The White Balloon

The White Balloon
Directed by Jafar Panahi
Plot Summary:-
7 year old Razieh is hell bent on buying a better fat gold-fish for Nou-Roz (March 21st-Iranian new year). The gold-fish which are there at their tank are thin small ones and Razieh wants the one she has seen with a shop-keeper is beautiful with multiple fins and seems like dancing through the water. Through her brother’s help she finally coaxes the money out of her reluctant mother who gives out her last 500 tomans. Grabbing the money, Razieh rushes out to the streets on down-town Tehran to buy her coveted gold-fish. The busy and crowded meandering by-lanes of Teheran through which Razieh travels to buy her gold-fish is full of dangers for the little girl with 500 tomans. She is gullible enough to lose her money disguised as donation to the two cunning snake charmers, who eventually give in to the little girl’s tears and strong denial of being cheated. On retrieving her money, Razieh rushes to the aquarium store to buy her fish and discovers to her disappointment that the price has increased to 200 tomans from 100. She tries to bargain hard with the owner, but to no avail. However, agreeing to 200 tomans, she is still unable to buy, since she realizes that she has lost her money. As suggested by the shop-keeper and accompanied by a kind lady, Razieh, traces her way back in search of her lost money. Razieh is desperate to get her money back. She knows well that her parents would not be cross to know that she had lost the money. Also her hopes of acquiring the fat, dancing goldfish on new-year will be crushed to dust.
Razieh is able to spot her money inside a grilled sewer of a shop. However the shop being locked she is unable to retrieve it, but is careful to guard it. Soon, she finds her brother to her help, who tries to pull the money through a stick procured from the neighbouring tailor shop but is unsuccessful. He then tries to locate the shop-keeper and that to turns out to be a failed effort. In the mean-time, Razieh meets a young soldier, who tries to befriend Razieh. Razieh, too cautious this time, is not very amused with the soldier and is too pre-occupied to guard her money. Finally Ali, Razieh’s brother finds a balloon seller- a young Afghan refugee selling balloon on the New Year eve on the streets of Tehran. The balloon seller is immensely helpful to them. He carries all of his balloons on a wooden stick and has only one balloon the white one left. The group attaches a piece of gum to one end of the balloon stick, and with it, they reach down the grate and pull the money up.
However, once recovering the money, the children abandon him and rush home after acquiring their gold-fish. The film ends not only Ali or Razieh, but with the visual of the young Afghan boy, sitting on the grate, covering the sewer, with his single white balloon, staring onto the empty streets on Tehran when the entire city is jubilant in celebrating new year.

The White Balloon is a minimalistic story, revolving around 7 year old Razieh. It shows the busy streets of Tehran on the eve of Nou-Roz. Also the gearing up of the citizens for the New-Year is evidently a tone of the movie which borrows voice-overs as radio-announcements ticking its way to New Year. Razieh just like any 7 year old has her own plan for New Year, to acquire a fat gold fish unlike the thin ones she has in her fish-tank. This is exactly like any other young child. She pouts, throws tantrums, cries and even tries to coax her mother, promising to trade all her new-year gifts in lieu of the gold-fish. Razieh‘s mother is unperturbed. These are few of the most enjoyable moments of the movie. It seems that 7 year olds are the same at every corner of the universe. Young Razieh, played by non-professional Aida Mohammadkhani is seen with adorable courage and a perfect pout. She succeeds in melting the heart of her brother, who manages to get the money out of her mother. Ali, Razieh’s brother is quite aware of his responsibilities towards his sister and is quite protective. We find him rebuking her for speaking to the strangers and at the same time helpful in helping her to retrieve the money. This sibling affection especially that of a brother towards the sister, reminds me in a way of another Iranian movie-Turtles can fly. Although the affection in Turtles can fly has an overtone of melancholy unlike the cute-ness of “the white balloon”. However in a sense both give a sense of patriarchy in the Iranian (or rather Asian) society. Young Ali has almost taken upon himself at such a young age to take care and protect his young sister (a girl and hence vulnerable) who owing to her age, he feels gullible enough.
Razieh however, is not gullible. She is innocent definitely, but not naïve. She is tricked into giving her money to the snake-charmer, but argues it back partly through tears and partly through strong denial. On losing her money, she is disappointed, but is determined to find it back. Although 7 year old, she is focussed on her priorities and hence does not get much amused in the banter by the young Iranian Soldier. The young Soldier said that Razieh reminded him of her young sisters at home but was unable to tell their age. Razieh because of her prior experience of being tricked by the snake charmers is cautious this time. She is also wary of the soldier and does not give in to friendship easily.
In fact we find Razieh quite a courageous 7 year old. She is not shy and timid and on discovering her loss, did not rush back home weeping. The old lady, she met at the pet shop, even offered to take the blame and send her back home, to save her from her mother’s wrath. But Razieh turns down the offer. She has enough confidence on herself to be able to find a way out. She alone walks into the other stores seeking help.
She is adamant to get back her money and no words of comfort, or dissuasion could send her back home.
We see everything through the wide open eyes of this 7 year old girl. Hence we find a different Iran. An Iran, where the woman (even if she is 7 year old) does not rush to the comforts of home from the strangers of the streets even when there was a chance of escaping the wrath of parents. Nor is she daunted by the indifference and insensitivity of others towards her mission. She has steely determination and finally arrives at acquiring what she wanted.
That is Jafar Panahi’s vision of the indomitable spirit of the future Iranian women.
Another important aspect of the film is the young Afghan balloon seller. The boy is a refugee and the attitude towards him is often of suspicion. Razieh‘s brother pronounces that openly to his sister. However he needed his help and once, mission accomplished, everyone forgets about this refugee boy. His contribution to their happiness is indeed significant. However he sits alone with a white balloon. Hints to the problems and miseries in form of exploitation faced by the Afghan refugees had appeared in Panahi‘s Baran as well. This movie was if a precursor to the making of Baran. Tehran along with Ali, Razieh and all the others, go for celebration on the New Year. The balloon seller is an out-cast here coming from a different world, who is unwelcome (if unless needed) and whom every one immediately forgets.
Hence if Razieh is Panahi’s vision of future Iranian women, the balloon seller is his appeal to the world to be concerned about him and not mere exploitation.