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Widespread tributes are pouring in for the legendary Bahram Beyzai, a giant of Iranian cinema and theatre, who has died at the age of 87 in the US.

Homeland in Mourning

The headlines of Iranian newspapers mourn his loss, with dissenting figures and those who reflect nostalgically on the pre-revolution period also offering their respects to Beyzai.

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

Although Beyzai's later films were prohibited in the 1980s by the Islamic regime, a number of prominent officials in the present administration have also acknowledged his contribution to Iranian culture.

A Mentor to Filmmakers

Several of the current crop of Persian directors have acknowledged their debt to him. Jaafar Panahi said that Beyzai taught them "how to stand up to oblivion."

Beyzai steered clear of overtly political content 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 sets archetypal characters in conflict with authoritarian structures of power.

Roots in Tradition

Hailing from a lineage of renowned poets, Beyzai was steeped in the richest heritage of Iranian artistry from birth.

He first rose to prominence as a playwright, drawing on Persian legend and ritual.

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

He won renown as one of the pivotal artists in the new wave of Persian film.

An Enduring Voice

His most productive period straddled the time of the Shah and then the Islamic theocratic forces that deposed him—with each regime constantly poised to detect hidden messages that could be seen as dissent.

"Beyzai did not choose the easy way. He endured years of exclusion, enforced quiet, and exile, but he never abandoned his language 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 find shelter from the Iran-Iraq war.

It was banned 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 screened in a newly remastered print 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 spent his later years in the US, where he lectured on Persian studies.

Even after he went into exile, his wife, the actress Mozhdeh Shamsai, said just hearing the word "Iran" would still make him emotional—and he continued to hope for a renewed spirit and future for his homeland.