When most people think of Iran, the images that come to mind are of grand mosques, ornate Persian gardens, ancient bazaars, and a civilisation stretching back thousands of years.
A Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu, somewhere along the Persian Gulf coast, probably doesn’t make that list.
And yet, there it is.
Standing in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas, a compact but striking structure built from coral stone and lime has been holding its ground since 1892.
It’s witnessed the rise and fall of dynasties, a revolution, geopolitical upheaval, and more than a century of history that neither India nor Iran tends to bring up in polite conversation.
The temple has come into the mainstream spotlight when one of Bollywood’s most iconic actors decided to share a simple Instagram reel.
What Did Amitabh Bachchan Share?
On May 17, 2026, veteran actor Amitabh Bachchan shared a video on his Instagram account featuring the interior and exterior of the Vishnu Temple in Bandar Abbas.
In his caption, Bachchan wrote: “The Ancient Hindu Vishnu Temple in Abbas Bandar, Iran .. Built in 1892 during the Qajar era, it was constructed for Hindu traders from India working in the city .. the song .. in Persian.”
Interestingly, the reel was set to a Persian devotional song called Ey Rama Jan (also referred to in some reports as Ae Vishnu Jaan), sung by artist Fazina Kishan, a choice that itself added a quiet, poetic layer to the post, the sound of Hindu devotion filtered through the Persian language.
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The post spread quickly across platforms. Within less than 24 hours, it had accumulated over 34,000 likes on Instagram alone, with the numbers continuing to climb as it was shared and reshared across X/Twitter and WhatsApp.
Comment sections overflowed with reactions ranging from genuine surprise to quiet admiration. “No words to express, thank you for sharing,” wrote one user.
Another responded: “Heard this song on YouTube recently and instantly fell in love with it. Always knew Persian is a beautiful language, but hearing it blended with Hindu devotion makes it even more special.”
What Is This Temple?
The temple referred to in the video is called the Lord Vishnu Ji Temple, located in Bandar Abbas, Iran.
Bandar Abbas is the capital of Iran’s Hormozgan Province and sits right at the edge of the Strait of Hormuz, one of the most strategically sensitive waterways on the planet, through which an enormous share of the world’s oil and maritime trade passes.
The location of this temple is important, since it is believed to stand for the long-held trade relationships that India and Iran have shared for centuries now.
Ships from the Indian subcontinent came and went regularly, carrying textiles, spices, and goods that found ready markets in the Persian Gulf region.
According to Iran’s official news agency IRNA, the temple was formally constructed in 1310 AH, which corresponds to 1892 in the Gregorian calendar, during the reign of Mohammad Hassan Khan Sa’d-ol-Malek, the local administrative ruler of Bandar Abbas at the time.
The project was a collective undertaking, funded not by any king or royal patron but entirely by the Indian merchant community itself. These were traders who had established themselves financially in the city and came together to pool resources for a place of worship.
The overall design is a hybrid of Indian and Persian architectural traditions. The central structure is a square hall topped with a prominent white dome. In most Indian Hindu temples, you would expect a towering shikhara, the curved, vertical spire that rises over the sanctum.
Here, the dome clearly echoes the forms of Islamic religious architecture found across Iran, a visual adaptation by builders who were working with local craftsmen, local knowledge, and a local eye.
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One particularly clever design feature: the structure was oriented so that natural sunlight would fall directly into the inner sanctum throughout the day, eliminating the need for artificial lighting and creating a luminous atmosphere in the prayer space.
An adjoining room has been converted into a small museum, housing artefacts connected to the temple’s history and the community that built it. IRNA reported that the temple is a registered national heritage monument in Iran, meaning it carries formal legal protection as a historic site.
The interior of the temple includes statues of both Lord Vishnu and the Buddha. There are also several paintings on the walls and corridors depicting scenes like Lord Krishna playing the flute, with Radha seated beside him and more.
Image Credits: Google Images
Sources: The Indian Express, Business Today, India Today
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