Inside the Supreme Leader’s Home: Modesty Measured in Plastic Chairs

Tuesday, July 08, 2025  Read time1 min

SAEDNEWS: In a rare interview, Ayatollah Khamenei’s younger brother reveals that Iran’s highest authority eschews luxury even in private quarters—eschewing sofas and dining on simple fare, seated on the very plastic stools his sibling purchased.

Inside the Supreme Leader’s Home: Modesty Measured in Plastic Chairs

According to Saed News, Seyyed Mohammad‑Hassan Khamenei, the younger brother of Iran’s Supreme Leader, has provided an unprecedented glimpse into the austere domestic life of the man who occupies one of the world’s most powerful offices. Speaking to Saed News and ISNA, he emphasized that the Leader’s private and public demeanors are indistinguishable, rejecting any trappings of wealth or ceremonial pomp.

Mohammad‑Hassan recounted how the Ayatollah’s kitchen is furnished not with plush seating but with ordinary plastic chairs—purchased personally by his brother when the Leader himself insisted he would never buy them for private use. “He does not own sofas,” Seyyed Mohammad‑Hassan explained. “Even in his library’s inner chamber, you will find only inexpensive rag rugs and simple carpeting.”

khamenei's brother

The interview dispels longstanding rumours of hidden luxury within the Leader’s residence. Contrary to elaborate state banquet imagery, gatherings at the Ayatollah’s home serve a single main course and two dessert items at most, reflecting his deliberate avoidance of extravagance. All personal furnishings, from carpets bought on installment decades ago to modest settees, remain far removed from the opulent expectations of a global religious and political figure.

This candid account underscores a conscious philosophy: for Ayatollah Khamenei, ceremonial dignity belongs to his office, not to the private man. His modest household—complete with plastic chairs and humble textiles—embodies a lived simplicity that few world leaders can claim.