Coming to the Cannes Film Festival no longer holds any mysteries for Iranian director Asghar Farhadi. His previous film, Everybody Knows, starring Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz, opened the event in 2018. He has also brought his filmsThe Salesman (2016), which won him a Best Screenplay trophy, and The Past (2013) to the official selection.
”I’ve got used to this process now,” he tells The National. “I’ve been through it a couple of times. I don’t really anticipate [any reaction back home]. I know that when you have this kind of exposure, this kind of success, it brings you more friends and more enemies.”
He’s back in Cannes competition this year with A Hero, a film that has already received strong reviews and that will compete for the coveted Palme d’Or this weekend.
His 2011 international breakthrough, A Separation, won the Berlin Film Festival’s top accolade, the Golden Bear, before going on to become the first Iranian movie to win the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film. With such success, it is perhaps no wonder that he has accrued “friends and enemies”, as he puts it, along the way.
Like A Separation, which deals with an Iranian couple navigating the country's divorce laws, A Hero puts audiences back into the Iranian judicial system. Amir Jadidi stars as Rahim, a family man on two-day leave from prison in the city of Shiraz. A failed business loan from his former brother-in-law, malicious shopkeeper Bahram (Mohsen Tanabandeh), has landed him in prison.
In certain circumstances, depending on what contracts are drawn up, a custodial sentence can be served over an unpaid private loan in Iran, explains Farhadi, 48. “The creditor can file a complaint against the other if he doesn’t receive the money back and then that person can be put in prison for the debt he’s not been able to pay back.”
When the film starts, the woman Rahim intends to marry, Farkhondeh (Sahar Goldust), has found a lost handbag with 17 gold coins in it and they consider selling it as a way of alleviating the debt that hangs around his neck. But feeling his conscience pricked, Rahim seeks out the owner, a charitable act that soon has him unexpectedly celebrated after the prison authorities exploit his good deed on television. However, as rumours fly around on social media doubting his credibility, the story twists again.
“I didn’t set out to make a film about social media,” Farhadi stresses. “I didn’t even know that it would take such an importance in the storytelling. The focus and the main topic of the film is the rise and fall of a person; of somebody who is taken and put in the spotlight without doing anything for it and all of a sudden is taken down from it. So of course this very quick ascension had to be through media … and naturally social media.”
In Iran, Farhadi calls the various available social media platforms “the main way of communication” now, even though some are “officially filtered” by the authorities.
“People find ways to keep using them,” he says. He's neither on Twitter nor Facebook, but he is on Instagram. “But it’s not under my name”, he says. Still, as A Hero shows, while social media offers a fine platform for spreading the truth, it’s also a web for lies and miscommunication.
The notions of truth and honesty are huge themes in A Hero, and Farhadi expertly presents a world where truth is not absolute. “What we know about truth is that it’s very difficult to define,” he says. “You don’t have an accurate definition of the limits and of the shape of truth. It’s not something you can define with no question, no nuances. There are several aspects to it, several takes on it. The limits are just a continuum; it’s not some clear line that you can use to define the truth.”
The film also depicts a world where those who have made mistakes in the past seem to be continually punished for them, however much they try to make amends. “Nothing is fair in the world”, opines a taxi driver who becomes embroiled in the plot later on. Does Farhadi agree?
“It’s hard to say if I agree with what my character says – if it’s his point or my point. Through his mouth, sometimes I share the views of my characters and sometimes I don’t. In general, I [avoid] these maxims, these general truths. Saying that the world is fair is not right because you can think of many cases where the world is not fair, and saying the world is unfair doesn’t seem more accurate to me.”
It’s this caution not to generalise that makes Farhadi such a wise filmmaker. He originally intended to cast “unknown faces” in the film, to give “some freshness” to the characters and performances. But after realising what he’d demand from non-professionals wasn’t easy, he went for trained actors, including Jadidi as Rahim. “He had this quality of innocence that I wanted, in his face.” Beneath the naivety simmers anger against the system. “It’s quite natural that he has this feeling … the smile on his face becomes more of a facade to hide his rage and frustration.”
Whether Spike Lee, who heads the Cannes jury, will see A Hero as a main contender for the Palme d’Or remains to be seen. You can certainly expect social media in Iran to blow up if he does, along with a gaining of further friends and enemies for the director. For the moment, Farhadi is uncertain what his next film will be, or whether he’ll make one in Europe again, as with The Past and Everybody Knows. “I don’t know yet what’s awaiting me,” he says. Whatever it is, it’s likely to be another fascinating dip into human morality.
Defence review at a glance
• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”
• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems
• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.
• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%
• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade
• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels
Why your domicile status is important
Your UK residence status is assessed using the statutory residence test. While your residence status – ie where you live - is assessed every year, your domicile status is assessed over your lifetime.
Your domicile of origin generally comes from your parents and if your parents were not married, then it is decided by your father. Your domicile is generally the country your father considered his permanent home when you were born.
UK residents who have their permanent home ("domicile") outside the UK may not have to pay UK tax on foreign income. For example, they do not pay tax on foreign income or gains if they are less than £2,000 in the tax year and do not transfer that gain to a UK bank account.
