Hadi Khorsandi

Hadi Khorsandi is a contemporary Iranian poet and satirist. Since 1979, he has been the editor and writer of the satirical journal Asghar Agha. Khorsandi is particularly renowned for his examination of Iranian socio-political matters, particularly his open criticism of religious fundamentalism. He has lived in exile in London, England since the Iranian Revolution.

Khorsandi was the recipient of the Hellman-Hammett Award in 1995. He has recently performed stand up comedy with Parviz Sayyad, another famous Iranian satirist. He is the father of Shappi Khorsandi, a well-known UK-based Iranian comedian.

Samad Grows Up

With Samad becoming a household name, Sayyad was able to produce more than seven Samad films. Over the next eight years, the adventures of Samad were produced in a series of funny and memoriable movies which included Samad goes to School, and Samad becomes an Artist. Sayyad's work as an actor, director and producer flourished and he was able to continue working in television and film until the revolution of 1979. Following the political turmoil in Iran, Sayyad was determined to continue his work of creating interesting stories and contributing to the Iranian arts. He relocated to Los Angeles and began the second phase of his career.

Sayyad next film The Mission (1983) gained entry into The Berlin Film Festival, The London Film Festival, and won The Jury Grand Prize at The Locarno Film Festival (1983). The allowed for the next feature film Checkpoint (1987). This film dealt with the tensions and complexities of Iranian American relations during the Hostage Crisis. The film was met with some resistance as it explored political issues which many people did not want to discuss. Following this film, Sayyad set his mind to creating many plays and shows for the Iranian community. Over the years he has writtern, directed and produced over 40 projects which include his play Khar, and Faalgoosh.

Today, Parviz Sayyad remains one of the top figures of the Iranian film and theatre industry. His own theatre group called the Traveling Theatrical Troupe serves Iranian audiences around the world with fresh and poignant productions. He has also written a book, and continues to attend lectures and events to entertain his fans. In addition, he produced and stars in his own TV Show broadcast every Sunday on Iranian Satellite TV to millions of people worldwide. His daughter Maryam Sayyad acts as his co-host pulling in a younger audience and keeping the show fresh. His older daughter Banafsheh Sayyad has her own dance troupe and performs shows for dance lovers internationally. (photo from left to right: Banafsheh Sayyad, Parviz Sayyad, Maryam Sayyad)

Parviz Sayyad's talent in creating topics that speak to the audience through humor, controversy, drama, and raw emotion remains appreciated by people around the world. His most recent project is the classic role of Amoo Norooz in the upcoming Babak and Friends - A First Norooz, the first Iranian-American cartoon about the special New Year's celebration of Norooz.