(Marrakesh) The twice Oscar-winning Iranian director Asghar Farhadi hailed Friday the “courage” of the Iranian demonstrators, on the sidelines of the International Film Festival of Marrakech.
Iran has been facing a wave of protests for more than two months sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurd who died three days after her arrest in Tehran for violating the Islamic Republic’s strict dress code, including wearing veil for women.
Mr. Farhadi told AFP that he was following events in his country “very closely”.
“I want to take this opportunity to salute my people, the new generation, the women and men who have taken to the streets and are trying to take their destiny into their own hands,” he said.
Iran faces an “extremely decisive moment” and “will no longer be the same country” after this protest movement, said Mr. Farhadi.
“The question is how will this movement and these protests end. And will the unity necessary among Iranians for the country to move forward be maintained? he wondered.
The 50-year-old director has won a host of some of cinema’s most prestigious awards, including the Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film in 2012 and 2017.
Mr. Farhadi had already expressed his support for the protest movement, calling on people around the world at the end of September to “stand in solidarity” with the protesters.