Festivities And Community Celebrations In Iran

Navroz meaning 'New Day' is a festival which dates back 3000 years to when King Jamshed called astrologers and declared that 21st March, the day that the sun leaves Pisces, the twelfth sign of the zodiac and enters into Aries, the very first zodiac sign would be the day when his kingdom would celebrate 'New Year'. It has been celebrated with pomp and fervor ever since.

If Navroz is the Persian equivalent of Easter, Chaharshanbeh Souri, in many ways is the equivalent of Halloween. The event is celebrated on the eve of Navroz.Chahar-Shanbeh means Wednesday and Souri means both 'Red' and 'Celebration'. In this “red celebration” which takes place on the last Wednesday of the solar calendar, people go out and make bush fires and keep them burning till the next morning. This is symbolic of burning all that was bad…pain, unhappiness, sickness and worry and looking forward to a new beginning.

Tirgan is celebrated by people in the Mazandaran province on the evening of the twelfth day of the fourth month of their own calendar. Tirgan is a celebration born out of the legend of Arash, the legendary bowman who shot an arrow to indicate the borderline between Iran and Turan but died soon after, drained of all his energy. People come together to eat traditional Iranian food, drink lots of sherbets and tea and participate in drama, reciting poetry and singing

Mehr is the name of the Sun Goddess and the seventh month of the Iranian calendar. The Mehrgan festival celebrated by the Zoroastrian people of Kerman is an occasion to celebrate harvest by sacrificing a sheep or chicken and feasting on it.

Celebrated on the 21st or 22nd of September, the Yalda festival celebrates the longest night of the year, at the end of which light triumphs over darkness. The following day is the day of harvest and the beginning of the rest period, a time for family to converge at the home of the oldest member and indulge in a spread of Iranian food, summer fruits and an array of nuts while reciting poetry and catching up with what is happening in each other's lives.

Sadeh meaning "emergence" is a non-religious celebration observed by people of all faiths and is celebrated on the 10th day of Bahman. People set up huge bonfires outside cities and eat special soup (aash), fruits and nuts.

Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar is a somber event marking the martyrdom of Imam Hussein (AS), the third Imam of the Shia Muslims. An occasion when people gather in mosques, mausoleums and Imambargahs to mourn the Holy Imam and all those who were martyred with him in Kerbala, Iraq. Dressed in black, people beat their chests and lament the tragedy of Kerbala while clerics narrate instances from the tragedy. Aashura, the 10th day of Muharram, the day of martyrdom is marked by rallies and processions of mourners.

The people of Mashad-e Ardehal and Kashan converge at a nearby spring to wash the carpets of the shrine of Imam Reza (AS), the eighth Imam of the Shiite Twelvers.Nowruz Table

A solemn occasion when people from various parts of Iran head to the shrine of Imam Reza (AS), Masuma-e-Qum and the shrines of many Imamzadehs (sons of the Imams) across Iran and mourn the late Ayatollah on the anniversary of his death.Festivities and community gatherings and celebrations are an opportunity to get a glimpse of the spirit of the people of Iran. At times celebrating the joys of life and at other times paying tribute to the memory of revered personalities, these rituals and observances serve to strengthen family and social bonds thereby weaving the social fabric of the nation as a whole.

