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Profound tributes are pouring in for the legendary Bahram Beyzai, a colossus of Persian film and stage, who passed away at the age of 87 while residing in the United States.

Homeland in Mourning

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

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

Although Beyzai's subsequent works were prohibited in the 1980s by the Islamic regime, a host of prominent officials in the current government have also paid tribute his contribution to Persian arts.

A Mentor to Filmmakers

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

Beyzai avoided direct political references in his work, both as a dramatist and a film director, and always maintained he tried not to trade in overt messages.

But his oeuvre over many decades sets historical, even mythic figures in conflict with oppressive religious and political systems.

A Cultural Foundation

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

He first rose to prominence as a theater writer, inspired by Persian legend and ritual.

A devotee of cinema, he moved into making films in the 1970s.

He won renown 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 overthrew him—with both systems ever ready to detect hidden messages that could be seen as dissent.

"Beyzai never opted for the easy way. He endured years of marginalization, imposed silence, and distance, but he did not give up his artistic voice and his beliefs," said the filmmaker in his tribute.

The Little Stranger

A few years after the Iranian Revolution, he produced what many consider his magnum opus, Bashu, the Little Stranger, about a young child who tries to take refuge from the devastating conflict.

It was censored in Iran—as were other films 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 restored version at this year's Venice Film Festival, receiving an award for outstanding feature in the classics section.

A Hopeful Exile

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

Even after he left his homeland, his wife, the actress Shamsai, said just the sound of the word "Iran" would still make him emotional—and he continued to hope for a new culture and future for his native land.