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Widespread tributes are pouring in for Bahram Beyzai, a colossus of Persian film and stage, who has died aged 87 in the US.

A Nation Mourns

The headlines of Iranian newspapers lament his loss, with opposition voices and those who look back fondly on the Shah era also paying homage to Beyzai.

"This loss is an immense tragedy for the cultural heritage of our country," remarked Prince Reza Pahlavi, 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 present administration have also paid tribute his contribution to Persian arts.

A Mentor to Filmmakers

Many of the contemporary generation of Persian directors have expressed their gratitude to him. Award-winning director Jaafar Panahi noted that Beyzai showed them "the way to resist oblivion."

Beyzai steered clear of overtly political content in his work, both as a dramatist and a cinematic auteur, and always said he tried not to deal in explicit commentary.

But his oeuvre over countless years places historical, even mythic figures in conflict with oppressive religious and political systems.

A Cultural Foundation

From a family of renowned poets, Beyzai was steeped in the richest heritage of Iranian artistry from birth.

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

A lifelong fan of cinema, he moved into filmmaking in the 1970s.

He gained acclaim as one of the pivotal artists in the new wave of Iranian cinema.

Navigating Censorship

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

"Beyzai did not choose the path of least resistance. He withstood years of exclusion, imposed silence, and distance, but he never abandoned his artistic voice and his beliefs," stated Jaafar Panahi 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 banned in Iran—as were subsequent works he made in that time—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 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 lectured on 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 new culture and tomorrow for his native land.