Arya Farahani, the eldest son of Fernaz "Nancy" Farahani, is grappling with profound grief after his mother was killed in what police have described as a femicide. Speaking to the Ottawa Citizen, he recalled his mother's favorite phrase: "Life is beautiful."
"She would always say it," Arya said, his voice breaking. "And I wish so bad that I could hear her one more time… Because life doesn't feel so beautiful right now."
The Tragic Incident
On April 23, 2026, Nancy was fatally stabbed in her Barrhaven home. Her mother, Nezhat Farahani, 80, was also stabbed but survived. The Ottawa Police Service charged Nancy's other son, Party Shah, with second-degree murder and attempted murder. The allegations have not been tested in court.
Arya described his mother as a devoted mother and a woman of faith. "If Nancy loved two things in the world, it was her faith and her two sons," he said. "She would always say if anything was to happen to either me or my brother, it would kill her."
Mental Health Struggles
Arya revealed that his brother has struggled with mental illness since childhood, including diagnoses of bipolar disorder and paranoid schizophrenia. Arya said he cut ties with him four years ago, deeming him dangerous, but Nancy continued to try to reunite the brothers.
"He was manipulative, he was harmful, but my mom would do anything for him," Arya said. He had not seen his mother in about a year because she persisted in trying to bring the brothers together.
Police reported that Shah traveled to Hawkesbury General Hospital after the incident and told staff he had killed two people at the Barrhaven home on Ashbourn Crescent.
Remembering Nancy
Arya is now navigating anger and grief while connecting with those who loved his mother. "You felt her love the moment you saw her," he said. "Every one of my friends called her 'mom.'"
He was struck by how many friends Nancy remained close with over the years. "I called like 40 people so far and every one of them was saying: 'I just talked to her, what are you talking about?'"
Arya recalled that whenever he brought a friend home for dinner, his mother cooked as if she were hosting a feast for 700 people. "Some people die because they're into drugs. Some people die because they get into alcohol," he said. "My mom died because she was a mother."
