"In the name of God" "MOHAMMAD MEHDI DADGOO Presents:" "A Film by RAFI PlITTS" "SANAM" "Screenplay MALAK DJAHAN KHAZAl  RAFl PlTTS" "ROYA NONAHALl" "FARROKH NEMATl" "ISMAlL AMlNl" "Sound H. ZAHEDl  S. NAKHAl" "Production Manager HASSAN NAGME" "Sound Engineer REZA DELPAK" "Editor HASSAN HASSANDOOST" "Art Director MALAK DJAHAN KHAZAl" "Cinematographer FARHAD SABA" "Producer MOHAMMAD MEHDl DADGOO" "Director RAFl PlTTS" "Allah is great, Allah is great" "I bear witness that there is no God except Allah" "I bear witness that there is no God except Allah" "I bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of God" "I bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of God" " Hello." " Hello." " Hello." " Hello." "How can I help you?" " I've come to lodge a complaint." " Come in, please." "This way!" "Oh, my dear child!" "Oh, my Delavar!" "He is taken, so what about me now?" "Oh, my child!" "I'm like a wounded tulip Oh, sister, there is a thorn in my heart" "Like the tulips on the hillside" "I am missing him Oh, my child" "Oh, brothers, when will my brother come back?" "When will my flower come back?" "Oh, my flower Oh, my child." "Now that I'm not going to see my brother, I should go blind" "Oh, my Delavar, my heart and soul are in your grave" "You have my heart and soul in your grave" "Oh, my God, I have to go blind, I am doomed" "Don't let her pass out!" "Oh, my God" "Oh, my child, I will build a gate for your return" "Oh, my Delavar, how did I lose you?" "Oh, God, let death rain on me" "Oh, my God, what should I do?" "My dear Sanam, you are most welcome here." "Delavar is no longer with us, but I'm not dead." "His aunt is here." "Don't be sad." "Issa will take his father's place, don't worry." "God willing, from now on your heart will only be filled with joy." "Don't worry, my child." "Now that Delavar is dead, Issa will fill his shoes." "We'll take Issa to farm, so he'll work hard and earn money for us." "Open it, uncle!" " Go, get working." "Get to work, hurry." " Go, go, go." " This way!" " Get down, you know the way." "Go!" "One by one, this way!" "That way!" " Mr. Adel..." " Hurry, hurry, hurry, hurry!" "Move, move, move it." "Hurry up!" "You, this way!" "You, go there!" "Faster!" "Work faster." "Hold them nicely!" "It's lunchtime!" "Hey, it's lunchtime." "Go for lunch, go for lunch." "Go for lunch, kids." "Go for lunch." "It's lunchtime, go for lunch." "Here!" "Hey, Issa, isn't your father a thief?" "What did you say?" " Did you say those words?" " Wasn't your father a thief?" " Your dad is a thief." " My dad could not steal his own horse." "My dad had gone to bring back his horse." "I'll kill you." "Don't you dare accuse him again!" "You bastards!" "My dad had gone to fetch his own horse." "Do you understand?" " Issa!" " Issa!" " Let me go!" " Run, run!" " Is there a fight?" " No, no, no." "Issa, dear, who were you fighting with?" "I was fighting with Javad from next door." " Why?" " He said my dad is a thief." "He said he stole a horse." "I was fighting for my dad." " So, son, do you have to fight?" " Yeah." "No, they don't know what they're talking about." "If he says that again I'll give him a bruising." "If your father is a thief, then, my son, do you have to beat other kids?" "They all say, "Your dad did this and that."" "They say, "Your dad stole a horse."" "And I say the horse belonged to him, he had gone to claim what was rightfully his." "I'm going to even the score." "You should have told me." "I would have spoken to them." "I gave them a good beating." "If they say it again, I'll beat them again." "Do you want to be like your father?" "Tell me if you plan to follow his example, so I can stop you." "What is it?" "You don't want me to get my father's property back from those bastards?" "I went to the police, they said, "Hey, sister, you won't get anywhere."" "I asked, "But why, sir?"" "He said, "Your husband is dead and you have no rights over the house."" "After two years, my husband's uncle invited everyone and they took my child from me." "And I never saw him again." "Then we went to court." "We went to court for a hearing." "They complained, we complained." "Based on that, they were guilty." "They wrote down everything we said." " Well, yes..." " Then they gave a sack