Shahrzad () is an Iranian romantic and historical drama series written by Hassan Fathi and Naghmeh Samini, produced by Mohammad Emami and directed by Hassan Fathi The storyline is set around and after the 1953 Iranian coup d'état. The series is licensed by the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance of Iran and available online and in CDs around the country. Due to its international popularity, it has been dubbed and aired in Urdu, Arabic, French, Spanish and Russian. It stars Ali Nassirian, Taraneh Alidoosti, Shahab Hosseini, Mostafa Zamani and Parinaz Izadyar.
In the first few episodes, the singer of the series was Alireza Ghorbani. Then Mohsen Chavoshi and Sina Sarlak replaced him. In the last two episodes, Amin Bani and Farnaz Maleki were added to the series' singers.
The story of Shahrzad takes place in 1953. Shahrzad (played by Taraneh Alidoosti), a medical student, and Farhad (played by Mostafa Zamani), a literature student, are in love and want to get married. But at this time, Farhad, who has been arrested for political reasons, is sentenced to death. Shahrzad asks for help from an influential businessman in the government named Bozorg Agha (played by Ali Nasirian) to save Farhad's life. But Bozorg Agha sets a condition for Shahrzad to make her decision come true. Bozorg Agha has a nephew named Ghobad (played by Shahab Hosseini) who is married to Bozorg Agha's daughter, Shirin (played by Parinaz Izadyar). Ghobad and Shirin, who are unable to have children, constantly fight over this issue. Bozorg Agha, who has no son and wants to have an heir for himself, decides to find a wife for Ghobad. Bozorg Agha condition is that Shahrzad becomes a Ghobad's wife and bears him a child. Shahrzad, who only thinks about saving Farhad's life, accepts his condition. As Ghobad marries Shahrzad, Ghobad gradually becomes interested in Shahrzad and in the series, we witness Farhad and Ghobad's simultaneous love for Shahrzad, which affects Shahrzad's life.
The cast of the 59-episode series includes over 200 artists. Considering the professional team behind the camera, plus two years spent on pre-production and four months of shooting, it is the biggest project by the private sector for the home video network.
The series was shot in Ghazali Cinematic Town in the western part of Tehran. Covering an area of 10 hectares, the complex was established in 1971 by the late director Ali Hatami, partially simulating old Tehran. It comprises various state and historic buildings; streets, and places similar to more than 100 years ago decorated by Italian decorators, particularly Gianni Cortina. Other locations are the Museum of the Qasr Prison, Vossug ed Dowleh House, House dr Mohammad Moin, Naderi Café, Passenger Terminal, Sulaimaniyah Palace and Baharestan Square camerawork. Another location that resonated with the Armenian community in Iran is the Armenian Club that is used for weddings and outings by the Armenians. This club is used in the very first few parts of episode one of Shahrzad as a meeting place for Farhad and Shahrzad.
Turkish version
A Turkish version of the series was made under the title "Sehrazat" or "AÃÂlama ðstanbul" (Don't Cry Istanbul) was directed by Chagari Villa Lustuvali. The series suffered a sharp decline in viewership after only a few episodes were released.
Its first season was broadcast in 2014. The broadcast of the second season started on Monday, June 19, 2017 and ended on October 17, 2017. The broadcast of the third season also began from January 31, 2018 and ended on June 21, 2018. The series was broadcast weekly on Mondays.
Parviz Jahed review from Guardian wrote: <blockquote>Good story-telling has made it an intriguing and successful melodrama set against the backdrop of an important episode in IranâÂÂs modern history.</blockquote>
Mahdi Ganjavi review from Global Voices Online wrote: <blockquote>As the story of Shahrzad shows, the political and economic aspirations, desires, and interests of any historical moment entail a revision of what happened in the past. Shahrzad is a love story in the disturbed atmosphere.</blockquote>
This series has had a total of 12 nominations and 7 wins from Hafez Awards and has had 6 nominations and 2 wins from the Yas International Film Festival.
Season 1
Season 2 & 3
Was appreciated the most with three awards from Hafez Awards:
And eight nominations, including:
Celebration and appreciation ceremony of the actors of Shahrzad series was held last night, Sunday, May 16, in the presence of the agents of this series and other cinema artists in the conference hall of Milad Tower in Tehran.