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Profound tributes have been shared for the legendary Bahram Beyzai, a colossus of Persian film and stage, who passed away aged 87 in the US.

Homeland in Mourning

The front pages of publications in Iran lament his loss, with dissenting figures and those who reflect nostalgically on the pre-revolution period also paying homage to Beyzai.

"His passing is a great loss for the cultural heritage of our country," remarked Prince Reza Pahlavi, son of the last Shah of Iran.

Even though Beyzai's subsequent works were banned in the 1980s by the Islamic regime, a number of senior figures in the present administration have also acknowledged his contribution to Iranian culture.

A Mentor to Filmmakers

Several of the contemporary generation of Persian directors have acknowledged their debt to him. Jaafar Panahi said that Beyzai taught them "the way to resist oblivion."

Beyzai avoided overtly political content in his work, both as a dramatist and a cinematic auteur, and always maintained he tried not to trade in overt messages.

But his oeuvre over many decades places archetypal characters in conflict with authoritarian structures of power.

Roots in Tradition

From a family of renowned poets, Beyzai was steeped in the deepest traditions of Persian culture from birth.

He first found fame as a playwright, inspired by ancient myths and ceremonies.

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

He won renown as one of the key figures in the new wave of Iranian cinema.

Navigating Censorship

His most productive period spanned the time of the Shah and then the Islamic theocratic forces that overthrew him—with both systems ever ready to detect subtext that could be seen as criticism.

"Beyzai never opted for the path of least resistance. He endured years of exclusion, enforced quiet, and distance, but he never abandoned his language and his beliefs," stated the filmmaker in his tribute.

The Little Stranger

A few years after the 1979 Revolution, he produced what many consider his masterpiece, Bashu, the Little Stranger, about a small boy who tries to take refuge from the devastating conflict.

It was censored in Iran—as were subsequent works he made in that period—but later voted by film critics as the best Iranian film of all time.

The film was screened in a newly remastered print at this year's Venice Biennale, receiving an award for best film in the classics section.

A Hopeful Exile

Beyzai ultimately departed Iran in 2010 and spent his later years in the US, where he taught Iranian culture.

Although he went into exile, his wife, the actress Mozhdeh Shamsai, said just hearing the word "Iran" would still bring tears to his eyes—and he continued to hope for a renewed spirit and future for his homeland.