Persian Cinema Titan, Bahram Beyzai, Dies At the Age of 87

Profound homages 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 mourn his loss, with dissenting figures and those who reflect nostalgically on the Shah era also paying homage to Beyzai.

"His passing is a great loss for the art and culture of our country," said the exiled prince, the exiled son of the last Shah of Iran.

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

The Teacher of a Generation

Several of the contemporary generation of Iranian filmmakers have acknowledged their debt to him. Jaafar Panahi said 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 trade in explicit commentary.

But his work over many decades sets historical, even mythic figures in opposition with authoritarian structures of power.

A Cultural Foundation

From a family of renowned poets, Beyzai was steeped in the deepest traditions of Persian culture from birth.

He first rose to prominence as a theater writer, drawing on Persian legend and ritual.

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

He gained acclaim as one of the key figures in the new wave 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 sniff out hidden messages that could be interpreted as criticism.

"Beyzai did not choose the easy way. He endured years of exclusion, enforced quiet, and distance, but he never abandoned his language and his beliefs," said Jaafar Panahi 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 censored in Iran—as were subsequent works he made in that period—but later voted by critics as the best Iranian film of all time.

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

Final Years in Exile

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

Even after he went into exile, his wife, the actress Shamsai, said just hearing the word "Iran" would still bring tears to his eyes—and he continued to hope for a new culture and future for his native land.