Roqe

A feature interview with Iranian-Italian designer and founder of Azitoys, Azadeh Shams. She has also become an internationally known expert on raising bilingual children. Azadeh joins Jian from Milan to discuss how she united her troika of passions - design, language and children - by creating a popular new line of educational toys for toddlers called, Azitoys, that, among other things, help young...

A feature interview with Iranian-American wrestling pioneer and champion, Afsoon Roshanzamir Johnston. Afsoon was the first ever world medalist in women’s wrestling in 1989, and has been a multiple medalist and champion since then. She joins Jian from San Diego to recount her story of being born in Tehran before emigrating to the United States at the age of 11 in 1984, finding her confidence and i...

A feature interview with legendary Iranian-American painter, Nicky (Nikzad) Nodjoumi. Nicky has been voted the “fifth most influential contemporary artist of Iran” for his works that take on social power, justice and freedom as their subject. He joins Jian from New York for an intimate and wide-ranging conversation that includes his recent acclaim, his rituals as a painter, his early years in Iran...

A feature interview with Iranian poet, painter and social activist, Hila Sedighi. Hila joins Jian from Dubai for a rare long-form interview discussing her journey from young writer, law student, and organizer in Tehran, to becoming the symbol of youth resistance and power during the Green Movement protests after the disputed presidential election of 2009. She recounts her multiple arrests and pris...

A diverse edition of Roqe including feature interviews with Iranian-American NASA Project Manager, Barmac Taleghani, and the Iranian-British founder of “Tahdig Lover,” Sahar Fatemi. First, Sahar joins Jian from Nottingham England to talk about her journey from Isfahan to Britain as a teen, becoming a football analyst for the English Premier League in her early-20s, and now parlaying her lifelong l...

A fun-filled episode including a feature interview with Iranian-Canadian comedian and actor, Neema Nazeri. Neema has become an internet sensation with his zany characters, funny accents, and dancing videos with mom. He joins Jian in the Roqe Studio to talk about growing up in Toronto and performing standup at Persian family gatherings as a kid, playing empty clubs and dreaming of a career in comed...

A diverse and upbeat edition of Roqe including feature interviews with Italian writer and documentarian Antonello Sacchetti, and Iranian-Canadian fashion designer Rojan Hooshyar. Antonello joins Jian from Rome to talk about being an Italian journalist who has grown a passion for all things Persian. He discusses falling in love with Iranian culture, his many trips to the country, the books and blog...

A feature interview with adventurous and popular Iranian music ensemble, Rastak. Rastak members Siamak, Farzad and Dina join Jian from Tehran to talk about their mission as creative musical explorers. This is a wide-ranging interview that covers the experimental beginnings of Rastak, to collecting, recording and interpreting Iranian folk music, to the responsibilities of representing different ind...

This is a 3-Part series based on interviews conducted in 2020. On the 40th anniversary year of the death of the Shah, we aim to assess the current accepted understanding of the history of Iran in the last century, the place of the Pahlavi Dynasty, and the precipitants of the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The series features three well-known thinkers who have all deeply studied the Pahlavi era and have...

This is a 3-Part series based on interviews conducted in 2020. On the 40th anniversary year of the death of the Shah, we aim to assess the current accepted understanding of the history of Iran in the last century, the place of the Pahlavi Dynasty, and the precipitants of the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The series features three well-known thinkers who have all deeply studied the Pahlavi era and have...

This is a 3-Part series based on interviews conducted in 2020. On the 40th anniversary year of the death of the Shah, we aim to assess the current accepted understanding of the history of Iran in the last century, the place of the Pahlavi Dynasty, and the precipitants of the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The series features three well-known thinkers who have all deeply studied the Pahlavi era and have...

A feature interview with Iranian-American singer-songwriter Rana Mansour. Rana joins Jian for a very frank conversation about being a musical child prodigy growing up in Washington DC, early years at Berklee College of Music and releasing English records, her move into the Persian music marketplace, frustrations at lack of industry recognition and self-criticism, working with her father as a songw...

What are the benefits of cutting dairy and meat from your diet? Popular Iranian-American gastroenterologist and vegan diet advocate Dr Angie Sadeghi joins Jian for a feature interview about her journey from dreaming of being a doctor as a kid in war-ravaged Iran, to becoming a medical professional, and then embarking on a mission to share her story of giving up meat and dairy and dramatically tran...

