Iranian actress Mandana Karimi, who has lived in India for many years and carved a career in modelling and films — including titles like Kyaa Kool Hain Hum 3, Bhaag Johnny and Main Aur Charles — as well as reality TV appearances on Bigg Boss 9 and Lock Upp, has announced plans to leave the country and return to her homeland after the recent death of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
In a candid interview with Bollywood Hungama, Mandana said that she is ready to move back the moment the current regime in Iran falls. “The moment they announce that this regime is gone, I will go. Anyway, my bags are packed, and I am leaving India as well. That is the plan,” she said, adding that she feels like she is “breaking up with India.”
Mandana reflected on how deeply tied she is to India, noting that she came here when she was very young. “India has given me everything: my modelling career, my acting career, the love that I got, and the friends that I have,” she said. Yet, despite these bonds, she believes she no longer has a voice in the country. “I feel India has betrayed me in a way,” Mandana explained.
She also spoke about how her outspoken views on Iran’s political situation have affected her personal life in Mumbai. Over the past two months, she said she has seldom felt as homesick or lonely, even though she has many friends in the city. Her participation in protests and open discussions about Iran’s issues, she added, has cost her many “so-called” friends. “In these past two months, I have never felt so homesick and lonely in Bombay,” she said.
Mandana’s social media accounts are filled with posts supporting her homeland, urging people to back Iran and highlight the crisis there.
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