"They Called Me Seditious Because I’m a Singer"

Women in Iran are banned from playing music and singing in public, yet another injustice half of the country’s population have to endure. The ban, which dates back to the early days of the establishment of the Islamic Republic, was put in place under the pretext of being in contravention of Sharia law.

The Recent History of the Ban

After decades of discrimination against women singers and musicians, in 2013, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei issued a fatwa to clarify the situation: "If a woman's voice, whether singing solo or in combination with other men and women, is not inciting frivolity [ghena] and listening to it is not with the intention of pleasure and debauchery, there is no problem. But it is not permissible if it is corrupting or inciting lust."

After Khamenei’s fatwa, there was some hope, and it seemed possible that women might be able to obtain licenses to sing. But the hope did not last long, as licensing officials were unsure how to determine whether the women singers were having a corrupting influence or not.  This dangerous ambiguity was compounded by the existence of other fatwas that had been issued by other Shia sources of emulation (officially the only authorities that can issue fatwas) around the country. For example, Nasser Makarem Shirazi, one of the most influential religious sources of emulation in Iran, declared it was forbidden for any woman to sing or play musical instruments in any public context and for any audience, whether on her own or with men or other women. So the ban continued.

So, despite the optimism of the early days after the fatwa, no licenses to sing or play music in public or to record albums have been granted to women since then. Concerts featuring women have been cancelled, including high-profile performances by Tehran Symphony Orchestra and by famous musicians Homayoun Shajarian and Benjamin Bahadori, because they dared to include women on the stage.

The Story of Olduz Pouri

Olduz Pouri, the daughter of well-known Iranian translator and novelist Ahmad Pouri, eventually left the country after being threatened and intimidated by security forces when she defied the ban.

"In the eyes of cultural directors and decision-makers in the Iranian art world, women are seen as annoying,” Olduz Pouri told Journalism is Not a Crime. “They think: women should stay at home and keep their mouths shut.

"I started singing at the age of five at home, and gradually my interest in singing and music grew," she says. "At the age of 22, I became a student of Professor Hamid Panahi and pursued music in a more professional way. But the further I went, the more I was bothered by problems and barriers. I wanted others to hear my voice and feed back so that I could improve, but I could not play music and there was no place to perform live. I had a fighting spirit, and I did not miss the opportunity to sing in cafes or for private performances. In 2006 I became a student of [famous singer] Mahsa Vahdat and through her I became acquainted with traditional Iranian music. At that point I did my best to overcome the anti-women barriers in society and from the government and continue to sing. I would go to the studio myself and make music and record. This prompted Ms. Vahdat to send one of my recordings to a producer in Norway."

The Norwegian producer was amazed and impressed with Olduz Puri’s voice and talent and invited her to perform in Norway. With her band, she toured in France, Sweden, Morocco and Luxembourg, where she enjoyed a positive reception.

"After the concerts, the producer said he wanted to record a solo album with me, and we produced the album with the support of the KKV music company. After this, I returned to Iran, but as news of my performances and successes were published in Iran, threats and summonses came my way. Officials from the Rouhani government's Ministry of Intelligence told me in person, as well as in repeated calls, that I should stop all my artistic activities and stop singing. They also mentioned my Instagram posts and said that if I even posted one more video of myself singing on Instagram, they would arrest me, or inflict an irreversible harm on me. They told me I couldn’t go ahead with the launch of my album at a friend's cafe and demanded that I gather up all the copies of the album I had given to my friends. These threats were very serious, and very painful for me."

Charged with Links to Political Groups and Baha'is

Ministry of Intelligence agents made other allegations against Olduz Pouri to stop her from performing and singing. They charged her with "association with political groups abroad." But Pouri says she has never been politically active.

"The agents said that singing abroad while not wearing the Islamic hijab meant I was associated with political groups opposed to the Islamic Republic, and by doing so it showed I wanted to fight against the red lines of the regime," she said. "These accusations were pure nonsense and there was no reason at all for me to want to observe Iran’s hijab rule while abroad. They also said I had become a Baha'i, but I was not interested in any religion at all. I had just traveled outside of Iran for my art and to fulfil my childhood dream. These threats and labels disturbed my peace of mind. Since I was not willing to abide by their wishes, I finally decided to leave. I could not accept what many female singers in Iran have accepted and be content to sing for my family and private performances or sing in women-only concerts. This is oppression. I have not been and am not a liar and I will not self-censor. Why shouldn’t female singers sing with male singers? Why are women so humiliated?"

Pouri’s final decision to leave came in 2019. She settled in Canada and began studying for a Master's degree in music at the University of Ottawa. She says her Canadian friends are shocked and incredulous when they hear about her past in Iran and the government's oppression of women singers.

But leaving the country was not enough, Pouri says."After the protests in November 2019 and the shooting down of the Ukrainian plane [in early 2020], I could no longer bear that terrifying atmosphere and left the country. I emigrated so that I could breathe and save myself, but they did not give up on me or my family, and after my emigration, they raided our house twice and ruined our whole life. They were apparently looking for evidence in our house to accuse me or my family of doing something illegal. My parents were told that if I returned to Iran, I would be arrested. They made it so I could not return to my country anymore."

Today, as she enters her fifth decade, Olduz Pouri has started a new life. She says she hopes it will help her to forget the bitter moments imposed on her in her own country. She says she still feels the effects of stress and admits it will take time to shake off the heavy shadow of censorship and prohibition. But she hopes in the near future she will be completely free, and feel as if she is too. And this will help her singing and songwriting too, she says.

"I have to be able to erase the old darkness and be born again," she says.

{{ __192217_videocomponent__video component__ }}" style="">Listen to music by Olduz Pouri

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Erratic Censorship of Instruments Confounding Musicians in Iran

A Song for the Banned Voices of Women in Iran