Iranian Actress Banned For Nude Photo
An Iranian actress has been banned from her home country after she posed nude for a French magazine.
The black and white photograph shows Golshifteh Farahani topless, but covering her breasts with her hands.
To see the photo that offended Iran click here.
"I was told by a Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guide official that Iran does not need any actors or artists. You may offer your artistic services somewhere else", Farahani told The Telegraph after the photograph was published in France's Madame Le Figaro magazine.
Farahani, who was the first Iranian-based actress to star in a Hollywood film since the country's 1979 revolution, is a major star in Iran but is best known abroad for playing opposite Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe in "Body of Lies."
The photograph, which was posted on her Facebook fan page, drew polarizing responses.
"We have to be open minded but not with opened dresses . She sold her body as an Icon," a commenter named Sathiajith wrote.
"I think you are a brave woman Golshifteh and hope you will get the respect from your country that you deserve," a commenter named Chris wrote.
This isn't the first time Farahani's career has upset authorities in Iran. The actress said an Iranian court weighed whether she broke a law by making a movie without permission, she told the New York Daily News at the 2008 premiere of "Body of Lies," causing the actress and her husband to move to Paris.
"[Iranian officials] took my passport. The intelligence service interrogated me several times. In the end, the judge said, 'We have to see the movie and then decide what we're going to do with you,'" she told the newspaper.