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Profound tributes have been shared for the legendary Bahram Beyzai, a colossus of Persian film and stage, who has died at the age of 87 in the US.

Homeland in Mourning

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

"This loss 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 later films were prohibited in the 1980s by the Islamic regime, a number of senior figures in the current government have also paid tribute his contribution to Persian arts.

A Mentor to Filmmakers

Many of the current crop of Persian directors have expressed their gratitude to him. Jaafar Panahi said that Beyzai taught them "how to stand up to oblivion."

Beyzai avoided direct political references in his work, both as a playwright and a cinematic auteur, and always maintained he tried not to deal in overt messages.

But his oeuvre over many decades places archetypal characters in conflict with authoritarian religious and political systems.

A Cultural Foundation

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

He first rose to prominence as a theater writer, inspired by Persian legend and ritual.

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

He gained acclaim as one of the key figures in the groundbreaking movement of Persian film.

An Enduring Voice

His most fruitful era straddled the time of the Shah and then the Islamic theocratic forces that deposed him—with both systems constantly poised to detect hidden messages that could be seen as criticism.

"Beyzai did not choose the easy way. He withstood years of exclusion, imposed silence, and distance, but he did not give up his artistic voice and his beliefs," stated Jaafar Panahi in his tribute.

The Little Stranger

A few years after the Iranian Revolution, he produced what many regard as his magnum opus, Bashu, the Little Stranger, about a small boy who tries to find shelter from the devastating conflict.

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

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

A Hopeful Exile

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

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