of sugar to the chief." "He dismissed our claims and we didn't get anywhere." "I used to work in an institution for a while." "After some time they called me to the office." "I went there and he said, "We have orders from above," ""to lay you off and pay for six hours a day over time." ""What's the reason?" He said, "l don't know."" "Then they paid me off." "I went to the police and asked them if they knew about it." "He was our neighbour." "I asked, "Why are they letting me go?" "It's almost winter and I have a wife and kids."" "He said, "You have no documents from the Ministry of Labour." "We can't do anything."" "Then I went and asked, "Why have you asked them to let me go?"" "He said, "The instruction came from above." I said, "Who is up there?" ""You were the ones who hired me." "I don't know anyone else."" "He said, "No, there's someone higher."" "I said, "Who's higher than him?" He said, "There's someone higher than him."" "I said, "OK, then tell me the highest person's name."" "He said, "lf you want to know the real owner, the real owner is God."" "I said, "OK, then you're God's hatchet man and I'm his downtrodden one." ""This land is God's." "We're all God's creatures." ""Except that you're God's hatchet man and I'm his downtrodden one."" "Jeyran!" "Come here." "Jeyran!" "Jeyran!" "Come here!" "Jeyran!" "Come here!" "Come here, Jeyran." "Come, come." "Come here, Jeyran." "Come." "Come here, Jeyran." "Come." " Amini, come quickly." " What should I do now?" " Later, later." " What should I do?" "Where should I go?" "Come on, Amini, hurry up, move!" " Flour, more flour." " Is she helping with housekeeping?" " Is it OK, Auntie, or more flour?" " It's good now." " You are so hardworking." " Thank you." "I am going to bake two or three troughs of dough as long as I can." "This is my first time." "That's OK." " Hello, Ms Zahra." " Hello." " How are you?" "Working hard?" " Thank you." "God bless you." "I've brought some flour to make my dough, so my children can bake bread." " Sure." "You make clean and delicious bread." " Thank you." " You're welcome." " Where is Issa's mum?" " How would I know where she is?" "I don't know of her." " You don't know?" " No, I don't." "What kind of neighbour are you that you don't know about her?" "Why do you want to know where that young woman is?" "Nothing, she's a nice woman, I was just asking after her." " She's a nice woman, hard-working." " There is nothing to ask." " There is nothing to ask." " I was just asking..." " You don't ask about a young woman." " I had no intentions..." " I'm saying..." " I was just asking as a concerned neighbour." " Hard-working?" " Don't get upset, Ms Zahra." "Hard-working?" "Maybe for herself." "Hard-working woman!" "Don't skip work again." "I didn't tell Sanam the first time." "But if you run away again, I will tell her, as God is my witness." "If you skip only one more time, God knows..." " Hello." " Hello." " You never told me how much this horse is." " Go away, kid, you have no money." "Yes, I do." " No, you don't." " I do!" "You've got no money and you pester me every day." "Go away!" " I didn't have money then." "But I do now!" " No, you don't." " Do you have money?" " Yeah." " Well, how much is it?" " Do you really want it?" " How much?" " 1,500 Toomans." "Let's see your cash!" "You cheat everyone and now you want to cheat me!" " Now, for real, how much?" " Get out of here, kid." " Name a price, then." " Go away, you don't have money." " I do, tell me how much and I'll pay." " You have no money and do this every day." " Go!" " See?" "My pockets are full of money." " If you have money, pay for it." " Give me a discount." "Go." "Don't waste my time." "Get out of here." " Give me a discount." " Go." "Mind your own business." " Do you know how to do business?" " Yeah." " Give me a discount, then." " Do you have money?" "Why don't you tell me how much?" "Give me a discount, I know it's worth less." "You do this every day, kid." "Go away." "Just go." " You're wasting my time here." " I've got money, see?" "You have no money and you come here every day." "Go!" " Here..." "Look." "Can you hear my money?" " If you're honest, give me 500 Toomans." " No way, you're making fun of me!" " 500 is a lot of money?" " Issa, come