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Widespread tributes are pouring in for the legendary Bahram Beyzai, a giant of Iranian cinema and theatre, who has died at the age of 87 in the US.

Homeland in Mourning

The headlines of publications in Iran mourn his loss, with dissenting figures and those who look back fondly on the pre-revolution period also paying homage to Beyzai.

"His passing is an immense tragedy for the art and culture of our country," said the exiled prince, son of the last Shah of Iran.

Although Beyzai's later films were prohibited in the 1980s by the Islamic regime, a number of prominent officials in the current government have also acknowledged his legacy to Iranian culture.

A Mentor to Filmmakers

Several of the current crop of Persian directors have acknowledged their debt to him. Award-winning director Jaafar Panahi said that Beyzai showed them "how to stand up to oblivion."

Beyzai avoided direct political references in his work, both as a playwright and a film director, and always maintained he tried not to deal in explicit commentary.

But his work over countless years sets archetypal characters in conflict with authoritarian structures of power.

A Cultural Foundation

Hailing from a lineage of renowned poets, Beyzai was imbued in the deepest traditions of Persian culture from birth.

He first found fame as a theater writer, drawing on Persian legend and ritual.

A devotee of cinema, he transitioned to making films in the 1970s.

He gained acclaim as one of the pivotal artists in the new wave of Persian film.

Navigating Censorship

His most fruitful era straddled the time of the Shah and then the revolutionary government that deposed him—with both systems constantly poised to detect hidden messages that could be interpreted as criticism.

"Beyzai never opted for the path of least resistance. He withstood years of marginalization, enforced quiet, and exile, but he did not give up his artistic voice and his beliefs," stated the filmmaker in his tribute.

A Masterpiece Amidst Conflict

A few years after the 1979 Revolution, he produced what many regard as his masterpiece, Bashu, the Little Stranger, about a small boy who tries to take refuge from the Iran-Iraq war.

It was banned in Iran—as were other films he made in that time—but later voted by film critics as the greatest Iranian film of all time.

The film was shown in a restored version at this year's Venice Film Festival, winning an award for outstanding feature in the classics section.

Final Years in Exile

Beyzai ultimately departed Iran in 2010 and lived out his final days in the US, where he taught Iranian culture.

Even after he went into exile, his wife, the actress Shamsai, said just hearing the word "Iran" would still make him emotional—and he continued to hope for a renewed spirit and future for his homeland.