HOW you gonna keep them down on the ostrich farm after they’ve seen Tehran?

That’s the questioned posed by “The Song of Sparrows,” directed and co-written by Iran’s Oscar-

nominated (for “Children of Heaven” in 1999) Majid Majidi.

Karim (Reza Naji) supports his wife and three kids as an ostrich wrangler. But, as seems to be happening a lot these days, he’s fired.

On a trip to Tehran to buy a new hearing aid for one of his daughters, he mistaken for a taxi driver, and gives a stranger a ride on the back of his motorbike.

The rider pays a relatively large amount, prompting Karim to continue his taxi service on a regular basis. Eventually, however, he discovers that the easy cash comes at a moral price.

Majidi is a master director of tear-jerkers, and he proves true to form with “Sparrows.”

As usual with Majidi, the cinematography is super (best scene shows Karim, disguised as an ostrich, in pursuit of an escaped bird) and the acting is realistic and low-key.

In Farsi, with English subtitles. Running time: 96 minutes. Rated PG (mature subject matter). At the Lincoln Plaza, Broadway and 63rd Street.