On a London high street lined with Persian grocery stores and kebab shops, Iranian exile politics has found an unlikely stage. A restaurant window advertises a 20 percent discount to anyone who walks in and says a phrase long taboo in the Islamic Republic: Javid Shah, long live the Shah.
The poster shows Reza Pahlavi, son of Iran’s last monarch, framed by images of his father and grandfather beneath the old lion-and-sun emblem of pre-revolutionary Iran. The message is simple: say the words and receive the discount.