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Profound tributes have been shared for Bahram Beyzai, a giant of Persian film and stage, who has died aged 87 in the US.

A Nation Mourns

The headlines of publications in Iran lament his loss, with dissenting figures and those who look back fondly on the pre-revolution period also paying homage to Beyzai.

"This loss is an immense tragedy for the cultural heritage of our country," said the exiled prince, son of the last Shah of Iran.

Even though Beyzai's later films were banned in the 1980s by the Islamic regime, a host of prominent officials in the present administration have also paid tribute his legacy to Iranian culture.

The Teacher of a Generation

Many of the current crop of Iranian filmmakers have expressed their gratitude to him. Jaafar Panahi noted that Beyzai taught them "how to stand up to 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 overt messages.

But his oeuvre over countless years places archetypal characters in conflict with authoritarian structures of power.

Roots in Tradition

From a family of renowned poets, Beyzai was imbued in the richest heritage of Iranian artistry from birth.

He first found fame as a theater writer, inspired by ancient myths and ceremonies.

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

He gained acclaim as one of the pivotal artists in the groundbreaking movement of Persian film.

Navigating Censorship

His most fruitful era spanned the time of the Shah and then the Islamic theocratic forces that deposed him—with each regime constantly poised to detect subtext that could be seen as dissent.

"Beyzai did not choose the easy way. He withstood years of exclusion, imposed silence, and exile, but he did not give up his language and his convictions," stated the filmmaker 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 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 time—but later chosen by film critics as the best Iranian film of all time.

The film was screened in a newly remastered print at this year's Venice Biennale, winning an award for best film in the classics section.

A Hopeful Exile

Beyzai finally left Iran in 2010 and lived out his final days in the US, where he taught Iranian culture.

Although he left his homeland, his wife, the actress 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.