Tehran – Amir, an engineering master’s student standing outside Tehran University, had thought about getting into digital marketing, but was worried that the Iranian government would ban Instagram, as it had other apps. He had considered setting up a start-up, but US sanctions and rampant inflation blocked his path.
Every time he tried to plan, it seemed useless, said Aamir, who would not reveal his real name at first. He was afraid of his country, he said, and he wanted to leave after graduation.
“I’m 24, and I can’t imagine my life at 45,” he said. “I cannot imagine a good future for myself or for my country. Every day, I’m thinking about leaving. And every day, I’m thinking, if I leave my country, what will happen to my family?”
This is life now for many educated urbanites in the capital Tehran, who once inspired loosening social restrictions and opening up Iran to the world, and those who saw the 2015 nuclear deal with the United States as cause for hope.