Celebrating Persian Culture, Community and Business Since 2006
The Tehran Magazine Festival & Expo was founded in 2006 by journalist, publisher, and community organizer Shahbod Noori, Founder and Publisher of Tehran Weekly Magazine.
The festivals were created with a simple but important purpose: to bring Persian-speaking families together in a welcoming environment where they could enjoy music, culture, entertainment, community services, and business opportunities—completely free of charge.
Since its beginning, Tehran Magazine has organized approximately 35 festivals and expos throughout Southern California. Most years included two major celebrations: a Nowruz Festival & Expo in the spring and a Mehregan Festival & Expo in the fall. Tehran Magazine also organized a special summer cultural festival honoring Amordadegan, Tirgan and ancient Persian seasonal traditions.
Although circumstances occasionally made it impossible to hold both annual events, the festivals became an important and recognizable part of Persian cultural life in Southern California.
From a Community Gathering to a Major Cultural Event
The earliest Tehran Magazine festivals were held at Woodley Park in the San Fernando Valley. These large outdoor gatherings attracted thousands of visitors, with attendance at some celebrations reaching approximately 20,000 people.
As the events continued to grow, later festivals were organized at Balboa Park, also in the San Fernando Valley, where some celebrations welcomed as many as 30,000 visitors throughout the day.
Over the years, the Tehran Magazine Festival & Expo was also presented at several respected Southern California venues, including:
- Woodley Park
- Balboa Park
- Hollywood Park Casino
- Hilton Universal City
- Hotel Irvine
- Hilton Woodland Hills
- Hilton Irvine
Depending on the venue, individual festivals welcomed between approximately 3,000 and 30,000 visitors.
The hotel-based festivals provided a more intimate indoor setting while still attracting thousands of attendees. Events at Hilton Woodland Hills, for example, often welcomed approximately 4,000 visitors during a single day.
Most festivals were held from approximately 10:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m.,one or two days, giving families an entire day to enjoy entertainment, visit exhibitors, meet community professionals, and celebrate Persian culture.
Always Free to the Public
One of the most important principles of the Tehran Magazine Festival & Expo was that admission would remain free.
Shahbod Noori believed that Persian cultural celebrations should be accessible to everyone—not only to those who could afford concert tickets, formal galas, or expensive entertainment programs.
Many families, seniors, newly arrived immigrants, students, and individuals experiencing financial hardship could not regularly attend paid cultural events. The Tehran Magazine Festival & Expo gave them an opportunity to enjoy live performances by respected Iranian artists, participate in traditional celebrations, and remain connected to their heritage without worrying about the cost of admission.
The festivals were not organized primarily to generate profit. Their purpose was cultural preservation, community unity, and public service.
Live Music and Cultural Entertainment
Entertainment was always at the heart of the Tehran Magazine Festival & Expo.
Some festivals featured as many as seven singers and performing artists in a single day, including popular Iranian vocalists, emerging artists, musicians, dancers, cultural groups, and community performers.
Programs frequently included:
- Live Persian music
- Performances by well-known Iranian singers
- Traditional Persian dance
- Regional and folkloric dance groups
- Eastern and contemporary dance performances
- Cultural presentations
- Community speakers
- Interviews and public announcements
- Family entertainment
- Special programs for Nowruz and Mehregan
By presenting both established and emerging performers, the festivals offered artists an opportunity to connect directly with the community while providing audiences with a full day of free entertainment.
Supporting Persian Businesses
The Expo portion of each festival brought together businesses, professionals, nonprofit organizations, service providers, and community leaders.
Exhibitors represented nearly every major profession serving the Persian-speaking community, including:
- Physicians and healthcare providers
- Attorneys and legal services
- Real estate professionals
- Mortgage and financial companies
- Insurance agencies
- Restaurants and food businesses
- Beauty and wellness services
- Travel companies
- Home improvement businesses
- Retailers and cultural vendors
- Educational organizations
- Community and nonprofit groups
Doctors, attorneys, and other local professionals often served as sponsors, helping Tehran Magazine cover the substantial expenses involved in producing a large public event.
Additional expenses were supported through the sale of exhibitor booths and by Tehran Weekly Magazine itself. However, the income generated by sponsorships and booth rentals generally covered only the costs of producing the event.
