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Widespread tributes have been shared for Bahram Beyzai, a giant of Iranian cinema and theatre, who has died aged 87 while residing in the United States.

Homeland in Mourning

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

"This loss is a great loss for the cultural heritage of our country," remarked the exiled prince, the exiled son of the last Shah of Iran.

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

The Teacher of a Generation

Many of the contemporary generation of Persian directors have acknowledged their debt to him. Award-winning director Jaafar Panahi said that Beyzai showed 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 trade in explicit commentary.

But his oeuvre over countless years sets historical, even mythic figures in opposition with oppressive structures of power.

A Cultural Foundation

Hailing from a lineage of celebrated poets, Beyzai was steeped in the richest heritage 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 transitioned to filmmaking in the 1970s.

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

Navigating Censorship

His most fruitful era spanned the time of the Shah and then the Islamic theocratic forces that deposed him—with both systems constantly poised to sniff out subtext that could be interpreted as dissent.

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

The Little Stranger

A few years after the 1979 Revolution, he produced what many regard as his magnum opus, Bashu, the Little Stranger, about a small boy who tries to take refuge from the devastating conflict.

It was banned in Iran—as were other films he made in that time—but later voted by critics as the best Iranian film of all time.

The film was screened in a restored version at this year's Venice Biennale, winning an award for outstanding feature in the classics section.

A Hopeful Exile

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

Even after he went into exile, his wife, the actress Mozhdeh 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.