Fajr film festival are held every year in february and april in Teheran.The first festival started 1982, guarded by Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance inIran. The date is the actual anniversary of Iranian revolution.This festival is a big event, which is also popular abroad and well known through the television, radio and social networks.Awards are divided in international and national, such as:World Panorama:Crystal Simorgh for Best Short Narrative FilmCrystal Simorgh for Best Technical or Artistic AchievementCrystal Simorgh for Best PerformanceCrystal Simorgh for Best ScriptCrystal Simorgh for Best DirectionCrystal Simorgh Special Jury PrizeCrystal Simorgh for Best Filmand national:Crystal Simorgh for Best FilmCrystal Simorgh for Best DirectorCrystal Simorgh for Best ScreenplayCrystal Simorgh for Best ActorCrystal Simorgh for Best ActressCrystal Simorgh for Best Supporting ActorCrystal Simorgh for Best Supporting ActressCrystal Simorgh for Best EditorCrystal Simorgh for Best CinematographyCrystal Simorgh for Best ComposerCrystal Simorgh for Best Makeup ArtistCrystal Simorgh for Best SoundtrackCrystal Simorgh for Best Sound EffectsCrystal Simorgh for Best Sound RecorderCrystal Simorgh for Best Costume and Stage DesignerCrystal Simorgh for Best Special EffectsCrystal Simorgh for Best First Film DirectorCrystal Simorgh for Best DocumentaryCrystal Simorgh for Best Documentary FilmmakerCrystal Simorgh for Best Short FilmCrystal Simorgh for Best PhotoA group of professional jury are controlling the competition. International Competition JuryCompetition of Spiritual Cinema JuryInternational juryCompetition of Asian cinema juryNational record belong to the best Iranian and Asian actors, directors, editors, actresses and so on. Some of them are well known for all.Crystal Simorgh for Best Director: Asghar Farhadi 3 times - Majid Majidi 5 timesCrystal Simorgh for Best Film: Ebrahim Hatamikia 5 timesCrystal Simorgh for Best Screenplay: Dariush Mehrjui, Rakhshan Bani Etemad and Kambuzia Partovi 2 timesCrystal Simorgh for Best Cinematography: Mahmoud Kalari 4 timesCrystal Simorgh for Best Editor: Hayedeh Safiyari and Hossein Zandbaf 4 timesCrystal Simorgh for Best Sound Effects: Mohammad Reza Delpak 8 times - Eshagh Khanzadi 4 timesCrystal Simorgh for Best Sound Recorder: Jahangir Mirshekari 5 times - Yadollah Najafi 4 timesCrystal Simorgh for Best Soundtrack:Majid Entezami and Hossein Alizadeh 4 timesCrystal Simorgh for Best Costume and Stage Designer: Iraj Raminfar and Amir Esbati 4 timesCrystal Simorgh for Best Makeup Artist: Abdollah Eskandari 6 times - Saeid Malekan 4 timesCrystal Simorgh for Best Special Effects: Mohsen Rouzbahani 8 times - Mohammad Reza Sharafoddin 6 timesCrystal Simorgh for Best Actress: Fatemeh Motamed Arya, Hedieh Tehrani,Parvaneh Massoumi, Baran Kosari, Merila Zarei and Leila Hatami 2 timesCrystal Simorgh for Best Actor: Parviz Parastui 4 timesCrystal Simorgh for Best Supporting Actress:Niku Kheradmand, Fatemeh Motamed Arya, Mahtab Nasirpour and Shabnam Moghaddami 2 timesCrystal Simorgh for Best Supporting Actor: Saeed Poursamimi 3 timesAudience Award: Asghar Farhadi, Ebrahim Hatamikia and Kamal Tabrizi 3 timesSpecial Jury Award: Abbas Kiarostami 2 timesMovies that left the best impression definitely diserved all the respect from the jury and audience. MoviesClassification according the most winner Crystal Simorgh (in the original part):8 Crystal Simorgh - The Last Act (1991) - The Glass Agency (1998) - Smell of Camphor, Scent of Jasmine (2000) - Duel (2004) - Hussain Who Said No (2014)7 Crystal Simorgh - Killing Mad Dogs (2001) -Baran (2001) - Life and a Day (2016)6Crystal Simorgh - Sar Zamin-e Khorshid (1996) - Heeva (1998) -A House Built on Water (2002) - So Close, So Far (2005) - Mainline (2006)5 Crystal Simorgh -Hamoun (1991) - Mohajer (1989) - Travellers (1991) - Once Upon a Time, Cinema (1992) - The Fateful Day (1994) - I Am Taraneh, I Am Fifteen Years Old (2002) - As Simple as That (2008) - Crime (2011) - Days of Life (2011) - Crazy Rook (2014)Every year festival hosts many visitors from the Movie industry as well as all the movie lovers.