Journalism of Courage
‘UN in Reality’: Iran mocks world body with ‘Sholay’ Thakur meme
The meme came shortly after Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in New York.
The meme came shortly after Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in New York
Iran has turned to Bollywood and Hollywood pop culture to take a swipe at the United Nations, accusing the world body of being ineffective in responding to major international conflicts.
The Iranian Embassy in India shared a meme on X juxtaposing Marvel superhero Doctor Strange with Thakur Baldev Singh, the iconic character from the 1975 Bollywood film Sholay. The post framed the contrast between how the UN is perceived in theory and how Iran views its role in reality.
The first image shows Doctor Strange, depicted with multiple arms, and is labelled “UN according to school books”. The second features Thakur, played by Sanjeev Kumar in Sholay, whose hands were amputated by the film’s antagonist, Gabbar Singh. It is captioned “UN in reality.”
Here’s the post:
UN according to school books
UN in reality pic.twitter.com/GQ4gOG8fC0— Iran in India (@Iran_in_India) September 29, 2026
The meme came shortly after Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in New York. During the meeting, Araghchi criticised what Tehran described as the UN’s failure to respond adequately to alleged violations of the UN Charter by the US and Israel.
Earlier, Iran used Akshay Kumar’s meme to mock Trump. The post showed an image featuring the Bollywood actor from the 2006 Bollywood comedy Deewane Huye Paagal with several expressions, including the iconic ‘fake crying’ face.
“Lost an underwater. Oil is nearing $100. Elections are coming. How’s it going, Trump?” the caption read.
‘Ageing grandpa’
The post has since gone viral, accumulating a wave of reactions.
“I can’t figure out how people outside of Asia are going to understand this,” a user wrote.
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“UN through the idealist lens of its 1945 charter: a body designed to prevent wars, enforce international laws, protect human rights. In reality: no sovereign authority, no standing army, no power to enforce decision against world power,” another user commented.
“I think the #United_Nations is like that ageing grandpa, who is comforting to have around, but entirely powerless when real trouble starts,” a third user reacted.
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