A UK-domiciled person, however, is liable for UK tax on their worldwide income and gains when they are resident in the UK.
How to help
Call the hotline on 0502955999 or send "thenational" to the following numbers:
2289 - Dh10
2252 - Dh50
6025 - Dh20
6027 - Dh100
6026 - Dh200
So what is Spicy Chickenjoy?
Just as McDonald’s has the Big Mac, Jollibee has Spicy Chickenjoy – a piece of fried chicken that’s crispy and spicy on the outside and comes with a side of spaghetti, all covered in tomato sauce and topped with sausage slices and ground beef. It sounds like a recipe that a child would come up with, but perhaps that’s the point – a flavourbomb combination of cheap comfort foods. Chickenjoy is Jollibee’s best-selling product in every country in which it has a presence.
Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
- Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000
- Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000
- Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000
- Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000
- Senior process engineer: Dh28,000 to Dh38,000
- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
COMPANY PROFILE
● Company: Bidzi
● Started: 2024
● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid
● Based: Dubai, UAE
● Industry: M&A
● Funding size: Bootstrapped
● No of employees: Nine
More on Quran memorisation:
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More coverage from the Future Forum
Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?
The number of asylum applications in the UK has reached a new record high, driven by those illegally entering the country in small boats crossing the English Channel.
A total of 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.
Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation while their claim is assessed.
The Home Office provides the accommodation, meaning asylum seekers cannot choose where they live.
When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to hotels or large sites like former military bases.
The schedule
December 5 - 23: Shooting competition, Al Dhafra Shooting Club
December 9 - 24: Handicrafts competition, from 4pm until 10pm, Heritage Souq
December 11 - 20: Dates competition, from 4pm
December 12 - 20: Sour milk competition
December 13: Falcon beauty competition
December 14 and 20: Saluki races
December 15: Arabian horse races, from 4pm
December 16 - 19: Falconry competition
December 18: Camel milk competition, from 7.30 - 9.30 am
December 20 and 21: Sheep beauty competition, from 10am
December 22: The best herd of 30 camels
Rocketman
Director: Dexter Fletcher
Starring: Taron Egerton, Richard Madden, Jamie Bell
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
'Spies in Disguise'
Director: Nick Bruno and Troy Quane
Stars: Will Smith, Tom Holland, Karen Gillan and Roshida Jones
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
The Perfect Couple
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor
Creator: Jenna Lamia
Rating: 3/5
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The years Ramadan fell in May
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Akeed
Based: Muscat
Launch year: 2018
Number of employees: 40
Sector: Online food delivery
Funding: Raised $3.2m since inception
THE%20JERSEYS
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERed%20Jersey%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EGeneral%20Classification%2C%20sponsored%20by%20Fatima%20bint%20Mubarak%20Ladies%20Academy%3A%20Worn%20daily%2C%20starting%20from%20Stage%202%2C%20by%20the%20leader%20of%20the%20General%20Classification.%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EGreen%20Jersey%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EPoints%20Classification%2C%20sponsored%20by%20Bike%20Abu%20Dhabi%3A%20Worn%20daily%2C%20starting%20from%20Stage%202%2C%20by%20the%20fastest%20sprinter.%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EWhite%20Jersey%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EYoung%20Rider%20Classification%2C%20sponsored%20by%20Abu%20Dhabi%20360%3A%20Worn%20daily%2C%20starting%20from%20Stage%202%2C%20by%20the%20best%20young%20rider%20(U25).%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBlack%20Jersey%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EIntermediate%20Sprint%20Classification%2C%20sponsored%20by%20Experience%20Abu%20Dhabi%3A%20Worn%20daily%2C%20starting%20from%20Stage%202%2C%20by%20the%20rider%20who%20has%20gained%20most%20Intermediate%20sprint%20points.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
RESULT
Brazil 2 Croatia 0
Brazil: Neymar (69'), Firmino (90' 3)
if you go
The flights
Air Astana flies direct from Dubai to Almaty from Dh2,440 per person return, and to Astana (via Almaty) from Dh2,930 return, both including taxes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Ritz-Carlton Almaty cost from Dh1,944 per night including taxes; and in Astana the new Ritz-Carlton Astana (www.marriott) costs from Dh1,325; alternatively, the new St Regis Astana costs from Dh1,458 per night including taxes.
When to visit
March-May and September-November
Visas
Citizens of many countries, including the UAE do not need a visa to enter Kazakhstan for up to 30 days. Contact the nearest Kazakhstan embassy or consulate.
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
It Was Just an Accident
Director: Jafar Panahi
Stars: Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari, Ebrahim Azizi, Hadis Pakbaten, Majid Panahi, Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr
Rating: 4/5
NYBL PROFILE
Company name: Nybl
Date started: November 2018
Founder: Noor Alnahhas, Michael LeTan, Hafsa Yazdni, Sufyaan Abdul Haseeb, Waleed Rifaat, Mohammed Shono
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Software Technology / Artificial Intelligence
Initial investment: $500,000
Funding round: Series B (raising $5m)
Partners/Incubators: Dubai Future Accelerators Cohort 4, Dubai Future Accelerators Cohort 6, AI Venture Labs Cohort 1, Microsoft Scale-up
