Give Back Our Lives, Not Just Votes

Narges Kalhor, the daughter of Ahmadinejad advisor Mehdi Kalhor, filed for asylum in the west after traveling to the Nuremberg International Human Rights Festival to present her movie condemning torture.  

The 25-year-old Narges lives with her mother and has not had any contacts with her father in more than a year.  In an interview with Rooz, she discusses her film and her exit from Iran.  

The Nuremberg International Human Rights Festival showcased a film that had Narges Kalhor’s name on it.  The film, called Rake, was based on a Franz Kafka novel.  The film describes a torture chamber called Rake in which the crimes of prisoners are tattooed on their bodies.  Narges tells Rooz that her latest film is her eighth production.

Rooz: But we had not heard your name or your work.

Narges Kalhor (Kalhor): Because my works are banned.  This is the first film I was able to showcase outside Iran.

Rooz: The topic of the movie is very interesting, as is working with Kafka and molding his viewpoint.  Why did you pick this topic?  Was it related to today’s events in Iran?

Kalhor: No.  I made this film last year, when the situation in Iran was very different than today.  I wanted to make a adaptation.  I read several books and found Kafka’s work to be closer to what I had in mind.

Rooz: What does your film tell us?

Kalhor: I have a more general viewpoint.  The film narrates the story of human beings who are condemned to pain; for no reason.

Rooz: What do you mean by pain?  Are you talking about the human condition in general or the reality of life under the Islamic Republic?

Kalhor: No; it is a general philosophical point, and not a particular reality.  It relates to the era in which we were born, raised, and live; conditions under which youngsters like myself were born and raised.

Rooz: And what, more clearly, is the general point you are describing?

Kalhor: The general point is that we don’t want others to impose harsh conditions on us.  If we are condemned to destruction, allow us to do it.  We want to welcome pain ourselves, not allow others to kill us with it.

Rooz: Meaning, give back my vote? Is that correct?

Kalhor: No; is it beyond the point of giving back our votes.  We say, give back our lives.