🔗 Share this article

Widespread tributes are pouring in for Bahram Beyzai, a giant of Iranian cinema and theatre, who passed away aged 87 in the US.

Homeland in Mourning

The headlines of Iranian newspapers lament his loss, with opposition voices and those who look back fondly on the Shah era also offering their respects to Beyzai.

"His passing is an immense tragedy for the art and culture of our country," remarked Prince Reza Pahlavi, son of the last Shah of Iran.

Even though Beyzai's subsequent works were banned in the 1980s by the theocratic government, a host of senior figures in the current government have also paid tribute his legacy to Iranian culture.

A Mentor to Filmmakers

Several of the contemporary generation of Iranian filmmakers have expressed their gratitude to him. Award-winning director Jaafar Panahi noted that Beyzai taught them "how to stand up to oblivion."

Beyzai avoided overtly political content in his work, both as a dramatist and a cinematic auteur, and always said he tried not to deal in overt messages.

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

A Cultural Foundation

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

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

A devotee of cinema, he moved into filmmaking 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 revolutionary government that overthrew him—with both systems ever ready to detect subtext that could be seen as dissent.

"Beyzai never opted for the path of least resistance. He endured years of exclusion, enforced quiet, and exile, but he never abandoned his language and his beliefs," said Jaafar Panahi in his tribute.

A Masterpiece Amidst Conflict

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 subsequent works 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 restored version at this year's Venice Biennale, winning an award for best film in the heritage category.

A Hopeful Exile

Beyzai finally left Iran in 2010 and spent his later years in the US, where he lectured on Iranian culture.

Although he left his homeland, his wife, the actress Shamsai, said just the sound of the word "Iran" would still bring tears to his eyes—and he remained ever hopeful for a new culture and tomorrow for his homeland.