When Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the Shah of Iran, was overthrown during the 1979 Iranian Revolution — also known as the Islamic Revolution — it marked the end of monarchy in Iran and the fall of the Pahlavi dynasty. Widespread public discontent with the Shah’s rule sparked the uprising, paving the way for the formation of the Islamic Republic of Iran under Ruhollah Khomeini.
Many prominent figures — including politicians, poets, activists, writers, and students — lost their lives during the revolution. Iranian photographer Azadeh Akhlaghi’s photo series ‘By An Eyewitness’, through 17 staged photographs, reconstructed the tragic deaths of these individuals. The series is part of the exhibition ‘A Rising Tide: Women Artists from the Alkazi Collection’, on view at Delhi’s Art Heritage Gallery until November 18.
Reviving the uncaptured
After completing her master’s degree in computer science in Melbourne, Akhlaghi returned to Tehran at 26 and started working as an assistant director to Iranian auteur Abbas Kiarostami. And soon enough, the young photographer realised her love for the camera. “I started making documentaries and short films, and that’s when I realised I was actually drawn to photography,” she recalls.
Akhlaghi’s photography reimagines and recreates the scenes that a camera could not capture. “All these tragic deaths happened when the camera was not present to capture the moment. So I had to reconstruct that history,” she explains, speaking at the event, ‘On History Making’, in conversation with historian Aparna Vaidik. The event, held at Triveni Kala Sangam recently, featured discussion on Akhlaghi’s works, and the process behind different projects.
Every detail matters
The 38-year-old photographer’s process of capturing photos is quite unusual. After an in-depth study, Akhlaghi interacts with the people — including friends and families — associated with certain events. With actors clad in suitable costumes, the photograph is then staged like a film set. While speaking of an upcoming project, which took over 12 years to create, Akhlaghi stresses how every detail — from the colour of a bedsheet to the shade of a blood stain — is carefully taken into account.
The photographer recalls spending hours studying old texts and jotting down notes whenever she found something useful. The series is a result of extensive reading through archival notes, books, and personal conversations with a number of people. For instance, drawing from the book, Four Freedom Poets: A Study On The Poets Of Patriotism And Democracy In Iran, written by Mohammad Ali Sepanlu, Akhlaghi recreated the assassination of the poet, Mirzadeh Eshghi.
In the photograph, Eshghi lies on the floor of his yard, bleeding after being shot by an assassin who has already fled. A neighbour’s servant manages to catch the accomplice just in time, while others stand on their rooftops, watching in shock and disbelief. Eshghi died in a military hospital at the age of 31, and, years later, it was revealed that the assassin himself was crushed to death when the ceiling of a pub collapsed.
A brutal history
Speaking about a larger installation, 'Mother Of Tabriz' from her upcoming project, Akhlaghi says the photograph has used the 1911 Russian invasion of the Iranian city, Tabriz, as a reference. Eight people who resisted were publicly executed by Russian troops on January 1, 1912 — the day of Ashura, the 10th day of Muharram, or the first day of the Islamic calendar.
“Many intellectuals and nationalists were killed," she adds. Thus, the title, 'Mother Of Tabriz', is based on the story of a mother whose two sons were executed. "She went mad with grief; she couldn’t believe it had happened.” Akhlaghi’s next project, which will comprise 16 large-scale photographs, including the 'Mother Of Tabriz', will have its first showing at the Peabody Museum, Harvard University, in May 2026, followed by an exhibition at Art Heritage Gallery in Delhi next year.
Interestingly, Akhlaghi makes sure that she is a part of each work of herself — portraying a different character each time. Although most of her works are born out of grief, tragedy and deadly accounts, the upcoming project will also contain “pieces of joy”, she notes. Akhlaghi’s works, she hopes, will tell the untold, make history tangible, and keep the stories alive.