No one is wrong: Director Arun Gopalan on exploring Israel-Iran conflict in ‘Tehran’

In his maiden directorial “Tehran”, Arun Gopalan explores the geopolitical tension between Israel and Iran, and he says the aim is not to dwell on the politics but to spotlight the people who bear the burden of the conflict.

The film stars John Abraham as Special Cell Officer Rajeev Kumar, who is thrust into a covert operation following a devastating bombing aimed at an Israeli diplomat in New Delhi.

This event, inspired by the real-life incident of the 2012 bomb explosion, becomes the backdrop for the film’s narrative, which then unfolds into a high-stakes chase across borders, delving into espionage, shifting alliances, and the human cost of geopolitical conflicts.

The director said when the producers approached him to direct “Tehran”, he was instantly captivated by the idea of making a film about two warring parties with India as the battleground.

“It’s not about the scale of the conflict and ‘Tehran’ sounds really big. When I was first told about it, I started thinking of visuals of shooting in Tehran, Delhi, and action beats in Abu Dhabi. So the texture was great, the whole landscape was beautiful,” Gopalan told PTI in an interview.

But then he looked at the bigger picture.

“I realised I was fooling myself; it’s not the scale of the conflict but the resilience of those who carry the weight of this on their shoulders, it’s about these people. It’s not about the countries involved in it, no one is wrong.”

The film, which made its debut on streaming service ZEE5 on August 15 and recently became available on Netflix, couldn’t be more appropriate as hostilities between Iran and Israel escalated recently.

In recent months, their long-simmering rivalry intensified into direct confrontations across the Middle East, making the film’s storyline eerily relevant to real-world geopolitics.

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“It was supposed to be released earlier, but the timing one can’t complain about, because we didn’t have to educate people about where Iran is, who Israel is, and what the difference is. Why are they fighting a war? That story is now clear to the whole world — they’re at war. Two or three years back, that wouldn’t have been easy.”

Working with Abraham turned out to be a great collaborative process, says the director, who credited the actor for giving him some valuable suggestions.

“There were multiple instances where he would just come and say (let’s do this), like the music part. He wanted to be involved at various levels. It was amazing to see an actor who was so involved, and wanting to see the film shape up well.”

“Tehran” also stars Manushi Chhillar, Alyy Khan, and Neeru Bajwa in pivotal roles.

The director said he is working on his upcoming movie, “Malakal”, featuring Abraham once again. Set against the backdrop of turmoil in South Sudan, the movie will focus on a group of Indian soldiers who were stranded and caught in the crossfires.

“(It’s) a very engaging story and it’s ready. There’s another script called ‘Tariq’, which is completed. It’s about a person who is arrested for wrong reasons, he was guilty until proven innocent.

“So, he was in prison and then the officer who caught him fights for him and sets him free. It’s a very moving story and it’s a true story. ‘Tariq’ doesn’t have too much action, but it is engaging. It’s a different kind of procedural (film),” Gopalan said.