This study examines the film Beggars of Tehran (1966), directed by Mohammad Ali Fardin, as a critique of the Pahlavi regime's superficial modernization efforts. The film portrays a group of impoverished individuals in Tehran who pretend to be wealthy aristocrats, mirroring the Pahlavi government's focus on projecting a modern image of Iran to the West, rather than addressing its deep-rooted social problems. The film humorously depicts the impoverished characters’ efforts to adopt Western-style behaviors and appearances, which the article interprets as an illusion to the superficiality of the Pahlavi regime's modernization. The contrast between their reality and their fabricated image critiques the disparity between the regime’s portrayal of a modern Iran and the lived experiences of most urban Iranians, who continued to face poverty and marginalization. The characters’ failure to sustain their new identities, reverting to their original state once Nasim and her guests leave, symbolizes the temporary and illusory nature of the Pahlavi reforms. The film also serves as a meta-critique of FilmFarsi, particularly the "Ali Bi-Gham" films, where poor characters achieve wealth through implausible events. In contrast, Beggars of Tehran reveals the hollowness of such narratives, paralleling the regime's flawed modernization efforts. This study underscores the value of popular cinema as a lens to explore Iran's socio-cultural dynamics and calls for a more nuanced examination of FilmFarsi within Iranian cinema studies.