Shayda
Fresh off the Iranian thriller Holy Spider, rising star Zar Amir Ebrahimi brings us another deeply affecting story about the role of women in Iranian society, even once they’re removed from the country itself. Shayda highlights the strength of a mother trying to protect her child, avoiding the heightened reality of melodrama with the grounded, powerful performances of the film’s main cast. It is understated and simple in its narrative approach, but nonetheless incredibly moving.
Shayda (Ebrahimi) and her young daughter Mona (Selina Zahednia) are in dire straits. They live together in an Australian home for women who have left their abusive spouses, and Shayda struggles to give Mona a relatively normal childhood in spite of the chaos unfolding around him. She lives in fear that her husband Hossein (Osamah Sami) will return and find a way to spirit Mona back to their native Iran, using custody of her daughter as blackmail to force her to reconcile with him. But although her world is complicated, to say the least, Shayda has comfort in the freedom she has found in breaking ties with her ex-partner, discovering the courage within herself to take the first steps in carving out a new, independent life for herself.
With an impressive, headlining performance from Ebrahimi, Shayda is immediately captivating. The intimate connection she is able to develop with Zahednia is at the heart of the entire film, and the scenes between the two of them are quiet, understated, and incredibly compelling. Shayda’s inner resolve to start over in Australia, taking charge of her own destiny and creating a life where Mona is able to see that women are capable of having agency, is inspiring. But while Ebrahimi is the undeniable star of the show, Shayda features a number of strong performances from the rest of its cast. Sami in particular is perfect as Hossein, his acting combined with the extremely well-judged writing choices builds out an unassuming villain. As he makes an effort to spend time with his daughter and mend fences with his wife, he walks the delicate line of all abusers, where at first it seems like he’s changed, that he genuinely has his daughter’s interests at heart. From the outside, he seems like an affable man determined to make the best of a difficult situation. But from Shayda’s shrinking reaction to him, and the hint of menace Sami plays just beneath the surface, it’s clear that it won’t take very much at all for the facade to fall.
The cross-cultural elements of the narrative lend horrifying stakes to Shayda’s plight. She is forced, every single day, to reckon with the very real possibility that whenever Hossein turns up for court-allowed visits with Mona, he might kidnap their daughter and fly back to Iran. This prospect looms large over the proceedings, especially knowing that it would be next to impossible to get her back at that point – any Iranian court would side with Hossein over the wife who left her husband and her country behind. The scene where Shayda and Joyce (Leah Purcell) – one of the women from the shelter who has grown to become a close friend – take Mona to the airport, gently telling her how to get help from the staff, is genuinely chilling in its practicality.
But the fact that they do this together is a big part of why the film has so much of a hopeful tone to it. There is an immense sense of camaraderie and shared experience between the inhabitants of the women’s shelter, and although they may have their petty squabbles, they understand and support each other precisely because of what they’ve been through. And the fact that although some of the women are Australian, many are from other countries, drives home the point that although Shayda’s experiences are understandably colored by her cultural background, the problems that she faces are not entirely unique to where she’s from: Violence against women is far more universal than to stop at one country’s borders.
Throughout all of this, Shayda’s strength and determination is a driving force. In as many ways as she can, she does the hard work of separating from her husband’s orbit and seeking every opportunity to become independent. She refuses to allow the fear of reprisals from her Iranian community on behalf of her husband, who is seen by many as the wronged party in this relationship, to prevent her from living her life. If Ebrahimi was not on audiences’ radar before this powerhouse performance, Shayda should be the film that propels her to far greater international notice.
Directed by Noora Niasari
Starring Zar Amir Ebrahimi, Leah Purcell, Selina Zahednia, Osamah Sami
Runtime 117 min
Language English, Farsi