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Profound homages are pouring in for Bahram Beyzai, a giant of Persian film and stage, who has died at the age of 87 in the US.

A Nation Mourns

The front pages of publications in Iran mourn his loss, with opposition voices and those who look back fondly on the pre-revolution period also offering their respects to Beyzai.

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

Even though Beyzai's subsequent works were banned in the 1980s by the Islamic regime, a number of senior figures in the current government have also paid tribute his legacy to Persian arts.

A Mentor to Filmmakers

Many of the contemporary generation of Persian directors have expressed their gratitude 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 film director, and always said he tried not to deal in explicit commentary.

But his oeuvre over countless years places 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 richest heritage of Persian culture from birth.

He first rose to prominence as a playwright, drawing on ancient myths and ceremonies.

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

He won renown 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 deposed him—with each regime constantly poised to detect hidden messages that could be interpreted as criticism.

"Beyzai did not choose the path of least resistance. He endured years of exclusion, enforced quiet, and distance, 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 regard as his magnum opus, Bashu, the Little Stranger, about a young child who tries to take refuge from the devastating conflict.

It was banned in Iran—as were subsequent works he made in that period—but later voted by critics as the greatest Iranian film of all time.

The film was screened in a newly remastered print at this year's Venice Biennale, receiving an award for outstanding feature 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 Iranian culture.

Even after he went into exile, his wife, the actress Shamsai, said just hearing the word "Iran" would still make him emotional—and he remained ever hopeful for a renewed spirit and tomorrow for his homeland.