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

A Nation Mourns

The headlines of Iranian newspapers mourn his loss, with opposition voices and those who reflect nostalgically on the Shah era also offering their respects to Beyzai.

"This loss is an immense tragedy for the art and culture of our country," said the exiled prince, the exiled son of the last Shah of Iran.

Even though Beyzai's later films were prohibited in the 1980s by the theocratic government, a host of prominent officials in the current government have also paid tribute his contribution to Iranian culture.

A Mentor to Filmmakers

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

Beyzai steered clear of direct political references in his work, both as a playwright and a cinematic auteur, and always maintained he tried not to deal in overt messages.

But his work over many decades places historical, even mythic figures in opposition with authoritarian structures of power.

A Cultural Foundation

From a family of celebrated poets, Beyzai was steeped in the deepest traditions of Iranian artistry from birth.

He first rose to prominence 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 groundbreaking movement of Persian film.

An Enduring Voice

His most productive period straddled the time of the Shah and then the revolutionary government that deposed him—with each regime constantly poised to detect subtext that could be seen 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.

A Masterpiece Amidst Conflict

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 Iran-Iraq war.

It was censored in Iran—as were subsequent works he made in that period—but later chosen by film 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 outstanding feature in the classics section.

Final Years in Exile

Beyzai finally left Iran in 2010 and spent his later years in the US, where he taught Persian studies.

Even after he went into exile, his wife, the actress Shamsai, said just hearing the word "Iran" would still bring tears to his eyes—and he continued to hope for a new culture and future for his homeland.