Mahtab Servati | |
|---|---|
مهتاب ثروتی | |
 Servati in the filmSweet Taste of Darkness (2023) | |
| Born | (1992-01-22)January 22, 1992 (age 33) Tehran, Iran |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 2013–present |
Mahtab Servati (Persian:مهتاب ثروتی; born January 22, 1992) is an Iranian actress.[1][2][3] She is best known for her performance inThere Is No Evil (2020), which won theGolden Bear at the70th Berlin International Film Festival.[4][5] Servati later gained recognition and popularity through her web series roles inOnce Upon a Time in Iran (2021–2022) andThe Translator (2023).
Mahtab Servati was born on January 22, 1992, inTehran, Iran.[6]
She initially studied photography but later quit it due to her "lack of interest". Her photography activities were mostly in the field of theater and behind the scenes photography.[7] She worked as photographer inRouhollah television series,My Gloomy Butterflies in a Wonderful Spring Morning theater, andThe Last Whisper television film (all in 2013).[8][9]
She gained an interest in acting after seeing actress Annali Shakouri's performance in Sajjad Afsharian's 2013 playMy Gloomy Butterflies in a Wonderful Spring Morning.[10]
After seeing the play, Servati attended Sajjad Afsharian's workshops for a year and then went on stage performing in 2014 for the first time.[11]
Servati made her acting debut in Sajjad Afsharian's playIran Vs Australia from 3 August to 6 September 2014 (she was also credited as co-writer in this play).[12]
She later acted in Hossein Heydaripour's playWhat is Adel Ferdowsipour doing! from 26 April to 22 May 2015. The play consist of three parts, each part about one of the three members of the family. This time Servati had a lead role, performing the role of the daughter which now she's married and wishes to be a footballer.[13]
Servati worked as co-photographer in the Direct-to-videoThe Gift (2015) directed by Amir Ahmad Ansari.[14]
She made her screen debut in the 2015IRIB TV2 war drama seriesKimia in which she played Kimia's (Mehraveh Sharifinia) best friend, Salma, a pregnant southern woman in the midst of theIran-Iraq war. Servati studied for the role of Salma by practicing her character'sKhuzestani dialect. The series is the second longest-running Iranian television series afterThe Dots (2003).[15]
Although it received mixed reviews from critics, the series was a commercial hit and became one of the highest-rated dramas in Iranian television history.Kimia receiving fourHafez Awards nominations including Best Television Series and Best Screenplay, winning the latter. She recalls her first on camera experience as "bad" due to her lack of knowledge of acting in front of camera.[16]
Servati made her film debut in Majid Tavakoli'sBorn in 1987 which premiered at the 34thFajr Film Festival in February 2016.[17]
She worked as the main photographer in the 2016 playKhodabas.[18]
She acted in Alireza Ajali's playA Few Slips on the Edge of the Heads of a Twisted Position from 30 October to 11 November 2016.[19]
Servati starred as Fatemeh Dadman, a patient in the medical television seriesNurses (2016) directed by Alireza Afkhami. The series earned three nominations including Best Television Series at the S like Series Awards.[20]
From 8 June to 24 July 2017, she acted in Hassan Madjuni's playIncident with a Metranpazh.[21]
Servati starred in the drama seriesIn Search of Peace (2017) directed by Saeed Soltani as Sara Sari. The series received a nomination for Best Screenplay at the 18thHafez Awards.[22][23]
In 2017, she starred alongsideRana Azadivar andAmir Aghaei in the mystery drama filmPrivacy, as Dorsa, a teenage girl whom her ex-boyfriend is constantly harassing and threatening her.[24]
Servati later went on stage performing Hassan Madjuni's playIncident with a Metranpazh again from 2 to 18 May 2018, this time on a different stage.[25]
In 2018, Servati starred in two films,Pastarioni andAnonymity. Both films received mixed reviews.
