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Widespread tributes are pouring in for the legendary Bahram Beyzai, a colossus of Persian film and stage, who has died aged 87 while residing in the United States.

A Nation Mourns

The front pages of Iranian newspapers mourn his loss, with dissenting figures and those who look back fondly on the pre-revolution period 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.

Although Beyzai's subsequent works were banned in the 1980s by the Islamic regime, a host of prominent officials in the current government have also acknowledged his legacy to Iranian culture.

The Teacher of a Generation

Many of the current crop 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 overtly political content in his work, both as a playwright and a film director, and always said he tried not to trade in explicit commentary.

But his work over many decades places archetypal characters in conflict with authoritarian religious and political systems.

Roots in Tradition

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

He first rose to prominence as a theater writer, inspired by Persian legend and ritual.

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

He gained acclaim as one of the pivotal artists in the new wave of Iranian cinema.

Navigating Censorship

His most fruitful era straddled the time of the Shah and then the Islamic theocratic forces that deposed him—with each regime constantly poised to sniff out hidden messages that could be interpreted as dissent.

"Beyzai did not choose the easy way. He endured years of exclusion, imposed silence, and distance, but he did not give up his language and his convictions," stated Jaafar Panahi in his tribute.

A Masterpiece Amidst Conflict

A few years after the Iranian 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 banned in Iran—as were other films he made in that period—but later voted by critics as the greatest Iranian film of all time.

The film was shown in a newly remastered print at this year's Venice Biennale, winning 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 lectured on Persian studies.

Even after he went into exile, his wife, the actress Mozhdeh Shamsai, said just the sound of the word "Iran" would still make him emotional—and he remained ever hopeful for a new culture and future for his native land.