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Widespread homages are pouring in for Bahram Beyzai, a giant of Persian film and stage, who has died at the age of 87 while residing in the United States.

Homeland in Mourning

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

"This loss is an immense tragedy for the cultural heritage of our country," said Prince Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of the last Shah of Iran.

Although Beyzai's later films were banned in the 1980s by the theocratic government, a number of senior figures in the present administration have also acknowledged his legacy to Iranian culture.

A Mentor to Filmmakers

Many of the contemporary generation of Persian directors have expressed their gratitude to him. Award-winning director 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 cinematic auteur, and always maintained he tried not to deal in overt messages.

But his work over countless years places archetypal characters in conflict 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 playwright, drawing on Persian legend and ritual.

A lifelong fan 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.

An Enduring Voice

His most fruitful era 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 interpreted as criticism.

"Beyzai did not choose the path of least resistance. He withstood years of marginalization, imposed silence, and exile, but he never abandoned his artistic voice and his convictions," stated Jaafar Panahi in his tribute.

A Masterpiece Amidst Conflict

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

It was banned in Iran—as were subsequent works he made in that period—but later chosen by 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, receiving an award for outstanding feature in the heritage category.

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 went into exile, his wife, the actress Mozhdeh Shamsai, said just the sound of the word "Iran" would still bring tears to his eyes—and he remained ever hopeful for a new culture and tomorrow for his homeland.