how Iran looked like before Iranian Revolution

Whenever Westerners hear the term “Iran,” images of veiled women, burning American flags, and enraged masses singing nationalist chants come to mind. Those who remember Tehran in the 1960s and 1970s, on the other hand, paint a very different picture for themselves.

Iran’s capital, Tehran, was one of the world’s most culturally advanced cities prior to the 1979 Islamic revolution. “Before the revolution, Iran was the most cultured and multiethnic country in the area,” the New York Times said. There was a remarkable development in the arts, literature, cinema, and television industries. Residents travelled to ski resorts around Mount Elbrus for enjoyment, and both men and women were able to get an education. The Shah’s rule generated social and economic inequities that resulted in some people being destitute and others being extremely affluent.

Such disparities resulted in the overthrow of the Shah’s administration and the Islamic revolution of 1979, the ramifications of which continue to shape the country’s trajectory to this day. Here are some images of Iran from a time when skirts were shorter, dances were more vibrant, and the United States was not the number one opponent.

1. Aerial view of Valiasr Square in 1971

Aerial view of Valiasr Square in 1971
Valiasr Square

2. Coed Education and miniskirt was not issue

In 1971, students in Tehran University’s park. Women were first accepted to university in 1934, many years before the United States. Women can still be educated after the revolution, but they must do so in separate rooms. Miniskirts are no longer a topic of conversation.

Despite this openness, just 35% of women in Tehran were educated in 1977. Students at a university in 1970. Although religious studies were a popular subject, students also attended lectures in mathematics, astronomy, medicine, and literature in great numbers.

The University of Tehran currently has around 35,000 full-time and part-time students. Students in the medical field. The university now has 17,000 handwritten volumes in Farsi, Arabic, and Turkish in its library.

Coed Education and miniskirt was not issue
students attended lectures in mathematics, astronomy, medicine, and literature
Men and women could enjoy company in iran in 1970s
Men and women could enjoy company
Miniskirt was not an issue for Iranians before 1971
Miniskirt was not an issue for Iranians before 1971
Gateway to the University of Tehran in 1971. After the revolution, the university courtyard is used for mass prayers on Fridays.
Gateway to the University of Tehran in 1971. After the revolution, the university courtyard is used for mass prayers on Fridays.

In 1971, an operating room in a Tehran hospital. By the conclusion of the Shah’s reign, just 15,000 doctors were treating Iran’s 34 million people, resulting in massive medical problems, particularly outside of big cities like Tehran.

3. Busy Roads with Lots of cars

Tehran, fashionable American automobiles were common
fashionable American automobiles were common

On the streets of Tehran, fashionable American automobiles were common. Visiting Iran’s capital was considered as prestigious as visiting New York or Paris at the time.

Busy road nearby Valiasr Street
Busy road nearby Valiasr Street

In 1960, Vali-Asr Street was renamed Pahlavi Street in honor of the royal dynasty. This tree-lined boulevard is one of Tehran’s busiest.

4. Modern Hotels

In 1961, the Hilton Hotel in Tehran was built. It is now known as the Esteghlal International Hotel. An old man from Iran claims that in the 1960s, people could come here for a walk with friends, but when he returned to the city in 2001, he saw that the building was surrounded by other industrial structures.

Hilton Hotel in Tehran
Hilton Hotel in Tehran later renamed as the Esteghlal International Hotel

5. Busiest airport on Western Asia’s place

Mehrabad International Airport
Mehrabad International Airport

In 1971, Mehrabad International Airport was built. Mehrabad was meant to be one of Western Asia’s busiest and most advanced airports, but the revolution drastically cut visitor traffic. Popular jazz cafes were established in Mehrabad in the 1960s, when air travel was still a novelty for most people and airports were intrigued by their uniqueness. Imam Khomeini Foreign Airport now accepts most international aircraft.

6. Eiffel Tower of Tehran

Eiffel Tower of Tehran
Eiffel Tower of Tehran

During construction in 1966, the monarchs’ remembrance tower in Tehran (which was renamed the Freedom Tower, or Azadi Tower, in 1979). Farrokh refers to the landmark as the “Eiffel Tower of Tehran” because it grew firmly identified with the city through time.

7. Women can be beauty pageant

Shahla Wahabjadi, "Miss Iran" in 1967
Shahla Wahabjadi, “Miss Iran” in 1967

Shahla Wahabjadi, “Miss Iran” in 1967. The beauty pageant took place at the Hilton Hotel, where candidates competed for the title among most beautiful girl in the nation.

8. Elite lifestyle activities like western had

Ski resort Shemshak in 1971.
Ski resort Shemshak in 1971.
Ski resort Abali in 1966.
Ski resort Abali in 1966.
In the 1970s, an Iranian Pepsi-Cola cap. it was assumed by Iranians that Tehranians have always thought their Pepsi was better than the American version.
In the 1970s, an Iranian Pepsi-Cola cap. it was assumed by Iranians that Tehranians have always thought their Pepsi was better than the American version.

9. Iranians can be rock star

Music on television and the radio broadcast has been prohibited in Iran since the revolution in 1979. Former Ayatollah Khomeini equated music to opium, claiming that it rendered the intellect inert and meaningless.

"Black Cats" is an Iranian rock-jazz band
“Black Cats” is an Iranian rock-jazz band
Girls at Radio office, 1970s
Girls at Radio office, 1970s

In the early 1970s, there was an Iranian radio station. Rezo Ghotbi, a close cousin of Iran’s former Queen, founded the state broadcasting firm “National Television and Radio of Iran” in 1971. Gotbi is currently based in the United States of America.

10. Dance, Movies and parties

In 1971, the Golden City Cinema was opened. The title of the film Arabesque, starring Gregory Peck and Sophia Loren, is displayed on the poster.

Golden City Cinema, tehran
Golden City Cinema
Bikini in poster of Iranian movie in 1970s
Bikini in poster of Iranian movie in 1970s
when the hizab law was not in effect
when the hizab law was not in effect
Dance parties in 1970s
Dance parties in 1970s

Is there a kink in Tehran? In the early 1960s, the social elite of Tehran society removed their shoes and danced to rock and roll.

11. Stylish apparel for men and women

Dress poster 1970s
Dress poster 1970s
Modern Mother in mall and his kid 1970s
Modern Mother in mall and his kid 1970s

In 1971, a mother and her son were photographed in the children’s department of a department store in Tehran. The Kourosh department store offered a luxury restaurant on the top floor in addition to stylish apparel for men and women.


manish janardhan iit mbm

About the Author

Manish love to write and he is a Civil Servant. Users can follow Manish on Instagram ankita mehra instagram