The Art of Living in Danger

A personal quest exposing domestic violence and women’s rights in Iran

The Art of Living in Danger follows filmmaker Mina Keshavarz as she uncovers a painful family secret about the suicide of her grandmother, Nurijan. Addressing her grandmother through a reflective narration, Keshavarz transforms a deeply personal story into a broader examination of domestic violence and women’s rights in Iran.

For more than forty years, Iranian women have struggled for equal rights. The family law reform that once offered hope in 1974 was abolished after the Iranian Revolution of 1978 and 1979, leaving many women exposed to legal discrimination and vulnerable to domestic violence. Against this backdrop, Keshavarz joins a group of female lawyers and activists who are working to introduce legislation that would criminalise domestic violence and strengthen legal protection for women.

Through interviews, testimonies, and collected stories of abuse, these activists gather evidence to support a carefully drafted bill aimed at securing equal treatment under the law. Their work reveals the scale of the problem and the determination of women who refuse to remain silent.

At the same time, Keshavarz’s intimate dialogue with her grandmother becomes a symbolic thread throughout the film. Nurijan’s life and death, long hidden within the family, represent the untold experiences of countless women whose suffering remained unspoken for generations.

Blending personal memory with social investigation, the documentary captures both the vulnerability and resilience of Iranian women. The Art of Living in Danger becomes a powerful record of their ongoing fight for dignity, safety, and legal recognition.