Profound tributes are pouring in for Bahram Beyzai, a giant of Persian film and stage, who has died at the age of 87 in the US.
A Nation Mourns
The headlines of Iranian newspapers mourn his loss, with opposition voices and those who look back fondly 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 the exiled prince, son of the last Shah of Iran.
Although Beyzai's subsequent works were banned in the 1980s by the Islamic regime, a number of prominent officials in the present administration have also paid tribute his legacy to Iranian culture.
The Teacher of a Generation
Several of the current crop of Iranian filmmakers have acknowledged their debt to him. Award-winning director Jaafar Panahi noted that Beyzai taught them "the way to resist oblivion."
Beyzai avoided 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 countless years sets historical, even mythic figures in opposition with authoritarian religious and political systems.
Roots in Tradition
From a family of celebrated poets, Beyzai was imbued in the richest heritage of Iranian artistry from birth.
He first rose to prominence as a playwright, inspired by Persian legend and ritual.
A devotee of cinema, he transitioned to making films in the 1970s.
He gained acclaim as one of the key figures 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 both systems constantly poised to detect hidden messages that could be interpreted as dissent.
"Beyzai did not choose the easy way. He withstood years of marginalization, imposed silence, and exile, but he never abandoned his artistic voice 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 censored in Iran—as were other films he made in that time—but later chosen by film critics as the best Iranian film of all time.
The film was shown in a restored version 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 Iranian culture.
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 remained ever hopeful for a renewed spirit and future for his homeland.
