Character Relationship Map: Tehran Taboo

Characters

• Babak (played by Arash Marandi) — protagonist

  Babak is a musician who has sex with Donya at an underground party. When she faces marriage and the danger of being exposed as no longer a virgin, he helps her raise money for an illicit operation to...

• Sara (played by Zar Amir Ebrahimi) — supporting

  Sara is Pari's neighbor, a pregnant woman who seeks employment despite her husband's disapproval. She becomes connected to Pari after meeting her in the apartment arranged by the judge. A sexual prank...

• Pari (played by Elmira Rafizadeh) — supporting

  Pari is a poor woman forced into prostitution while married to an imprisoned drug addict. Unable to divorce without her husband's approval, she appeals to a judge, who arranges a coercive concubine si...

• Elias (played by Bilal Yasar) — minor

  Elias is Pari's six-year-old son. He is present while Pari engages in prostitution and sex acts, directly exposing the child to the harsh consequences of her poverty, coercive marriage, and lack of le...

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Pari → Elias (Family Mother) — Pari is Elias's mother and remains responsible for him under severe economic and legal pressure.

  The plot identifies Elias as Pari's six-year-old son. Pari is shown engaging in sex work while Elias is present.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Sara → Babak (Narrative Parallel Story Figure) — Their arcs are linked structurally through the film's depiction of restrictive social conditions.

  Sara's domestic persecution and suicide are presented as a separate major thread alongside Babak's escape from the country.

• Pari → Babak (Narrative Parallel Protagonist) — Pari and Babak carry separate but thematically connected storylines about social control and taboo.

  The plot follows Pari's coercive domestic and economic situation alongside Babak's crisis involving Donya.

• Pari → Sara (Social Neighbor) — Their proximity places them within the same domestic and social environment.

  Sara is explicitly introduced as Pari's neighbor, and the two meet in the apartment connected to the judge.

Story Analysis

Parallel stories of women and men confronting legal, sexual, and economic restrictions in Tehran.

Plot Progression

1. Lives Under Constraint — Pari is forced into prostitution while caring for Elias, and her imprisoned husband blocks her attempt to divorce. Pregnant Sara seeks work despite opposition at home.
2. A Divorce Without Freedom — Pari appeals to the Islamic Revolutionary Court, but the judge replaces legal independence with a concubine arrangement. She is housed in an apartment where she meets Sara.
3. The Cost Of Purity — Babak learns that Donya is expected to appear virginal for marriage. Their effort to fund an illicit operation exposes the economic force behind the taboo.
4. Truths In The Apartment — Donya reveals to Pari that she is being sold to Dubai rather than married. Pari then uses Sara's phone for a prank call that places Sara in danger.
5. Downfall And Escape — The call is traced to Sara, who is expelled by her husband and later commits suicide. Babak flees the country as the film closes on devastating consequences.