The Cow was among the very first projects to receive the State funding, however, it was banned by the Shah's censors for the dark images of Iranian rural society. The film was smuggled to 1971 Venice Film Festival and unprogrammed and unsubtitled, it turned out to be the event of festival that year. The Cow received the Critics' Award in Venice and toured the world festivals. The Cow which is now considered as a cult film has been selected as the Best Film of Iranian Cinema in 3 different polling by Iranian critics.