In the rom-com filmPastarioni, she acted alongsideGohar Kheirandish as Fereshteh Torabi, a new chef who falls in love with her boss.[26]
In the crime drama filmAnonymity, she starred alongsideBaran Kosari and Hassan Madjuni.[27]
In 2019, she starred in her first short filmDon't Forget Today as the female lead, which she and her husband Reza (Pedram Sharifi) are going to a hospital for a checkup before abortion.[28]
Servati had her first lead role in a feature film in Behzad Khodsveysi'sDaughters of Winter (2019), starring as Niloufar, aworking class girl. The film deals with theOrgan donation matter.[29]
She later acted in two more short films,Shadow of Purple andA-orta (both in 2019).[30][31]
Servati starred in the comedy filmHedgehog directed by Mastaneh Mohajer which features anensemble cast. The filming started in October 2019 but it later was delayed due to theCOVID-19 pendemic. The filming wrapped up on July 17, 2020. The film has not been released to the public yet.[32][33]
She acted in Navid Memar's playPowdered Milk from December 30, 2019 to January 25, 2020.[34]
In February 2020, Servati acted in Ramin Akbari's monologue theaterStipulation Number Two after 6 months of practice for only 2 shows. She describes the shows as her most "satisfying" acting experience ever.[35]
Servati explains her character as "A woman who constantly sees another woman in her house, and the chair that is in front of her all the time in the performance, is a souvenir of someone, and this woman's house is so small that she would hit the door and the wall while walking. From somewhere, this woman had a delusion that the chair was swelling and taking up the space of her home".[36]
Servati starred as Nana inMohammad Rasoulof'sThere Is No Evil (2020) which had its premiere at the70th Berlin International Film Festival. The film received universal acclaim and won theGolden Bear.[37] Servati's character Nana which appears in the third episode of the film, is a country girl who had a bond with the teacher of their village who got executed due to his different beliefs.[38][39]
In April 2020, she starred in the war drama television seriesSoldier directed byHadi Moghadamdoost, as Mina Moafi, after three years, returning to the small screen.[40]
Servati starred in drama filmParva directed by Mehran Mahdavian which took part at the 11th Lleida International Film Festival's Cinema Del Mon section from 29 October to 8 November 2020 in Spain.[41]
In 2021, Servati acted in a web series, two feature films, and three short films.
In the drama feature filmAt the End of the Day directed by Babak Bahram Beigi, she starred alongsideHanieh Tavassoli andShabnam Moghaddami. The filming started in June 2021 and ended in the following month. The film has not been released to the public yet.[42]
In the drama feature filmKulbarf directed by Milad Mansouri, she starred as a kurdish girl and had to learnkurdish dialect for her role as Chenur, aKolbar girl.[43]
The first short filmSurvivor of the Day was produced byRasul Sadr Ameli and directed by his son, Mohammadreza Sadr Ameli.
In the second short film,Garden directed by Mostafa Soleimani which premiered at the 38thTehran International Short Film Festival, Servati stars as a fugitive girl who asks an old man (Esmail Mehrabi) for help.[44][45]
In the third short filmSweet Taste of Darkness directed by Mitra Raeesmohammadi, Servati stars as a sad and depressed young mother whose seven-year-old son identifies with the character ofBatman and encourages his friends to perform risky actions.[46][47] For this performance, Servati earned her first nomination for Best Actrees at theFFTG Awards in 2021.[48]
She starred in the romance historical drama seriesOnce Upon a Time in Iran directed byTina Pakravan. Servati gained wide recognition and popularity for her role as Marie, an Iranian-German painter whose German mother has been exiled toSiberia by the Soviet forces following theAnglo-Soviet invasion of Iran in 1941 duringWorld War II. The series met with critical acclaim and was widely praised for its performances.[49][50][51]
In 2022, Servati starred in the short filmAshes directed by Saeedeh Dalirian which premiered at the 26th Canberra Short Film Festival.[52]
Servati starred as Fereshteh, an aspiring actress in the 2022 mystery drama filmThe Town alongsideSaed Soheili, directed by Ali Hazrati.[53] The film had its premiere at the40th Fajr Film Festival and earned 3 nominations.[54]
Although the film received mixed reviews, critics praised Servati's performance. Filimo's Kamal Pourkaveh called Servati's performance "worthy of attention" and listed her performance as the top 3 things of the film.[55]
In 2023, she got her first leading role in a series starring in the crime mystery web seriesThe Translator as Ghazaleh, a young translator who is seeking the truth about her brother's mysterious death.[56][57] The series was directed byBahram Tavakoli who previously worked as the screenwriter for the critically acclaimed seriesBlue Whale (2019).[58]
