TEHRAN – A book on actor Jamshid Mashayekhi scrutinizing the history of Iranian theater and cinema has been published.

The book “Jamshid Mashayekhi” published by Morghabi is the outcome of an 8-hour interview conducted by Vida Mashayekhi, his sister, and critic Zaven Ghukasian with the actor a few years before his death in April 2019.

The book was unveiled in a special ceremony held on Sunday at the Film Museum of Iran, where a large quantity of his memorabilia that the family donated to the museum following his death is showcased.

Vida, his son Nader and a number of his friends and colleagues attended the ceremony.

“What an amazing moment this is to be remembering an outstanding name among those people who made great contributions to Iranian theater,” Ali Nasirian, the 87-year-old actor who co-starred with Mashayekhi in numerous movies and plays including “After Thirty Years” and “The Cow”, said in his speech at the ceremony.

“I love his face, whether during his youth or middle age; his face was associated with peace, humanity and friendship,” he added.

Nasirian also talked about Mashayekhi’s love of Hafez’s poetry and said, “Someone who loved Hafez is absolutely an art lover and Mashayekhi was so; I saw his skills in acting in ‘The Cow’. Although he had a cameo role in the drama, he really put on a good performance.”

In his short speech, actor Behzad Farahani praised the decision to publish the book and added, “It is an appropriate move that should have been done much earlier. There is some really fresh material in the book that can be very helpful to those who are interested in theater and cinema.”

Mani Soltani, the managing director of the Morghabi publishing house, said, “The best part of the book, in my opinion, is the chapter in which Mr. Mashayekhi sheds light on the history and the process of Iranian theater development.”

“A major topic embedded in the interview is Mr. Mashayekhi’s regard to the younger generation of those Iranians who have entered the world of acting; this fact encouraged us to publish the book,” he noted.

Nader Mashayekhi, former conductor of the Tehran Symphony Orchestra, also expressed his happiness over the publication of the book and said “I recommend reading this book. It has a narrative structure, which starts from the master’s childhood to his entrance into theatrical activities, friendship with the greats such master Nasirian and his career in cinema.”

He also pointed to his father’s desire to purchase model cars, “In his old age, my father thought about his childhood and began to buy some model cars he loved in his childhood; perhaps he wanted to rediscover the beauty of childhood and enjoy it.”

A member of the golden generation of actors of pre-revolutionary Iran, Mashayekhi died at the age of 85. 

He was called by veteran actor Parviz Parastui one of the top five actors of Iranian cinema along with Mohammad-Ali Keshavarz, Ali Nasirian, Davud Rashidi and Ezzatollah Entezami.

Photo: Left to right, Behzad Farahani, Mani Soltani, Ali Nasirian, Nader Mashayekhi and Vida Mashayekhi hold copies of “Jamshid Mashayekhi” during the unveiling ceremony of the book at the Film Museum of Iran on February 27, 2022. (IBNA/Majid Niknafs)

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