🔗 Share this article Persian Cinema Titan, Beyzai, Passes Away Aged 87 Beyzai pictured alongside his spouse, the actress Mozhdeh Shamsai Widespread homages have been shared for Bahram Beyzai, a giant of Iranian cinema and theatre, who passed away aged 87 while residing in the United States. Homeland in Mourning The front pages of publications in Iran lament his loss, with dissenting figures and those who reflect nostalgically 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 Prince Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of the last Shah of Iran. Although Beyzai's subsequent works were prohibited in the 1980s by the Islamic regime, a host of prominent officials in the present administration have also paid tribute his contribution 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 showed them "how to stand up to oblivion." Beyzai steered clear of direct political references in his work, both as a dramatist and a film director, and always said he tried not to trade in explicit commentary. But his work over countless years places historical, even mythic figures in conflict with authoritarian structures of power. A Cultural Foundation Hailing from a lineage of celebrated poets, Beyzai was imbued in the deepest traditions of Persian culture from birth. He first found fame as a playwright, inspired by ancient myths and ceremonies. A devotee of cinema, he transitioned to making films in the 1970s. He gained acclaim as one of the pivotal artists in the groundbreaking movement of Iranian cinema. Navigating Censorship His most fruitful era spanned the time of the Shah and then the Islamic theocratic forces that overthrew him—with each regime constantly poised to detect hidden messages that could be interpreted as dissent. "Beyzai did not choose the path of least resistance. He endured years of exclusion, enforced quiet, and exile, but he did not give up his artistic voice and his convictions," stated the filmmaker in his tribute. The Little Stranger A few years after the 1979 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 subsequent works he made in that period—but later chosen by film critics as the greatest Iranian film of all time. The film was shown in a restored version at this year's Venice Film Festival, winning an award for best film in the classics section. A Hopeful Exile Beyzai ultimately departed Iran in 2010 and lived out his final days in the US, where he taught Persian studies. Even after he left his homeland, his wife, the actress Mozhdeh Shamsai, said just the sound of the word "Iran" would still bring tears to his eyes—and he continued to hope for a renewed spirit and future for his homeland.