Violent protests have been going on in Iran for a few days now. The protests started when Iran’s morality police arrested Mahsa Amini for not wearing the hijab appropriately and later, she died in the police’s custody.

Many celebrities have also joined the protest and the latest actress to join the protests is Sacred Games actor, Elnaaz Norouzi.

Actor Elnaaz Norouzi Joins Iran Protests

Joining the ongoing protest in Iran against the morality police, Norouzi shared a video on her Instagram account where she was seen stripping layers of clothes and said that women are free to choose what they want to wear.

In the caption, she wrote, “Every woman, anywhere in the world, regardless of where she is from, should have the right to wear whatever she desires and when or wherever she desires to wear it. No man nor any other woman has the right to judge her or ask her to dress otherwise.”

Norouzi titled the video “My Body, My Choice”. She began by taking off her burqa, and then other pieces of clothes until she was in a black bikini set. Throughout the video, there were variations of texts highlighting “if this is your choice, it’s ok.”

She believes that every person on this Earth has different beliefs and perspectives and they should be respected. Asserting that every woman has the right to decide for herself she wrote, “I am not promoting nudity, I am promoting freedom of choice,” she wrote.”

Who Is She?

Born in Tehran, Iran, Elnaaz Norouzi is an Indian film actress and model. Before starting her career in films, she pursued an acting course at New York Film Academy. She started her career at the age of 14 and has worked with international brands like Dior and Lacoste.

She started her debut in Indian films in 2017 with a Punjabi movie “Maan Jao Na”. In 2018, she started working in “Sacred Games”, Netflix India’s first original series, along with actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui. In 2019, she starred in Kunal Khemu’s “Abhay”, which was broadcasted on Zee 5.

Elnaaz Norouzi in Sacred Games

She was also seen in music videos such as “Made In India” and “Nagin Jaise Kamar Hila”. Not only this but she also worked on ad campaigns alongside prominent Bollywood actors, Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan.

Her Past Experience

In a conversation with host Siddharth Kannan, she shared one of her past experiences with the morality police. She said Mahsa Amini was captured on the road and said that it happened to her as well in Tehran.


Also Read: Why Is Iranian Model Mandana Karimi Protesting In Mumbai?


“This happens to women every day. What happened to her could have happened to me as well, or can happen to any other woman tomorrow. So we need to change something,” she stated.

She shared that only her family knew about this incident until she openly spoke about it on her Instagram account. She recalled that the morality police took her to an unknown location and shared how she managed to free herself.

“I went to this ‘re-education center,’ they call it so. I didn’t know where it was, I didn’t have the address. They take your phone. Mahsa must have resisted, and they must have hit her head so much that she went into a coma and died. (At the re-education center), They take all of your information, they take your ID. They take pictures of you like you are in a prison. They made me write my name, and take pictures from all the angles in the clothes that you had on. Then they tell you- if we catch you again with the wrong type of clothing, it won’t be this easy,” she recalls.  

She was able to get out of prison because she played smart. She didn’t give both her phones and used the one with her to contact her parents and inform them about the issue, who later took help from their contacts to bring Elnaaz out.

Protests have been going on in Iran for several days and Iranian women staying abroad have not shied away from protesting against what was happening in their country. Some have cut their hair, while some have burnt their burqas.  


Image Credits: Google Images

Feature image designed by Saudamini Seth

Sources: NDTV, Her Zindagi, Hindustan Times 

Find the blogger: Palak Dogra 

This post is tagged under: Elnaaz Norouzi, actress, Iran protests, anti-hijab protests, Iran, Iranian women, hijab, dress code, police, burqa, protests, Tehran, hijab burning

Disclaimer: We do not hold any right, copyright over any of the images used, these have been taken from Google. In case of credits or removal, the owner may kindly mail us.


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