Young Iranians arrested for making ‘Happy’ dance video finally released

If dancing to Pharrell’s hit song “Happy” is grounds for jail time, than there’s no doubt that most of us would be locked up. Don’t lie; when that undeniably catchy hit comes on the radio, you just have to dance!

Well, shockingly enough, six Iranians have been arrested for doing just that.

A group of young Iranians filmed a video of themselves dancing to Pharrell’s “Happy” and posted it to YouTube where it then went viral. Iranian authorities took notice of the “Happy in Tehran” video and sought out the six individuals who were then arrested on Monday, Gawker reports.

They were forced to repent on state TV where the six admitted they had no idea that the footage would be broadcast.

Tehran’s police chief issued a statement to the youth of Iran "not to be seduced by the filmmakers behind viral videos." He referred to the video as a “vulgar clip, which hurt public chastity”.

Controversy over the video and the fact that six young Iranians had been jailed for ‘happy dancing’ had outraged many. Even the songwriter Pharrell Williams posted his disappointment on his Twitter account.

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According to one of the young Iranians who was arrested, the original purpose for making the video was to prove that Iran’s young people “have moments of joy and happiness even though they live with many difficulties.”

There is some good news today, though: According to reports, it seems that as of today the six Iranians have been released! Several people inside Iran have posted information to their Facebook accounts about the release of the 'happy dancers.'

Siavash Taravati, sister of the video’s art director Reihane Taravati, posted on her Facebook that her sister was finally freed on bail. Reihane has confirmed her release on Instagram by posting her appreciation to all who supported her, including Pharrell himself.

Many more took to Instagram and other social media outlets to confirm the news that the Iranian ‘happy dancers' had indeed been released. Even Iran’s president, Hassan Rouhani, who argued that “Iran should begin to embrace the Internet” after hearing of the arrests, also tweeted a supportive message.

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