehran [Iran], October 15: The prominent and highly controversial Iranian filmmaker Nasser Taghvai has died at the age of 84 in a hospital in the capital Tehran.
His wife, Marzieh Vafamehr, confirmed the related media reports on her Instagram account on Tuesday.
"An artist who chose the hardship of living freely has finally found deliverance," she wrote, referring to his critical approach to censorship and resistance against artistic restrictions imposed by the hardline Islamic system in Iran.
Taghvai first became famous in 1970 with his intellectual film "Tranquility in the Presence of Others," which dealt with social changes during the monarchy era in Iran. His other films from that period were also acclaimed by critics.
But it was his TV series, "Dear Uncle Napoleon," which made him popular nationwide. The series was based on the 1970 best-selling novel of the same name by Iraj Pezeshkzad, which offered a satirical look at Iranian society and the contrasts between modern life and traditional religious values.
Following the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Taghvai chose to remain in Iran rather than emigrate.
He continued to make films, even attending international festivals such as Cannes and Locarno with his drama anthology "Tales of Kish" and "Captain Khorshid," an adaptation of Ernest Hemingway's "To Have and Have Not." However, the Islamic system in Iran gradually pursued stricter regulations, which led to several of Taghvai's film projects being blocked.
Since then, he has become a harsh critic of censorship in Iran and refused to continue filmmaking under what he called "state control." This approach resulted in him being placed on the country's cultural blacklist.
Source: Qatar Tribune
