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Widespread tributes have been shared for Bahram Beyzai, a colossus of Persian film and stage, who passed away at the age of 87 in the US.

Homeland in Mourning

The front pages of Iranian newspapers mourn his loss, with dissenting figures and those who reflect nostalgically on the Shah era also offering their respects to Beyzai.

"His passing is a great loss for the art and culture of our country," said Prince Reza Pahlavi, son of the last Shah of Iran.

Although Beyzai's subsequent works were banned in the 1980s by the theocratic government, a number of prominent officials in the present administration have also paid tribute his legacy to Persian arts.

A Mentor to Filmmakers

Many of the contemporary generation of Persian directors have acknowledged their debt to him. Jaafar Panahi said that Beyzai showed them "how to stand up to oblivion."

Beyzai steered clear of direct political references in his work, both as a playwright and a film director, and always said he tried not to deal in explicit commentary.

But his work over many decades places archetypal characters in conflict with authoritarian 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 playwright, inspired by Persian legend and ritual.

A devotee of cinema, he transitioned to making films in the 1970s.

He won renown as one of the key figures in the new wave of Iranian cinema.

An Enduring Voice

His most productive period spanned the time of the Shah and then the Islamic theocratic forces that deposed him—with each regime constantly poised to detect subtext that could be interpreted as criticism.

"Beyzai never opted for the path of least resistance. He withstood years of exclusion, enforced quiet, and distance, but he did not give up his language and his convictions," stated Jaafar Panahi in his tribute.

The Little Stranger

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 take refuge from the Iran-Iraq war.

It was censored in Iran—as were subsequent works he made in that time—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 Biennale, winning an award for best film in the classics section.

A Hopeful Exile

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

Although he went into exile, his wife, the actress Shamsai, said just hearing the word "Iran" would still make him emotional—and he remained ever hopeful for a renewed spirit and tomorrow for his homeland.