Espionage Series ‘Tehran’ Delves Into Mental Illness Subplot

Actress Shila Vosough Ommi fled her native Iran as a young woman after the 1979 revolution and later settled in the United States with her family. Although she cannot return to her homeland, Ommi’s professional career as a storyteller has been to remind other members of the Iranian diaspora of the rich culture and heritage of her homeland.

The Los Angeles resident currently holds fourth billing on the hit Apple TV+ series. Tehran, an espionage thriller that has been compared to 24 and The Americans. The plot centers on Tamar Rabinyan (Niv Sultan), a young Jewish woman born in Iran but raised in Israel who is a Mossad agent and expert computer hacker stationed undercover in the Iranian capital.

Last season, Tamar’s mission was to disable Iranian air defenses to allow the Israeli Air Force to bomb an Iranian nuclear power plant to prevent that country, Israel’s sworn enemy, from obtaining an atomic bomb. Ommi plays Naahid, the wife of Faraz Kamaali (Shaun Toub), head of investigations for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, who is on Tamar’s trail. The Kamaalis’ situation becomes complicated when Naahid requires a life-saving operation in the West, and the Mossad arranges for her to be smuggled out of the country in exchange for Faraz’s cooperation in not capturing Tamar.

Season 2, which premiered a few weeks ago, picks up after the bombing, where one of the Israeli warplanes was shot down and is in custody. A dangerous and complicated rescue mission is launched, again utilizing Tamar’s remarkable hacking skills, but also exposing the young spy and her boyfriend, Milad (Shervin Alenabi) to possible capture (and almost certain death) at the hands of the Revolutionary Guard.

Recovering at home, Naahid de Ommi suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and agoraphobia. The ever-attentive Mossad, hoping to use this to their advantage, manipulates Faraz, who has returned to his investigative work after sustaining an injury, into getting his wife to undergo therapy with Marjan Muntazemi, a U.S.-born psychologist. Great Britain, which also works undercover. for Mossad. The stakes are even higher this season, as Faraz continues to try to evade capture, and ends up losing members of his family in the process.

Created by Moshe Zonder, Dana Eden and Maor Kohn, the action-packed and suspenseful series is directed by Daniel “Danny” Syrkin. new episodes of Tehran are available on Apple TV+ on Fridays.

Ommi spoke on Zoom about going back to Tehran for Season 2 and be part of a multinational cast and crew on a series that has become a favorite with critics and viewers alike.

Angela Dawson: Did you get any hints from Daniel Syrkin, the director, about what’s in store for your character in season 2?

Shila Vosough Ommi: I had a bit of a clue. We shot season 1 before the pandemic. We finished filming in December 2019. During the pandemic everything stopped but the writers continued to write. Danny, who directs all the episodes and is part of the story development, told me on the phone that they were thinking about making my character suffer some deep and dark psychological trauma. So, he wanted me to start researching things like agoraphobia, PTSD, so I started researching and working before I even read the episodes.

Dawson: A lot of people, post-pandemic, are still anxious to go out and be in situations with a lot of people, so Naahid’s phobias are pretty relatable.

ommi: Yes.

Dawson: You also created a public service announcement for the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health on anxiety, which is a hot topic right now. Is mental health awareness one of his personal favorite causes?

ommi: It is something that interests me a lot. For Iranians in exile and even those still living in Iran, the 1979 revolution was really difficult for many of us. Speaking for myself, hearing every day when I was 10 about another friend of my father being tortured or executed, it did me a number. So PTSD and trauma have been very important to me. One of my best friends is a therapist (Iranian-American) who works with the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health. He was tasked with making these public service announcements and reached out to me for help.

The public service announcement you saw was one that I created with my film partner and we made a different version for my friend. Anxiety is a scary feeling, so I wanted to create that on camera so people would take it seriously. The stigma for the Iranian-American population is still there, which is why the county is promoting these public service announcements and movies. There was a movie I directed that was commissioned by the county for the Iranian-American population to overcome stigma and make it easier for them to see a therapist if they feel like things are wrong.

