Love Child

Leila, Sahand, and Mani flee Iran. They fear they’ll be caught and they fear for the safety of family they have left behind, who may be targeted because of the couple’s actions.

Leila meets with a therapist in Turkey and shares her story. We find out that Leila had a happy childhood, earned a university degree, and worked as a teacher. We also discover that Leila was married to a violently abusive drug addict, applied for and was denied a divorce, had an affair with Sahand, and bore his child.

With the therapist, Sahand recalls childhood memories of people publicly whipped and stoned for having an extramarital affair. He also shares that when he was a teenager, he participated in a protest and was arrested. Iranian secret police used implied threats of torture, imprisonment, or death to coerce him to become an informant.

Sahand reads aloud the decision in his case. His application to UNHCR for refugee status has been rejected. This is especially devastating because Leila and Mani have been approved. They share the news with Mani, who is upset that they may leave without his father. Sahand tries to comfort his son, saying that, “People who want a better life have to go through hard times and this is our hard time.”

Sahand seeks help from a lawyer to appeal the UNHCR’s denial of his status. It illustrates some of the sometimes absurd bureaucratic hoops that refugees must jump through, like getting proof from Iranian intelligence that Sahand worked with them as a secret informant.

After a tense but successful trip to the Iranian consulate to obtain valid divorce certificates, Sahand and Leila rush to get married in time to send proof of marriage to the UNHCR before it closes Sahand’s case and permanently denies him refugee status. Their attempt is almost thwarted because they don’t have the correct pictures or health documents, but the kindness of a clerk saves them.