A biography for Nazanin Boniadihasn’t been written yet.
“Frances Conroy - brilliant, brilliant actress.”
“The idea that an actress - mostly lauded for her performances in more than a dozen films - somehow represents a threat to Iran's national security is laughable at best. But in Ahangarani's case, far from anything humorous, the allegations have actually resulted in the sober prospect of real prison time.”
“I was born in Iran, which has a predominantly Muslim population, and I have relatives who are devout Muslims, so I know what it means to be judged based on your appearance and what you're wearing. But your ethnicity and your clothing do not define who you are.”
“Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was not engaged in subversive work; she was an apolitical project manager with the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of the Reuters news agency.”
“I feel really connected to antiquity for some reason.”
“Jason Rezaian, held for 544 days in Iran, was not a spy but rather a 'Washington Post' journalist whose work aimed to increase cultural understanding between Iran and the world.”
“While awareness-building is a crucial first step, cohesive efforts are needed to translate this into real-world change.”
“To have art suppressed is very dangerous to society.”
“When you or your loved ones escape repression, you often find yourself committed to ensuring that freedom prevails.”
“I was very successful, and I graduated with honors. And then I called my dad, who still lives in London, and I said, 'Dad, thanks for college, but I'm going to go act now.' It didn't go over very well.”
“A celebrated and hugely popular actress in her native Iran, Ahangarani first landed on the radar of the Iranian authorities for her open support of opposition figure Mir-Hossein Mousavi, which led to her arrest in July 2009 in the aftermath of a disputed presidential election in Iran.”
“Our rights are interconnected and inseparable. When freedom of expression is threatened, the rights to freedom of association and assembly, of thought, conscience and religion, are also compromised.”
“I think a culture can really be elevated through the arts, and it's always a dream come true when I come across roles that enable me to fuse my love of storytelling with my passion for activism and raising social awareness.”
“The thing that I love about 'Scandal' is every character, it's not clear if they're good or bad. Everyone is both good and bad.”
“Artists often become vocal advocates of freedom of expression because we depend on it so heavily in our work. But it is an inalienable right that belongs to everyone on an equal basis.”
“As an actress, I value and rely on peaceful self-expression, not only in my daily life, but also in my professional work. This is particularly true, as my commitment to the promotion of human rights is an integral part of my calling as an artist.”
“In my role as a spokesperson for Amnesty International U.S.A. and as a supporter of various charitable causes including Unlock Iran, a campaign to release prisoners of conscience in Iran, I have never been faced with the threat of intimidation or arrest.”
“Dance connects us to the musicality of life and to one another. No one should be denied such basic pleasures.”
“History's lesson, of course, is that attempts to suppress free expression have merely confirmed the caricaturists' original critique of heavy-handed and objectionable actions of overreaching governments.”
“'Homeland' is great at challenging our preconceived ideas.”