Is Yalda based on a real story or a real TV show in Iran?

The film is fictional but inspired by a real Iranian television format in which convicted individuals can appeal for public clemency. Bakhshi uses that premise as a dramatic framework, not a documentary record of a specific case.

Koja bebinam filme Yalda online?

You can watch Yalda on K-Time — stream it on the web at ktime.app, on your smart TV, or on your Android phone. No VPN is required, and you can cancel your subscription anytime.

Does Yalda have English subtitles?

Yes. Yalda streams on K-Time with English subtitles alongside the original Persian audio. There is no Persian dub; the film's dialogue is entirely in Farsi, which adds to its authenticity.

What is the significance of the Yalda night setting in this film?

Shab-e Yalda, the winter solstice, symbolizes light defeating darkness. Bakhshi uses it to frame a story about whether mercy or judgment prevails, making the ancient celebration an ironic backdrop for a modern media trial.

Yalda

Name: Yalda
Genre: Drama, Family, Social
Released: 2022
Duration: 83 min
Cast: Fereshteh Hosseini, Bahram Afshar, Sadaf Asgari, Behnaz Jafari, Babak Karimi

Director: Masoud Bakhshi

Cast: Fereshteh Hosseini, Bahram Afshar, Sadaf Asgari, Behnaz Jafari, Babak Karimi

Yalda is a 2022 Iranian drama film directed by Masoud Bakhshi, set almost entirely inside a live television studio on the longest night of the year. The film probes the collision between traditional concepts of mercy, modern media spectacle, and a young woman's desperate bid to survive a death sentence.

What is Yalda about?

Maryam, a young woman convicted of killing her much older husband Nasser, is brought to a live TV studio on Yalda night — the winter solstice, a celebration of light over darkness. The show's premise is stark: Nasser's daughter Mona holds the power to grant or withhold forgiveness, which under Iranian law determines whether Maryam lives or dies. Cameras roll, the audience votes, and the pressure from producers, studio guests, and the watching public keeps ratcheting upward. As the broadcast unfolds, loyalties shift, hidden histories surface, and the line between entertainment and life-or-death judgment blurs in ways neither woman anticipated. The drama strips two strangers down to their rawest choices in front of millions.

Cast & crew

Director Masoud Bakhshi brings a taut, single-location sensibility to the material. Fereshteh Hosseini carries the film as the condemned Maryam, her performance calibrated between fragility and resolve. Sadaf Asgari plays Mona, the bereaved daughter who holds the decisive vote. Behnaz Jafari and Babak Karimi round out the ensemble as television personalities whose agendas complicate every moment on air.

Context & significance

Yalda night — Shab-e Yalda — is one of the most deeply felt celebrations in Iranian culture, a time for family, pomegranates, poetry, and the warmth of togetherness against winter darkness. Bakhshi sets a story of judicial mercy and public spectacle against that backdrop deliberately: the contrast between an ancient ritual of communal light and the cold mechanics of a televised clemency show is the film's central tension. For diaspora viewers, the setting will feel immediately familiar even as the drama unsettles it. The film also invites reflection on how media, justice, and tradition intersect in contemporary Iranian society — themes that resonate far beyond any single night.

Where & how to watch

Yalda is available on K-Time with original Persian audio and English subtitles. Watch on the web, on your TV, or on your phone — no VPN needed, no geo-blocking, and no extra download required. Start and cancel anytime.