on, we're late!" " You know what?" "I have no money." "Bye!" " No money?" "Then go, get out of here!" " Come here, Issa!" "Jeyran!" "Jeyran!" "Jeyran!" "Come on, Jeyran." "Come and take it, come on." "Come on, it's lunch." "Come on!" "Come on!" "OK then, I'll eat it." "Where the hell have you been?" "Wasn't your dad enough for me?" "You waste of milk!" "You run off when it's time to work." "To hell with you!" "How can a kid be so stupid?" "What can I do with you?" "God break your spine!" "What should I do?" "Wait till I catch you!" "Where the hell were you?" " Sanam, that's enough!" " I'm going to kill him!" "Let go of me!" " You skip work?" "I'll kill you." " Sanam!" " You shirker!" " Sanam!" " Why do you beat me?" " Such a stupid child!" " Let it be the last time." "I'll kill you." " God knows where she's been herself." "Now she's beating me!" "Issa, dear, your mother's right." "She's right." "She takes her problems out on me!" "Issa, dear, aren't you a good boy?" "I'll die for you." "Who says so?" "I was there and I was working." "I witnessed everything!" "My father being killed." "I only want to be with the horses." " Hafiz, Hafiz, pass." " Hassan, Hassan, here." "Go away, kid." "You don't know how to kick the ball." "How should I play then?" "He has no clue how to play football." "He just kicks it." "Issa is the referee." " Come on, let's play." " Here, here." "Al Esmal, here!" "Thief!" "Stop the thief!" "Now that you've ruined our reputation, at least get up and go to work." "Wake up." "The day has begun." "Tell that child to get out of his bed!" "Issa, dear, wake up!" "Auntie's got to take you to the sheep." "Wake up, Auntie's love!" "You've got to go to school and become literate." "What has literacy done for anyone else?" "Why do you want me to learn?" "Illiterate people are blind, like me!" " Are you blind?" " I am illiterate, so I am blind." " Your eyes see much better than mine." " You have to go to school!" " I won't!" " You have to get educated to be somebody." " I won't!" " No arguments!" " I won't go!" " I'm sending you to school." "If you fail, then curse me." " I'm begging you to go to school." " I'm begging not to go." "Those who are literate, what have they achieved?" "What will I achieve?" "Soak your feet in salt water." "I love horse riders, horses are good." "I like the ewes... the sheep." " But horses are better." " No." "Ewes are better." " Horses are better." " What's better?" "If a wolf attacks, you can escape on a horse." "But sheep just wait for the dog to chase the wolf away." "Well, the dog there will kill all wolves." " No way." " Yeah right, horses are good." "Ewes are the best." "Horses are the best." "You ride them to Asadieh, Torbat, everywhere." "In the old days, 1 00 ewes equalled 50 horses." "My father gave them all to friends." "He said, "l don't like horses at all."" " I don't like horses at all." " Maybe they're useless for you." " They're useless and no good." " No, they're not." " Maybe for you." " I tell you, horses are useless!" " Horses have such kind eyes." " They're useless." " They have nice eyes and they're so kind." " Horses are useless." "A horse understands when you speak." "It's kind." "What use are sheep?" "They are treasure, treasure." " But horses are pure gold." " Sheep are God's treasures." " Horses are such fun." " Ewes give you butter, fat and meat to eat." "Wait, wait." "You can even ride a horse." "What's the use of those?" "Wolves will eat them all." " And a horse can throw you off and kill you." " No!" "Zahra, dear, why don't you ask why we're here?" "You are most welcome here." "We've come for my brother's matchmaking." "What is your answer?" "He's a good man, works hard." "Lost his wife a few years ago." "He works hard and is a good brother to us." "We hope he'll be a good man for you, too." "The saying goes, "Give wives to widowers, and stone the men who divorce."" " You should believe in that." " I cannot say anything to Sanam." "She's young." "It's up to her whether she remarries or not." "But you have to do something." "You cannot leave it all to her." "You'll be responsible." "She's a young woman, it isn't right this way." "My brother is hard-working, he's nice, has been to the city, he has his own house." "He'll be a good