3 works that depicted Reza Khan’s anti-religious policies on the issue of hijab

According to Fars News Agency’s art reporter, July 21, 1314 is the anniversary of the Pahlavi regime’s attack on Goharshad Mosque and the killing of people who had gathered in this mosque to protest Reza Khan’s anti-religious policies. The Goharshad Mosque, which is located next to the holy shrine of Razavi, is a place and center of a large population of Shiites where they used to gather, and in that historical period, in addition to the religious aspect, it was considered a suitable place for political affairs and daily affairs.

One of the most important religious uprisings is the uprising of scholars and people of Mashhad in the Goharshad Mosque, which led to the desecration of the Sharif Razavi shrine and the killing of the protesting and besieging people of Mashhad during the reign of Reza Khan. In the years after the revolution, various artistic productions in various formats have addressed this historical event and the issue of chastity and hijab. Follow along with the introduction of 3 examples of documentary works about chastity and hijab.

A respectable lady

The documentary “A Respectable Lady” was directed and written by Maryam Sadat Momenzadeh, and was made on the occasion of the anniversary of Goharshad’s uprising. Honorable Sadat was a Kashani lady who was martyred during the discovery of Rezakhani’s veil. His grandson, who was present at the scene, narrates this incident.

The documentary “A Respected Lady” has the plaque of honor of the 7th Ammar People’s Film Festival in its record.

In the summary of the story of this documentary, it is stated: “The event of discovering the hijab is a series of events that took place following the approval of a law on January 17, 1314 in Iran, by which Iranian women and girls were prohibited from wearing veils, veils, and headscarves. This law was the culmination of Reza Khan’s policies in the field of clothing change, which began in 1307. These policies caused reactions, including the Goharshad mosque uprising. At the request of scholars, this law was canceled in 1323 during the reign of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.

French boots

The documentary “Chechmehai Ferangi” deals with the discovery of the hijab during Reza Khan’s time and is presented through the words of eyewitnesses or through an intermediary. This documentary, which shows a narrative of how Rezakhani’s hijab was unveiled, was directed by Alireza Bagsheni and was produced in the Cultural Front Studies Office of the Islamic Revolution.

The order to remove the hijab was officially issued on 17 January 1314. On this day, a celebration was held by Ali Asghar Hekmat, who had an active and effective role in this event, in the preparatory seminary in the presence of Reza Shah. The wife and daughters of the king and a group of wives of ministers and lawyers without hijab participated in this celebration.

In the summary of this documentary, it is stated: “The Shah encouraged all women in a speech not to wear the hijab and announced that until now they were not considered half of the country’s population; because they used to wear veils. He continued that the decency and chastity of a woman is not related to the veil and that a woman should be morally and spiritually chaste. From this date onwards, the use of tents or any headgear, except for European hats, was prohibited.

Hijab women did not have the right to enter the streets or use vehicles. Businessmen were also not allowed to sell goods to women wearing hijab. “Those who dared to stand against this violent lawlessness were attacked and disrespected by the police officers.”

Compulsory veiling

The documentary “Mandatory veiling”, according to the female researcher’s narration, examines the issue of women left out of school due to forced veiling in Iran during the Pahlavi period. This documentary was directed by Mehdi Eshghi Rizvani and produced by Mohammad Mehdi Khaleghi.

Siddiqa Azimi Umm al-Banin Abbasi, Fatemeh Zainali Esfahani, Mahdi Mohaghegh, Masoumeh Ghafourian Mohammadzadeh, Betoul Fatourchiani, Abdul Ali Shuai Shahreza, Marzieh Shaista Khabazan are the narrators of the years of discovery of hijab in this documentary.

Mohammad Reza Dehshiri is the director’s consultant, Ali Mohammad Khaniki is the cinematographer, Amir Hossein Shirpour, Ruhollah Khaleghi and Yusuf Khormi are the assistants in the picture, and Alireza Akhlik and Mohammad Abedini are in charge of the sound recording and the sound assistant.

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