Arad Winwin | |
|---|---|
 Arad in 2018 | |
| Born | Mahmoud Reza Asefi November 27, 1989 |
| Occupation | Pornographic film actor |
| Years active | 2014–present |
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (178 cm) |
Arad Winwin (born Mahmoud Reza Asefi; November 27, 1989), is an Iranian American gay pornographic film actor, model and bodybuilder. [1] [2] [3]
Arad was born in Tehran, Iran, and grew up in a big family with two brothers; spending most of his time doing sports like soccer, karate, weightlifting, and in body building competitions. [4] [5] He joined the mandatory military service when he turned 18, and spent three years in active duty. [2]
In 2010, he fled the country when he was 22, because he believed he would never be happy due to the lack of political freedom, where he could get killed for being gay. He escaped through snowy mountains— walking for two nights and three days— to cross the border into Turkey. He had no passport, and his family had to pay a guide to take him halfway through the mountains. In Turkey, he was arrested for having a forged passport and imprisoned for six months. [6]
In an interview with Gay Star News, Arad says, "During this time Turkey was getting ready to deport me back to Iran where I would have been hanged for being a military deserter. I was able to get a message from prison to my family and they hired an attorney which contacted the United Nations refugee program. I was only accepted into their refugee program because the UN knew that I would be killed if I was sent back to Iran." He adds, "Being in a Turkish prison was horrible but I did meet other Iranian people in prison who were also trying to escape from Iran and they were the ones who told me about the United Nations refugee program that ultimately saved my life." [7]
Arad had to stay in Turkey for three years for all of the UN paperwork to be finished, and after that he was flown to Dallas, Texas. His case worker helped him get a job at an elevator company; but it didn't pay much, and he spent the next year trying to pay off the airline tickets, as is required by the UN. [7]
Arad moved to Los Angeles, where he became a go-go boy to make more money. While working as a go-go he got to know about Andrew Christian, and eventually became one of their "Trophy Boys". [8]
Arad made his porn debut with Next Door Studios in 2014, [9] and became a Falcon Studios Exclusive in 2019. [10]
In 2018, Winwin starred in Bruce LaBruce's It Is Not the Pornographer That Is Perverse... in the segment titled Purple Army Faction. [11] Bruce considered the segment to be the sexiest film set he had ever been on, as it had a three-way between Francois Sagat, Arad, and Dato Foland. [12]
In the same year, Arad starred in Men.com's first scene featuring MMF bisexual porn titled The Challenge. It created controversy over whether bisexual porn belongs on a gay porn website; [13] and Arad, who is a self-identified gay man, faced backlash from fans for acting in the scene, with some fans accusing him of being straight or of having "converted" to heterosexual or bisexual. [14] Winwin told the gay website Str8UpGayPorn that "I'm a gay man...This was only a job, and it was nothing more. Nothing personal. I was working, and it was like any other scene I've done". [15]
Arad has participated in bodybuilding competitions under his real name.
| Year | Contest | Division | Category | Rank | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | NPC Europa Super Show | Men's Bodybuilding | Middleweight | 1st | [16] |
| NPC Ronnie Coleman Classic | 4th | [17] | |||
| Novice Lightweight | 1st | ||||
| Men's Physique | Class A | 16th | |||
| 2018 | NPC MuscleContest Excalibur | Men's Bodybuilding | Novice Light Heavyweight | 2nd | [18] |
| Light Heavyweight | 6th | ||||
| Men's Classic Physique | Class B | 7th |
Arad was one of the 15 models of varying ethnic backgrounds featured in Sex = Power = Freedom (2017), a photo book by Andrew Christian, who sought an inclusive and multicultural feel for the book, wanting to express the message of LGBTQ empowerment in the political sphere. [19]
In the light of Trump's travel ban in January 2017, Christian told Gay Star News, "Arad’s story is a reminder of how offering refugees a home in the US can not only transform their lives but may actually save their lives. It is a tragedy that our LGBT brothers and sisters will die, along with many others, because of Trumps new extreme vetting policy." [7]
Speaking out against the immigration ban, [20] Arad said, "I am extremely saddened by Trump’s new policy on immigration I think it is important for Americans to know that people are seeking refugee status in the USA because they love America for the freedom this country provides. I am sure the new policy will create much needless suffering among innocent people who just want a better life and the policy may even be counterproductive if extremists use it as part of their message of hate." [7]
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