influence for her son." "Talk to her, see what she says." "What can I say?" "She's a young woman." "I can't tell her to go, I can't tell her to stay." " She's welcome to stay as long as she wants." " Issa needs a role model." "He can't grow up without a man." "He needs a man to look up to." "What can a woman do with a boy?" "You have to step in as an adult and advise her." "My brother's a good man." "Please accept him." " Hello." " Hello." "My brother's in the grave and doesn't need a wife." "Sanam is a young woman." "I can't tell her whether to remarry." "She's welcome here." "This house isn't mine, it's hers." "My nephew is also welcome." "I'll treasure my brother's son and raise him." "Issa needs a father, an older man to take care of him." "A man can discipline and raise a man." " You can take care of them, there's no doubt." " Sanam, my son, Heydar, is a good man." "Please take a step and give us your consent." "His life is in order." "He has a job and a house." "It will be nice if you respond." "I'm not giving my nephew to a stepfather." "I've carried Issa since he was a baby, and I'll go on caring for him." "I can't give him to a stepfather." "His aunt isn't dead yet." "His aunt and his mother are here to raise and protect him." " I'm here once and forever." " Zahra, you are the decision-maker." "Sanam, how long do you want to wait?" "You are very young and my son is still young." "Sanam, his life is in order." "How long do you want to wait?" "You're still young, it's a misfortune." "If marriage was tempting, once was more than enough for me." "Not now, not ever." "I'll never marry again." " Do you see that horse?" " Yes." "It belongs to my dad." " You mean Jeyran?" " Yes." " She's not your dad's." " Yes, she is." " She never was." " She was." "He used to ride her." " That horse belongs to others." " What others?" "You keep saying a horse does this and that to its owner." "How come she knows me and let me ride her?" "But I'll swear she wasn't your dad's." "Don't swear." "You're not sure." "You don't know whose she was." "If she was his, they wouldn't have killed him." "You know what?" "My dad had this horse since he was a young boy." " So he was a thief since childhood?" " No." "Since his childhood, he was a thief." "He had caught and raised this horse, cared for her since she was a foal." "But those bastards killed him and took the horse." " They kill thieves." "He was a thief." " He was never a thief!" " He was born a thief." " He never was." " See that horse?" " Yes, he was a thief." "Let me speak!" "See that foal?" "Ever since Jeyran was that size, my dad raised her and rode on her." "The bastards took her and killed him." "Your father was a bandit." "He wasn't!" "You're a thief yourself." " He was a thief and a lazy man!" " You are lazy!" " He had no religion." " I hope they kill you." "Why would they kill me?" "They're not interested in me." " Not interested?" " No, no!" "He doesn't know what he's saying!" "I know what I'm talking about but you don't like it." "I don't like it." "Jeyran belongs to my dad." " Then go, go and ride her." " Ride her?" " If only I could..." " Go on!" "These bastards killed my father, him, God rest his soul." ""God rest his soul"?" "How can he when he was a thief?" "Watch your mouth." "Don't talk like that." " "My dad, God rest his soul"!" "That thief!" " Watch your mouth." "You may have stolen the goats, too." "Blah, blah, blah..." "And where did I steal them from?" " Don't talk like that." " Where did I steal them from?" "My dad had cared for the horse." "Since she was a foal he gave her milk and raised her." "Yeah, like the horse was an inheritance." "Watch your mouth." "Yes, you've learnt from your dad." "You just keep bragging and that's all." "What is your problem?" " What did you just ask?" " I will smoke as much as I want." "I'm just saying that was my dad's horse." "You keep saying what he's done and whatnot." " Your father was a thief and he stole..." " No, he didn't." " Who knows..." "..other people's horses." "Leave me alone." "Let me finish my words." " Don't talk like this." " Then talk, speak..." "If those bastards hadn't killed my dad, they could never catch that horse." "Your father was a bastard who stole from others." " My father