Mahvash

Iranian singer, dancer, movie actress and stage performer in the 1950s and 1960s

Mahvash

مهوش

Background information
Birth name| Masumeh Azizi Borujerdi معصومه عزيزى بروجردى
Also known as| Mahvash Akram, Banu Mahvash, Ma'sumeh Azizi Borujerdi, Akram Ābgūshtī
Born| 1920
Borujerd, Sublime State of Persia
Died| 1961 (aged 40-41)
Tehran, Imperial State of Iran
Occupation(s)| Singer, dancer, stage performer
Years active| 1950–1961

Musical artist

Mahvash (Persian: مهوش), born Masoumeh Azizi Borujerdi (Persian: معصومه عزيزى بروجردى), was an Iranian singer, dancer, film actress and stage performer.[1] She came from a poor family and was lauded as a singer (performer) of the people in the 1950s.[2]

## Early life and early career

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Mahvash was born Masoumeh Azizi Borujerdi in Borujerd, Iran to a poor family, when Mahvash was a teenager the family came to Tehran. At an early age, Mahvash lost her mother. Later she went on to perform in Tehran's cabarets (Persian: kafe-i motrebi) and cafes in the late 1940s to early 1950s and drew large support from the working people.[3]

However, there is confusion around her biography, and different accounts of what type of performances were happening at this age and where.[4] The most common story is that she performed risqué songs in the cabarets, on the radio and in movies.[5] Another prevalent story is she began in a classical ruhowzi dance troupe as a dancer, pishparde singer, and actress;[3] and she married a violinist who secured her entertainment engagements.[3]

## Career

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She gained the admiration of the masses’ by articulating in her songs the problems, difficulties, and frustrations of the common people, struggles which she knew very well.[1][6] Her most famous songs involved a call and response-style singing with her male audience.[5]

The grave of Mahvash at Ibn Babawayh Cemetery, Rey

She published a book in 1957 which she termed an "autobiography" which was entitled Secrets of Sexual Fulfillment (Persian: Raz-e Kamyabi-ye Jensi). This book was more of a sex manual had pictures of her in a bathing suit and was published and widely distributed despite being prosecuted for the book in June 1960.[5] It seems that Mahvash's ability to speak to the marginalized majority absolved her of her forays into prostitution and other publicly indecent behavior.

When Mahvash died in a car accident in 1961, her public funeral went down in Iran's history as the largest of its day, with thousands of Iranians on the streets to mark her passing.[2] Iranian religious authorities were unwilling to accept burying her in a Muslim cemetery because as an entertainer she was considered "unclean" and "unchaste",[5] however when the large amount of mourners celebrated her passing they relented.[5]

She is buried in the Ibn Babawayh Cemetery in Tehran.

## Filmography

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### Acting

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* 1956 – The Sun Shines [fa] (Persian: خورشید می‌درخشد, romanized: Khorshid Miderakhshad), with director Sardar Saker[5]
* 1956 – Layla and Majnun (1956 film) [fa] (Persian: لیلی و مجنون, romanized: Leyli va Majnun), with director Ali-Mohammad Nourbakhsh [fa][7]
* 1957 – Ladder of Progress [fa] (Persian: نردبان ترقی, romanized: Nardebane Taraghi)
* 1957 – The Happy Naked One [fa] (Persian: برهنه خوشحال, romanized: Berahneh Khoshhal), starring with Mohsen Mahdavi [fa][8]
* 1959 – A Girl from Esfahan [fa] (Persian: دختری از اصفهان, romanized: Dokhtari az Esfahan), with director George Ovadiah
* 1959 – Two Brides for Three Brothers [fa] (Persian: Do Aroos Baraye se Baradar), with director Mohammad Abdi (film director) [fa][7]
* 1961 – What's the Difference (Persian: Ki Be Kiyeh), with director Reza Karimi[7]

### Singing

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* 1962 – The Lost Flower [fa] (Persian: گل گمشده, romanized: Gole Gomshodeh), featured singing and dancing by Mahvash, with director Abbas Shabaviz[7]

## See also

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* Persian dance
* Persian pop music
* Persian theatre

## References

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mahvash.

1. ^ a b Matthee, Rudolph (Rudi); Baron, Beth (2000). Iran and Beyond: Essays in Middle Eastern History in Honor of Nikki R. Keddie. "Voices Unveiled: Women Singers in Modern Iran,” Chehabi, Houchang E. Costa Mesa, Calif.: Mazda Publishing. ISBN 1-56859-099-7. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
2. ^ a b "Big Girl, Iran's Mahvash". Six Pillars. April 24, 2013. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
3. ^ a b c Breyley, G. J.; Fatemi, Sasan (November 19, 2015). Iranian Music and Popular Entertainment: From Motrebi to Losanjelesi and Beyond. Routledge. pp. 68–69. ISBN 978-1-317-33680-8.
4. ^ Breyley, GJ; Fatemi, Sasan (2015). Iranian Music and Popular Entertainment: From Motrebi to Losanjelesi and Beyond. Routledge. ISBN 978-1317336792.
5. ^ a b c d e f Naficy, Hamid (September 16, 2011). A Social History of Iranian Cinema, Volume 2: The Industrializing Years, 1941–1978. United States: Duke University Press. ISBN 978-0822347743.
6. ^ Talattof, Kamran (June 1, 2011). Modernity, Sexuality, and Ideology in Iran: The Life and Legacy of a Popular Female Artist. Syracuse University Press. pp. 101–102. ISBN 978-0-8156-5139-0.
7. ^ a b c d "Mahvash". Soureh Cinema. SourehCinema.com. 2013. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
8. ^ "Nostalgia". Iranian.com.

## External links

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* Mahvash at IMDb
* Video of Mahvash dancing (film name unknown)
* Video featuring Mahvash, Afat and Vigen performing