🔗 Share this article

Widespread tributes have been shared for Bahram Beyzai, a colossus of Persian film and stage, who passed away at the age of 87 in the US.

A Nation Mourns

The headlines of Iranian newspapers lament his loss, with opposition voices and those who reflect nostalgically on the Shah era also paying homage to Beyzai.

"This loss is a great loss for the art and culture of our country," remarked Prince Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of the last Shah of Iran.

Although Beyzai's later films were prohibited in the 1980s by the Islamic regime, a host of prominent officials in the current government have also paid tribute his contribution to Persian arts.

A Mentor to Filmmakers

Many of the current crop of Iranian filmmakers have acknowledged their debt to him. Award-winning director Jaafar Panahi noted that Beyzai taught them "how to stand up to oblivion."

Beyzai avoided direct political references in his work, both as a dramatist and a cinematic auteur, and always said he tried not to trade in explicit commentary.

But his work over countless years sets historical, even mythic figures in conflict with authoritarian religious and political systems.

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, drawing on ancient myths and ceremonies.

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

He won renown as one of the pivotal artists in the new wave of Iranian cinema.

An Enduring Voice

His most productive period straddled the time of the Shah and then the revolutionary government that overthrew him—with both systems constantly poised to sniff out subtext that could be interpreted as criticism.

"Beyzai did not choose the path of least resistance. He withstood years of marginalization, enforced quiet, and exile, but he did not give up his artistic voice and his beliefs," stated the filmmaker in his tribute.

A Masterpiece Amidst Conflict

A few years after the 1979 Revolution, he produced what many consider his masterpiece, Bashu, the Little Stranger, about a young child who tries to take refuge from the Iran-Iraq war.

It was censored 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 screened 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 spent his later years in the US, where he taught Iranian culture.

Although he left his homeland, 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 renewed spirit and future for his native land.