Dawson: Speaking of therapists, going back to the show, you have several scenes this season with Glenn Close, who plays your therapist. What was it like working with her? How’s her Farsi?

ommi: She is doing a great job with her Farsi. He was so proud of her and inspired by her. I don’t want to say “at her age” for her, but it’s hard to learn another language as an adult. Simply incredible. I was beyond excited to work with her.

I do a lot of prep, especially for this role, but once I got the scripts, and I’m memorizing and prepping and creating the moments, it was stressful knowing that I’m creating the moments that I’m going to be doing with Glenn Close, who’s one of my actresses. favourites.

Dawson: Did he want to practice Farsi with you?

ommi: There was no time to do any practice, or any rehearsal really because it was during COVID. It was very go, go, go.

Dawson: Since you filmed the show in Athens, Greece, what was the COVID situation like when you were working? Were the streets empty?

ommi: People were masked but the streets were not deserted. People were in the streets, but if you wanted to go into any restaurant, they asked for vaccination cards, so you practically had to wear a mask. It was difficult during the summer. Summer in Athens is very hot and when we were shooting during the summer there were some (wild) fires nearby so the air quality was really bad.

Glenn and I were shooting most of our scenes, except for the ones we shot outdoors, at Naahid’s house, and we couldn’t turn on the air conditioning because of the noise it made. We were wearing a full hijab and even when they covered us with that, you couldn’t wait to take it off because it was so hot.

My heart goes out to our wonderful crew, most of them Greeks and many Israelis, due to the situation of the filming. Having to be in such heat in such a confined space and be masked was uncomfortable.

Dawson: Is there anything you can say about the upcoming season 2 finale or if there will be a season 3?

ommi: When I got to the end of reading Episode 7 (the penultimate), my mouth literally dropped. There are many twists and turns. I can tell you that Naahid kicks some butt this season, but that’s about all I can say. If you find out if there is going to be a season 3 please let me know. (She laughs.)

Dawson: You and Shaun Toub have worked together before, as well as two seasons now of Tehran. How do you explain your chemistry?

ommi: I think the chemistry is there because we are very good friends and we really encourage each other. Our chemistry started when we played another husband and wife couple on another Apple TV+ show called little americaan anthology show about immigrants living in the US We play Iranian immigrants who live with our son.

The day before we were supposed to start filming our episode, I had an accident where I thought my foot was broken. I was afraid to tell the production because I thought they would replace me with another actress. Shaun was worried about me. He came to visit me and was very worried about me, and he created a beautiful bond and forged our friendship. In fact, it was Shaun who suggested me for the role of Naahid Kaamali in Tehran.

Dawson: I read that you had some trepidation going into the first season of Tehran given the political nature of the show. Did you feel more relaxed going into the second season knowing that the public and critics welcomed the first?

ommi: Yes absolutely. I had seen how season 1 had played out. This political game between Israel and Tehran is just a backdrop for a wonderful espionage thriller, a very entertaining story, and the fact that all the characters are so nuanced and three dimensional. There are no sides taken at all.

I wouldn’t have been able to play it if they were showing Iran in a negative light because I’m Iranian-American and I owe my acting skills to the Iranian theater audience. For 20 years, I have been honing my skills on stage doing plays for the Iranian diaspora. My fears were dispelled even before we did the first season.

Daniel Syrkin had Shaun and I over for dinner one night and told me what an amazing character Naahid is and how deep she is, what a deep thinker she is, and she’s intricately involved in the plot. She is not just an ornamental wife. So that helped. I also saw how much she loves and appreciates Iranians, so I knew Iranians weren’t going to be frowned upon.

Dawson: On a lighter note, I noticed on your Instagram that you have chickens.

ommi: Yes. I have one that is 13 years old. His name is Tara. Hens usually only lay eggs for about four or five years, but during the pandemic, during the period when there were few cars on the road and the air quality improved, she started laying eggs again at the age of 11. . It’s unheard of at the time. years.

I felt that something special happened during the pandemic when human activity stopped, air pollution and noise pollution stopped: nature feels it. It gave me hope that there is a way for nature to return and the environment to heal.

Dawson: What are you working on right now?

ommi: There are a couple of streaming platforms with TV series coming out that I will join.