isn't a thief, watch your mouth." " Yes, he was." "He's not, he's not a thief." "If he was a thief he would have killed everyone." " He was always a thief." " Watch your mouth." "Don't talk like this." " Jeyran wasn't his." " He has raised Jeyran since she was a foal." " He fed her milk and raised her." " He was a thief; a thief and a bandit." " He was a lazy and useless man." " God knows what my dad did." " Go and follow in your dad's footsteps." " Leave me alone." "I'm done with you." "You don't know how it's been since he was a boy." " Then how come he hadn't caught her father." " Yeah." "Yes, yes." " They changed everything in our lives." " Oh, yeah." "Were you there?" "Take this out so I can understand what you're saying." " But Jeyran is a good horse." " Yeah." " She's a very nice horse." " Jeyran wasn't your dad's." "How much do you smoke?" "Am I smoking your dad's cigarettes?" " You're smoking your dad's cigarettes." " They're mine." " I have earned them" " Watch your mouth." "It's none of your business that I'm smoking!" " It's none of your business what I do." " Watch your mouth." "So, what my dad did is none of your business, either!" "Who are you?" "Stealing a horse is worse than smoking." " Smoking's just as bad." " Not at all." "Watch your mouth." "I know better." "You're just a kid." "You talk rubbish!" "Your father was a bad thief man." "He doesn't know what he's saying." "This is what happens to outlaws." "You're saying he owned that horse?" "What proof do you have?" "We have checked - the horse wasn't his." "You have no proof." "How can you steal your own horse?" "He steals someone else's horse and pretends it's his own." "How is that possible?" "You come every day for nothing." "Want to make a complaint?" "I've told you to stop coming here every day." "How is Zahra?" "And how is Issa?" "Where did you get with your appeal?" "Come on, come on." "Come on." "Issa, Issa, come over here!" "Come here, Issa, come here." "Goodbye." "My father will be your last sadness." "I'm not going to leave you alone." "OK?" "Don't be afraid of anyone." "Leave me alone!" "Get up!" "Get up!" "I told you not to go near horses, you thief." " Thief yourself, you son of a bitch!" " Don't be rude!" "Watch your mouth." " Go away!" " You're rude, you're rude." " Careful what you say." " You have to learn a trade." " I already know how to work." " That horse is no good for you." " Why are you beating me?" " I'm supposed to teach you!" "What good is wasting your time with horses?" "I'm not wasting my time." "Go away!" "Why are you beating me for no reason?" "You must learn a trade." "Your mother left you in my care to teach you." " What use is a herd of sheep?" " Those horses belong to others!" "Goats, dogs, what good are they?" "At least horses are intelligent." "What are these good for?" "They are my way of earning my bread." "What's that horse for you?" "That horse was my father's." "What's it to you?" "Issa, come here!" "Issa, come back." "Come here." "Jeyran!" "Issa, come back." "Come here." "Issa, for your mom's sake, come back here." "Issa!" "Thank you very much." "I want the child from you." "If one hair is lost from his head, I know what to do with you." "You have to bring the child back the same way you got him from us." "You have to go and bring him back otherwise I will turn you into a child." "You have to follow his trail and bring him back." "I was tending the sheep." "Then I saw the kid get on a horse and ride off." "I'm so sorry." "I gave him to you." "You must bring him back to me." "Do whatever you like." "Blame me, blame yourself, blame the kid." "Bringing him back is not my job." "I just came to let you know." "The rest is up to you." "Just go and bring him back to me, then go wherever you want." "I loved that boy, but I saw him get on a horse and leave." "Go, bring my baby back." "Are you telling me that he ran away?" " I am really sorry." " Then just leave." " Excuse me, Sanam." "Sanam!" " Go and find the kid and bring him back." " Sanam, I'm really sorry." " You have to answer to me." " I'm sorry, Sanam." " You were supposed to take care of him!" "You may go in." "This is the payment for your horse, sir." "Give me my son." "Jeyran!" "Jeyran!" "Jeyran!" "Producer MOHAMMAD MEHDl DADGOO"