Director: Ali Mollagholi Poor
Cast: Akbar Abdi, Karim Akbari Mobarakeh, Afsaneh Chehreh Azad, Negar Javaherian, Vahid Nafar
Ghandoon'e Jahizieh is a 2015 Iranian drama film directed by Ali Mollagholi Poor, starring Akbar Abdi and an ensemble cast of notable Iranian actors. Running 93 minutes, it tells the intimate story of a couple navigating housing insecurity and the quiet pressures of everyday life in Iran.
What is Ghandoon'e Jahizieh about?
A couple — the husband and his wife Masoumeh — have been renting a modest home together, a place that has quietly become the center of their shared life. When their lease expires and the landlord demands more than they can pay, they find themselves at a crossroads: leave the home they have grown attached to, or fight to hold onto the life they have built within those walls. The film unfolds as a slow, observational portrait of their negotiations, arguments, and small moments of tenderness, revealing how economic strain tests even the most ordinary relationships. Without melodrama, it draws viewers into the texture of working-class Iranian domestic life.
Cast & crew
Akbar Abdi, one of Iran's most beloved and versatile comedic and dramatic actors, anchors the film with his characteristic warmth. He is joined by Karim Akbari Mobarakeh, Afsaneh Chehreh Azad, Negar Javaherian, Vahid Nafar, Mostafa Sasani, and Saber Abar — a cast that brings genuine authenticity to the story's everyday domestic setting.
Context & significance
For Iranian diaspora viewers, Ghandoon'e Jahizieh carries a particular resonance: the anxiety of housing insecurity, the weight of social obligations encoded in the dowry tradition, and the quiet dignity of working-class families are themes deeply familiar to those who grew up in Iran or whose families lived through the economic pressures of the 2010s. Director Mollagholi Poor works in a realist tradition rooted in Iranian social cinema, prioritizing human behavior over plot mechanics. The title itself — referring to the trousseau chest — signals how material objects carry emotional and cultural meaning far beyond their monetary value, a tension at the heart of the film.
Where & how to watch
Ghandoon'e Jahizieh is available to stream on K-Time in its original Persian audio. Watch on your browser, TV, or phone — no VPN needed, no geo-blocking, and no extra download required. Start your membership and cancel anytime.