The whole world is probably going through one of the most politically volatile times in the history of humankind. Several countries are openly committing genocide while giving speeches about their right to defend themselves or some other nonsensical justification. The people of many countries are starving because their resources are being pushed towards extinction by capitalist villains masquerading as the leaders of the future. Racism, misogyny, and religious bigotry are at such an all-time high that electoral promises are being made based on promoting such heinous practices, and the sad thing is that the common folk have become radicalized enough to choose the most obnoxious individual as their prime minister or president so that they can live out their sadist fantasies in real time. However, if you talk against all this clearly inhumane stuff through art, sports, silent protests, or on your family WhatsApp group, you are told to not “make things political.” A Good Day Will Come shows the pointlessness of being “apolitical” during times of crisis.
Amir Zargara’s A Good Day Will Come tells the story of Arash, who earns his daily wages by working at construction sites and then goes to train for the wrestling championships at the gym. Arash has followed in the footsteps of his father, who was also a wrestler, and he is the best that Iran has to offer. But Arash’s coach thinks that he needs to work a lot on himself because his movements are too slow and his approach to takedowns isn’t as aggressive as it needs to be. Arash’s lack of vigor isn’t a skill issue; his mind is actually plagued by the people’s protests that are happening in Iran and the merciless way in which they are being killed by the regime and its supporters. His coach tells him to focus on his wrestling because all this is a common facet of life in Iran, and Arash does exactly that even though his heart is telling him otherwise. However, when someone close to Arash is murdered at a protest, the pro-wrestler is unable to separate his politics from his sports, and he makes a public stand against the violent oppression that’s going on in his country.
Through A Good Day Will Come, Zargara is reminding the world about the 2018 Iranian protests and the execution of wrestler Navid Afkari in 2020. Back then, people took to the streets to highlight the economic hardships they were facing due to the widespread corruption in a government that had promised change. After Afkari allegedly participated in one of those protests, he was arrested, and he was accused of murdering a security guard. Reportedly, he was tortured and forced to record a false confession, which was something that Afkari clarified via a smuggled audiotape where he said that his initial statement was coaxed out of him. People from all over the world, including IOC President Thomas Bach and U.S. President Donald Trump, asked for Afkari’s release, but he was executed on 12 September 2020. Even though Afkari passed away that day, his spirit lives on through songs, campaigns, artwork, and now Zargara’s film. With all that said, Iran saw another massive protest in 2022 after the custodial death of Mahsa Amini, and Iran was accused of crimes against humanity by the UN in 2024. Given how nothing much came of it, in terms of legal repercussions, the title of Zargara’s short film feels painful and hopeful at the same time.
The visual storytelling in A Good Day Will Come is excellent. With the help of cinematographer Jelan Maxwell and editor Iman Tahsin, throughout the first half of the short film, Zargara ensures that the frame is on the verge of consuming Arash. In doing so, we not only understand but also feel all the things that are overwhelming, Arash. He is dwarfed at his workplace, on the wrestling mat, and even at the press conference. But as soon as he begins to break out of his shell, he dominates the frame, thereby making him a symbol of rebellion. Yes, it’s a very simple way of conveying a character’s arc, but you’ll be surprised how many directors fail to do even that despite having millions of dollars, the best filmmaking equipment, and the most skilled artists at their disposal. So, if I see someone sticking to the basics and evoking all the required emotions within a span of 25 minutes, I am going to laud it for sure. I pray that Zargara makes the jump to feature films soon so that we can see him flex his directorial chops on the big screen and for a longer period of time.
A Good Day Will Come largely rests on the shoulders of Sia Alipour, and he is absolutely riveting in the role of Arash. The lack of dialogue is obviously not a problem for him, as he says so much with just his eyes and body language. The rest of the supporting cast, especially Mehdi Bajestani, is great, despite their limited screen time. To be very honest, everything from the acting to the direction in Zargara’s film hits really close to home because of what has unfolded in the world of wrestling over the past couple of years right in my backyard. It’s hard not to draw parallels between Arash’s story and that of the wrestlers of India and bemoan the cyclical nature of these incidents that’s eroding the souls of generations of people. I wish that there comes a day when even India can make films, short or feature length, about everything that’s going on at the intersection where sports (wrestling, to be specific) and politics meet. Sure, we have films on wrestling, like Dangal and Sultan, but their political commentary is always limited to how some members of the sports association woke up on the wrong side of the bed. We need hard-hitting films like A Good Day Will Come so that people can know that there’s a life beyond the accolades and the medals. I’m not sure if that’ll awaken the common folk from their slumber, but at the very least, films like these will serve as proof of what unprivileged athletes are doing for the future of their country while those with massive sponsorship deals are turning a blind eye to the atrocities around them.
