Salesman

MM: In The Salesman, Emad is an incredibly patient character who doesn’t want to say anything to the police about what has happened because of his deep love for his wife, Rana. He really endures a lot. What are your views on that aspect of him?

SH: Everyone’s reactions are a product of several things including their upbringing, education, mannerisms and many other factors. If, for example, he was an ignorant person, then he could have reacted in a more hostile way by using weapons to manage the situation. If he had come from a wealthy background, then he would have resolved the issues using money and material methods. However, the Emad that we get to know is an ordinary, respectable teacher who works hard, cares about his students and approaches issues from social, cultural and intellectual perspectives. Therefore, we can observe the impact of violent acts and hostilities a character of his kind must endure, and how someone with his level of integrity can express himself and lose control in certain areas. At some point, he inevitably acts in certain ways not necessarily aligned with his character up until that point, but which require some reaction ultimately from him as a human being.

MM: I do believe that The Salesman is about Emad. In the first half of the movie, we see both Emad and Rana, but after what happens to Rana we witness certain actions and reactions by Emad.

SH: I don’t agree. I think Emad views this by analyzing the situation from the standpoint of a man who not only loves his wife, but who also must understand and react to a very serious injustice. So, I think that the portrayal of Rana’s role is equally and perhaps even more important in showing the audience why Emad makes the decisions that he makes and acts in that dynamic. Once the foundation of the story is set through the portion of the story focused on Rana, Emad just carries on the dynamic.

Shahab and Alidoosti, as the characters of Emad and Rana.

MM: The Salesman has had one of the highest levels of ticket sales among recent Iranian movies. What do you think of that?

SH: I love it when people are entertained and the uptake is high and it shows in the numbers as well. It shows that the film has been well received and is a good indicator that a movie is successful with viewers. The fact that this movie was featured at the Cannes festival and the kind of attention that it has been given is another one of the best indications that it is worthy of its commercial success. I trust the people’s choice and the collective selection of the audience when it comes to whether or not a film is popular and successful. After all, we ultimately make films for the viewers who will see them and judge them based on what they want to see, so that helps a lot. I think that the people will like the movie if it is worthy of their attention in the first place, as opposed to if we sell the movie to them using lots of marketing and advertisements. In my view, word-of-mouth will get around if the film is good.

MM: After the success that you had with the famous Iranian TV series Shahrazd, should we expect to see more of you on TV in similar work?

SH: No, it was actually not a TV series, but rather it was produced for the Independent Home Network Channel, which is different from state-run TV. However, I had prior experience with the TV types of series that you mention so fortunately that helped me even though I have discontinued my TV work. I would nevertheless like to expand my work beyond all of that and, in parallel with my acting career, branch into producing, directing and writing as well. I will set some goals for myself in those arenas and guide my career a bit in that direction. So, to answer your question, I should say, no, I don’t think I would do more Shahrzad type of work for some time to come, simply because of the expanded interests and goals that I have going forward.

MM: You’ve appeared in three of Farhadi films playing roles that afford different experiences from other roles and provided you with a great launching pad for your career. The movie About Elly was in fact even the start of a great new chapter in your acting career and A Separation provided you with an opportunity to play in both theater and film spaces. Would it be fair to assume that The Salesman and winning the Golden Palm from Cannes is now yet another brand-new, major chapter in your acting career? And would you say that you might now be ready and perhaps tempted even to accept roles in non-Iranian films as well?

SH: I am just following my path and I welcome and embrace various opportunities that may open up along the way. I will look into it as I move forward and see what happens next and then I will decide when the time comes. This could be acting in a foreign movie; it could be acting or producing a low-budget movie. It could be anything that the future brings as I follow my dreams. As the old adage goes, “follow your dreams since they know the path.” I am just following my dreams and passions and seeing where I can be most effective and have the highest impact as an instrument in realizing my dreams and passions and contributing to the master plan and bigger picture, so to speak, wherever I am and whatever I am doing. Of course, every success and bit of progress comes with its own stresses as well as rewards. MM

The Salesman opens in theaters January 27, 2017, courtesy of Cohen Media Group. Rozita Sa contributed to this interview.

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