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Widespread tributes have been shared for the legendary Bahram Beyzai, a giant of Iranian cinema and theatre, who passed away aged 87 while residing in the United States.

Homeland in Mourning

The front pages of publications in Iran lament 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 cultural heritage of our country," remarked Prince Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of the last Shah of Iran.

Even though Beyzai's later films were banned 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 Iranian filmmakers have acknowledged their debt to him. Jaafar Panahi said that Beyzai showed them "the way to resist oblivion."

Beyzai avoided direct political references in his work, both as a playwright and a film director, and always said he tried not to deal in overt messages.

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

A Cultural Foundation

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

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

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

He won renown as one of the key figures in the new wave of Persian film.

Navigating Censorship

His most productive period spanned the time of the Shah and then the revolutionary government that overthrew him—with each regime constantly poised to detect hidden messages that could be interpreted as dissent.

"Beyzai did not choose the path of least resistance. He endured years of marginalization, enforced quiet, and exile, but he did not give up his artistic voice and his convictions," said the filmmaker in his tribute.

A Masterpiece Amidst Conflict

A few years after the 1979 Revolution, he produced what many regard as his magnum opus, Bashu, the Little Stranger, about a young child who tries to take refuge from the devastating conflict.

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

The film was shown in a restored version at this year's Venice Film Festival, receiving an award for best film 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 left his homeland, 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 tomorrow for his native land.