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

Homeland in Mourning

The front pages of Iranian newspapers mourn his loss, with dissenting figures and those who reflect nostalgically on the pre-revolution period also paying homage to Beyzai.

"His passing is an immense tragedy for the cultural heritage of our country," said 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 number of senior figures in the present administration have also paid tribute his legacy to Persian arts.

A Mentor to Filmmakers

Many of the current crop 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 cinematic auteur, and always maintained he tried not to trade in explicit commentary.

But his oeuvre over many decades places historical, even mythic figures in opposition with oppressive religious and political systems.

Roots in Tradition

From a family of celebrated poets, Beyzai was imbued in the deepest traditions of Iranian artistry from birth.

He first found fame as a theater writer, inspired by Persian legend and ritual.

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

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

An Enduring Voice

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 detect subtext that could be interpreted as dissent.

"Beyzai did not choose the easy way. He withstood years of marginalization, imposed silence, and exile, but he did not give up his language and his beliefs," said the filmmaker in his tribute.

The Little Stranger

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

It was censored in Iran—as were other films he made in that period—but later voted by film 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 outstanding feature in the classics section.

A Hopeful Exile

Beyzai ultimately departed Iran in 2010 and spent his later years in the US, where he taught Persian studies.

Although 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 remained ever hopeful for a new culture and future for his native land.