Review - "The Lion Women of Tehran" by Iranian American author Marjan Kamali
“Lionesses. Us. Can't you just see it Ellie? Someday, you and me — we'll do great things. We'll live life for ourselves. And we will help others. We are cubs now, maybe. But we will grow to be lionesses. Strong women who will make things happen.”
The Lion Women of Tehran’ closed the gap I felt when reading ‘ The Stationery Shop’ - Marjan Kamali’s previous book on the same time period in Iran.
The author keeps the reader completely invested in the lives of two lifelong friends Elaheh “Ellie” Soltani and Homa Roozbeh. Their childhood friendship goes through class differences, long separations, betrayals, and reunions, but survives many decades into their old age because of their inherent trust in the relationship.
The story come alive because the socio-political turbulence of Iran is always intertwined with the protagonists' personal lives. The degradation of democracy and women’s rights continues as power is passed from Prime Minister Mossadegh to the Shah regime in the 1950s, and subsequently the rise of religious fundamentalism in the 1980s as Khomeini ascends to rule the country.
Homa and Ellie go to Tehran university in the 70s and live a free life where they can raise their voices of protest, go hiking in the mountains with their male friends, meet in cafes and parties and look forward to a bright future as judges or professors.
In a striking contrast , Homa’s daughter Bahar has to flee an Iran in the 1980s , where women have lost basic rights such as going out without a Hijab, are denied the opportunity to pursue meaningful career options or make their opinions matter.
As Homa later describes to Ellie when visiting her in America - “You skipped our country’s slide back into medieval times. Women have lost decades, no, centuries, of rights in this country.”
Homa, is a pioneer and a true 'Shirzaan' (Lion woman) in every sense. She endures a life of immense hardship as a political prisoner, single mother and relentless persuasion by the oppressive regimes. But never does she give up her fight for democracy and human rights, and stands by her students and the women in the organization she forms later in life, while endangering her own life.
Through all this, she remains true to her friendship with Ellie, who chooses a more comfortable life by immigrating to America but is indirectly responsible for the consequences Homa suffers as a political activist.
The story come alive because the socio-political turbulence of Iran is always intertwined with the protagonists' personal lives. The degradation of democracy and women’s rights continues as power is passed from Prime Minister Mossadegh to the Shah regime in the 1950s, and subsequently the rise of religious fundamentalism in the 1980s as Khomeini ascends to rule the country.
Homa and Ellie go to Tehran university in the 70s and live a free life where they can raise their voices of protest, go hiking in the mountains with their male friends, meet in cafes and parties and look forward to a bright future as judges or professors.
In a striking contrast , Homa’s daughter Bahar has to flee an Iran in the 1980s , where women have lost basic rights such as going out without a Hijab, are denied the opportunity to pursue meaningful career options or make their opinions matter.
As Homa later describes to Ellie when visiting her in America - “You skipped our country’s slide back into medieval times. Women have lost decades, no, centuries, of rights in this country.”
Homa, is a pioneer and a true 'Shirzaan' (Lion woman) in every sense. She endures a life of immense hardship as a political prisoner, single mother and relentless persuasion by the oppressive regimes. But never does she give up her fight for democracy and human rights, and stands by her students and the women in the organization she forms later in life, while endangering her own life.
Through all this, she remains true to her friendship with Ellie, who chooses a more comfortable life by immigrating to America but is indirectly responsible for the consequences Homa suffers as a political activist.
Postscript : I was so delighted to find that Persian has so many words that are the same as Hindi or Bangla.
Some of the frequently used words in the book :
Some of the frequently used words in the book :
"Partybazi", "Chador", "Sabzi", "Dehati", "Bachha"
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