The festivals were never designed as major profit-making ventures. Funds were used for venue rental, entertainment, audio and staging, insurance, security, staffing, equipment, promotion, decorations, permits, and other production expenses.
Free Gifts and Prize Drawings
Tehran Magazine festivals became especially popular for their free prize drawings and giveaways.
Throughout the day, attendees could enter drawings to win household products, electronics, services, gift certificates, and other prizes. Over the years, prizes included a wide variety of home appliances and even large-screen televisions measuring up to approximately 70 inches.
Admission to the event was free, participation in the drawings was free, and the prizes were provided without requiring attendees to purchase tickets.
During Nowruz celebrations, many exhibitors also distributed complimentary sweets, promotional items, samples, gifts, and useful products to visitors. Similar activities were offered during Mehregan and other cultural festivals.
These giveaways helped create a festive marketplace atmosphere while allowing businesses to introduce their services directly to thousands of community members.
A Place for Community Unity
The Tehran Magazine Festival & Expo was more than a concert, marketplace, or trade show.
It was created as a place where Persian-speaking people of different ages, backgrounds, religions, professions, and political beliefs could gather peacefully and celebrate the culture they shared.
Families attended together. Children watched Persian performances and learned about traditions that might otherwise have been unfamiliar to them. Seniors enjoyed music and cultural programs from their homeland. Newly arrived immigrants met professionals and community organizations that could help them establish their lives in the United States.
The festivals also gave small businesses and independent professionals an affordable opportunity to introduce themselves to the community.
At a time when community events were often divided by organizational or political differences, Tehran Magazine sought to create a welcoming public celebration centered on culture, family, music, and unity.
Challenges and Interruptions
Producing large free festivals required significant financial and personal commitment.
Tehran Magazine did not have a large advertising agency, major corporate event budget, or full-time promotional team behind these programs. Most publicity was carried through Tehran Weekly Magazine, community relationships, social media, participating artists, sponsors, and exhibitors.
Because the primary mission was cultural rather than commercial, there was rarely additional revenue remaining after expenses were paid.
The COVID-19 pandemic forced the festivals to pause, as public gatherings and hotel events became impossible. After restrictions eased, Tehran Magazine worked to restart the tradition.
On other occasions, festivals were postponed or canceled because of wars, instability affecting Iran and the Middle East, community concerns, or circumstances beyond the organizers’ control.
Despite these interruptions, the Tehran Magazine Festival & Expo returned whenever conditions allowed, demonstrating the community’s continuing desire for accessible Persian cultural events.
Thirty-Five Festivals and a Lasting Legacy
From the first celebrations in 2006 through the 35th Tehran Magazine Festival & Expo, the events welcomed many thousands of visitors and created lasting memories for Persian-speaking families across Southern California.
The festival’s history includes:
- Large outdoor celebrations attended by thousands
- Indoor hotel festivals serving families throughout Southern California
- Dozens of Iranian singers and performers
- Traditional and folkloric dance groups
- Hundreds of business exhibitors
- Community speakers and organizations
- Free entertainment and admission
- Free gifts and promotional products
- Household prizes and large-screen televisions
- Celebrations of Nowruz, Mehregan, Tirgan, and other Persian traditions
The true success of these events was never measured only in attendance or revenue. It was measured in the families who spent the day together, the children who experienced Persian music and traditions, the artists who performed for their community, and the businesses that formed lasting relationships with local residents.
Looking Ahead
The mission of the Tehran Magazine Festival & Expo remains unchanged: to celebrate Persian culture, support local businesses, introduce community resources, and give every family—regardless of income—the opportunity to enjoy a meaningful cultural event.
Following interruptions caused by the pandemic, international conflicts, and financial challenges, Tehran Magazine hopes to continue this tradition with another Mehregan Festival & Expo, subject to venue availability and community conditions.
Future announcements, dates, performers, sponsorship opportunities, and exhibitor information will be published through Tehran Weekly Magazine and its official digital platforms.
Our Mission
To preserve Persian culture, strengthen community unity, support local businesses, showcase Iranian artists, and make cultural entertainment available to everyone—free of charge.
The Tehran Magazine Festival & Expo was never simply an event.
It was—and remains—a celebration created by the community, for the community.