Golrokh Rasekhi, better known by her stage name Mahnaz, is one of the few lesser-known and largely forgotten singers from the rich generation of Iranian artists active in the 1950s and early 1960s. Although she possessed a pleasant and unique voice, her name unfortunately remains unfamiliar to most music lovers today, overshadowed by more widely celebrated figures of the era. Mahnaz’s vocal talent was first recognized when she was just nineteen years old by the esteemed Iranian poet Ardalan Sarfaraz, who saw promise in her sound and encouraged her artistic development.
Ardalan Sarfaraz was an influential lyricist whose work helped shape many songs in the popular music scene of the time. Her abilities soon came to the attention of Fereydoun Farrokhzad, a major cultural figure in pre-revolutionary Iran. Farrokhzad was a multi-talented showman, host, poet, and singer, best known for his widely watched television variety program Mikhak-e Noghrei (“Silver Carnation”), which introduced and featured many Iranian artists who would later become household names.