Servati starred in the sport drama filmHook (2023) directed by Hossein Rigi which had its premiere at the 41stFajr International Film Festival. She had to learn theBalochi dialect due to her character's origin.[59]
Servati lives with her parents and has a brother named Amir and a sister named Negin.[60]
She has citedYalda Night as her favorite holiday.[61]
| Year | Title | Role | Director | Notes | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Born in 1987 | Nima's wife | Majid Tavakoli | [62] | |
| 2017 | Privacy | Dorsa | Ahmad Moazemi | [63] | |
| 2018 | Pastarioni | Fereshteh Torabi | Soheil Moafagh | [64] | |
| Anonymity | Mona | Alireza Samadi | [65] | ||
| 2019 | Don't Forget Today | The Wife | Ahmad Monajemi | Short film | [66] |
| Daughters of Winter | Niloofar | Behzad Khodaveysi | [67] | ||
| Shadow of Purple | Nasim Sahraee | Sogol Khaleghi | Short film | [68] | |
| A-orta | Saeed Zarei | Short film | [69] | ||
| 2020 | There Is No Evil | Nana | Mohammad Rasoulof | [70] | |
| Parva | Mehran Mahdavian | [71] | |||
| 2021 | Kulbarf | Chenur | Milad Mansouri | [72] | |
| Survivor of the Day | Mohammad Reza Sadrameli | Short film | [73] | ||
| Garden | Mostafa Soleimani | Short film | [74] | ||
| Sweet Taste of Darkness | The Mother | Mitra Raeesmohammadi | Short film | ||
| 2022 | Ashes | Saeedeh Dalirian | Short film | ||
| The Town | Fereshteh | Ali Hazrati | [75] | ||
| 2023 | Hook | Mahour | Hossein Rigi | [76] | |
| Hedgehog | Mastaneh Mohajer | [77] | |||
| 2024 | Nowruz | Soheil Moafagh | [78] | ||
| 2025 | At the End of the Day | Babak Bahram Beigi | [79] | ||
| TBA | The Rook | Hamid Nematollah | Post-production | [80] |
| Year | Title | Role | Director | Platform | Notes | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021–2022 | Once Upon a Time in Iran | Marie | Tina Pakravan | Namava | Main role; 15 episodes | [81] |
| 2023 | The Translator | Ghazaleh Safavi | Bahram Tavakoli | Namava | Leading role; 13 episodes | [82] |
| 2023–2024 | Accomplice | Nasrin Nazemi | Maziar Miri | Namava | Main role; miniseries | [83] |
| TBA | Heartless | Kamal Tabrizi | I Net | Main role |
| Year | Title | Role | Director | Network | Notes | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015–2016 | Kimia | Salma | Javad Afshar | IRIB TV2 | Recurring role | [84] |
| 2017 | Nurses | Fatemeh Dadman | Alireza Afkhami | IRIB TV1 | [85] | |
| In Search of Peace | Sara Sari | Saeed Soltani | IRIB TV5 | [86] | ||
| 2020 | Soldier | Mina Moafi | Hadi Moghadamdoost | IRIB TV3 | [87] |
| Year | Title | Director | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Rouhollah | Rama Ghavidel | Television series | [88] |
| My Gloomy Butterflies in a Wonderful Spring Morning | Sogol Ghalatian | Theater | [89] | |
| The Last Whisper | Sajjad Shahriari | Television film | [90] | |
| 2015 | The Gift | Amir Ahmad Ansari | Direct-to-video | [91] |
| 2016 | Khodabas | Javad Khorsha, Saleh Alavizadeh | Theater | [92] |
| Year | Title | Playwright | Director | Stage | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Iran VS Australia | Ilia Tahmatni[93] | Sajjad Afsharian | Arasbaran Cultural Center | [94] |
| 2015 | What Is Adel Ferdowsipour Doing! | Saghar Khajeh Amiri | Hossein Heydaripour | Niavaran Cultural Center | [95] |
| 2016 | A Few Slips on the Edge of the Heads of a Twisted Position | Alireza Ajali | Hamoon Theatre | [96] | |
| 2017 | Incident with a Metranpazh | Alexander Vampilov | Hassan Madjuni | Sepand Theater | [97] |
| 2018 | Shahrzad Theater Complex | [98] | |||
| 2019–2020 | Powdered Milk | Navid Memar | Iranshahr Theater | [99] | |
| 2020 | Stipulation Number Two | Ramin Akbari | RooBeRoo Mansion | [100] | |
| 2024 | New Jersey | Saleh Alavi Zadeh | Saeed Dashti | Malek Theater | |
Servati has citedMohammad Rasoulof'sThe White Meadows (2009),Rasoul Mollagholipour'sM for Mother (2006),Kim Ki-duk'sSpring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring (2003) and3-Iron (2004), andKamal Tabrizi'sA Piece of Bread (2004) as the films that genuinely moved her.[101]
She has citedAbdoldreza Kahani,Dariush Mehrjui andKhosrow Shakibai as the artists whom she likes to work with and love the cinematic atmosphere of their works, mentioningNeedlessly and Causelessly (2012) as her favorite film of Kahani.[102]
She has citedAnna Karenina as her favourite fictional character to play.[103]
She has stated that her favourite music genres areJazz,Persian hip hop andClassic, mentioningMohammadreza Shajarian as one of her favourite classic singers.[104]
She has citedDivaneye Man byFereydoun Foroughi as her favorite song of all time.[105]
| Award | Year | Category | Nominated Work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FFTG Awards | 2021 | Best Actress | Sweet Taste of Darkness | Nominated | [106] |
| Hafez Awards | 2025 | Best Actress – Theatre | New Jersey | Nominated | [107] |
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link){{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link){{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)