“He knows best that we pulled him out of the river, brought him out, and brought him into our home…” For many Iranians, the name “Iraj” immediately evokes the famous soundtrack of the film Ganj-e Qarun (Qarun’s Treasure). Like numerous Iranian films of that golden era, Iraj’s iconic voice resonated through the screen, lip-synced by silver-screen legend Mohammad Ali Fardin. The unmatched synergy between Iraj’s powerful vocals and Fardin’s charismatic on-screen presence drew millions to theaters across the country.
Hossein Khajeh Amiri, universally known by his artistic pseudonym “Iraj,” passed away on Wednesday, August 12, at the age of 94. Following the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Iraj, like many of his peers, was largely denied opportunities to perform publicly or take the stage.
When he did attempt to return to music, heavy state restrictions followed. In 2014, Iraj and singer Amir Ehsan Fadaei released the collaborative album Man o Ostad (My Master and I). Their inclusion of a cover of the hit song Ganj-e Qarun resulted in work bans and legal trouble. Fadaei told the Bani Film newspaper at the time: “After the release of Ganj-e Qarun on the album, multiple problems arose for Mr. Khajeh Amiri and me, including two days I spent in custody.” Fadaei explained that despite securing official Ministry of Culture licenses for all tracks, authorities cited the unauthorized broadcasting of the album’s promotional teaser on the satellite channel Manoto, which had simply taken the clip from YouTube, as the pretext for suppression. Fadaei noted that Iraj’s vocal tracks were subsequently erased from state television broadcast credits for several joint television series as well.
