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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 while residing in the United States.

A Nation Mourns

The front pages of Iranian newspapers mourn his loss, with dissenting figures and those who look back fondly on the Shah era 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 banned in the 1980s by the Islamic regime, a host of senior figures in the current government have also paid tribute his legacy to Persian arts.

The Teacher of a Generation

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

Beyzai avoided overtly political content in his work, both as a playwright and a cinematic auteur, and always maintained he tried not to deal in explicit commentary.

But his oeuvre over countless years places archetypal characters in conflict with authoritarian structures of power.

A Cultural Foundation

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

He first rose to prominence as a theater writer, drawing on ancient myths and ceremonies.

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

He gained acclaim as one of the pivotal artists in the groundbreaking movement of Iranian cinema.

An Enduring Voice

His most fruitful era straddled the time of the Shah and then the revolutionary government that deposed him—with each regime ever ready to detect hidden messages that could be interpreted as criticism.

"Beyzai did not choose the path of least resistance. He endured years of exclusion, enforced quiet, and exile, but he never abandoned his artistic voice and his convictions," said the filmmaker in his tribute.

The Little Stranger

A few years after the 1979 Revolution, he produced what many consider his magnum opus, Bashu, the Little Stranger, about a young child who tries to find shelter from the Iran-Iraq war.

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

The film was screened in a restored version at this year's Venice Film Festival, receiving an award for best film in the heritage category.

Final Years in Exile

Beyzai finally left Iran in 2010 and lived out his final days in the US, where he taught Persian studies.

Although he went into exile, his wife, the actress Mozhdeh Shamsai, said just hearing the word "Iran" would still make him emotional—and he continued to hope for a renewed spirit and tomorrow for his native land.