A very animated edition of Roqe (so to speak!) including a feature interview with Iranian-American visual artist, illustrator, and production designer, Mehrdad Isvandi. Mehrdad, while still only in his 30s, has become a key player at Disney Animation involved in the creation of blockbuster films. He joins Jian from Los Angeles to discuss growing up as a kid in Ahvaz with drawing as his escape and...

A fun-filled episode including a feature interview with popular Iranian-British TV personality, documentarian, and social media influencer, Shirin Nasseri. Shirin joins Jian from London for a very frank interview about her nomadic childhood, her lifelong love affair with dance, her years as a broadcaster at Manoto Television (and her difficult final days at that network), and her commitment to bei...

A feature interview with the Australian-Iranian founder of Persian Yoga, Kashi Azad. Kashi is a former electrical engineer, chiropractic doctor, and MBA, who has become a martial arts mentor and has set his sights on introducing the world to Iranian ‘Pahlavani’ sport. Kashi joins Jian from Sydney to discuss teaching the most ancient living art of strength and physical culture, the nature of the ‘z...

A feature interview with New York Times bestselling author, Jasmin Darznik. Jasmin is an Iranian-American writer, professor and former lawyer who burst onto the literary scene in 2011 with her acclaimed debut book, “The Good Daughter: A Memoir of My Mother’s Hidden Life.” She followed it up with “Song of a Captive Bird,”  a novel inspired by the life of Forough Farrokhzad, Iran's notorious woman p...

A diverse and entertaining edition of Roqe featuring prolific Iranian-American actor Necar Zadegan and rising Iranian-Canadian cuisine creative and online sensation Piaz Miaz. Necar joins Jian from a stop on the road in Santa Fe to talk about her impressive career (so far) in stage and screen, working with Robin Williams, performing in Persian and English, playing a pivotal role in the popular ser...

A feature interview with acclaimed Iranian-Kurdish film director, producer, and writer, Bahman Ghobadi. The award-winning creative force behind films including, “A Time for Drunken Horses,” “Turtles Can Fly,” and “No One Knows About Persian Cats,” joins Jian for a rare long-form conversation about his life journey, lessons learned, his rejection of material goods, his mission to support Kurdish yo...

A lively episode of Roqe featuring Iranian-American actor and comedian Peter (Payam) Banifaz. Peter is a familiar face to many from his appearances in dozens of popular TV shows including Veep, Silicon Valley, and Brooklyn Nine-Nine, as well as his recurring role on the hit series, Shameless. But recently he’s been getting attention for his very funny online videos where he satirizes Persian dads...

With this year's Nowruz marking a new century in the Iranian calendar (1400), Roqe sets out to explore what Iran was, and who Iranians were, in their pre-Islamic era (pre-650 AD). Dr. Richard Foltz, an author and historian who specializes in the history of Iranian civilization sits down with Jian for a feature interview covering the impact of ancient Iran on global civilization and the common thre...

On the first anniversary of the launch of Roqe, a feature interview with world-renowned television anchor, radio presenter, and senior producer, Pooneh Ghoddoosi. Pooneh has spent over two decades at the BBC as a TV presenter on BBC World in English, a host on BBC Persian TV and radio in Persian, and now a business head of Global Partnerships at the BBC World Service. Pooneh joins Jian for an insi...

An interview with acclaimed author, poet and scholar, Farzaneh Milani. Farzaneh, a professor of Persian literature and women's studies at the University of Virginia, joins Jian to recount her story of emigrating from Iran to America and becoming a foremost authority on Iranian women writers, her passion for female literature and Forough Farrokhzad in particular, and what she has recently termed, a...

On the 100th Episode, a feature interview with Iranian music icon, Faramarz Aslani. The beloved and respected composer, songwriter, instrumentalist and man with a “satin voice” joins Jian for a very rare English in-depth life interview.

A feature interview with groundbreaking Iranian-American political satirist, actor, TV/radio broadcaster, and monologist, Kambiz Hosseini. Kambiz joins Jian for a rollicking, wide-ranging and very personal interview about his life journey, his broadcasting style, his disappointments, and his latest show, Paradox. This is a rare in-depth interview with Kambiz in English and the energy between the t...