TEHRAN -- Veteran cinema and stage actor Jamshid Mashayekhi received tributes during a ceremony held in his honor by members of the Iranian Artists Forum (IAF), the Theater Forum and the House of Cinema, at the IAF venue on Wednesday evening.

Prominent actors and actresses including Ezzatollah Entezami, Hamid Samandarian, Davud Rashidi, Iraj Rad, Mahin Shahabi, Morteza Ahmadi and Roya Teimurian took part in the celebration.
Speaking at the event, Samandarian referring to their longstanding theatrical relationship, said, “Mashayekhi has performed many plays during his 50-year career during which time I gradually became aware of his unique capabilities.
“As Mashayekhi progressed in the field of acting, I noticed he had a gift for being able to assimilate the ethos of a foreign text and transform its metaphors and meanings into the Iranian culture, thereby rendering a play easy to grasp by our audiences. He could play a part written in a foreign language as easily as any Farsi-written drama. I shall never forget his wonderful stage performances.”
The renowned painter Aidin Aghdashlu spoke next, relating the time when he was appointed as Mashayekhi’s painting teacher, saying, “ Several years ago I was given the job of teaching Mashayekhi how to paint, as he was to play the role of the master artist “Kamalolmolk” in the movie of the same name by the late director Ali Hatami. When I saw him clad in his Kamalolmolk costume, I had the feeling that the great master of art was actually standing before me.”
He continued, “Mashayeki is a master actor, who should be classed in the ranks of those such as Kamalolmolk. Moreover, he is a most upright and respectable man whom we should be proud of having in our midst.
Veteran actor, and an old friend of Mashayekhi, Ezzatollah Entezami also talked about his colleague, “We worked together, and from the start there was honesty between us. We acted alongside each other in the movie ‘The Cow’. After that, each of us went our separate ways, but we have both always been involved in endeavors to preserve the theatrical arts.”
Entezami also expressed hope that ceremonies held in honor of celebrities would be arranged during their lifetimes, and not after their deaths.
After the speeches, Mashayekhi was presented with a plaque of honor inscribed by master calligrapher Gholamreza Amirkhani.
In addition, another commemorative plaque and an honorary diploma were handed to the master by members of Iran’s House of Cinema.
The ceremony ended with performances of live music and a screening of the biopic focusing on Mashayekhi directed by Amir-Mehrtash Mahdavi.
Mashayekhi was born on November 26, 1934 in Tehran.
He began his acting career in 1957. His first feature film role was in “Brick and Mirror” by director Ebrahim Golestan (1965). After a four-year break, he acted in “The Cow” by Dariush Mehrjuii (1969) and “Qeisar” by Masud Kimiaii (1969).
He received a best performance award for his role in “The Grandfather” by Majid Qarizadeh (1985) from the First Festival of Non-aligned Countries in North Korea.
Caption: Veteran Iranian actor of stage and screen Jamshid Mashayekhi (R) receives a lifetime achievement award from actor Khosro Shakibaii (C) in his latest getup, during a ceremony held by the Iranian Artists Forum (IAF), the Theater Forum, and the House of Cinema at IAF on December 5. Actor Behzad Farahani is also seen in the photo. (Fars/Zeinab Khubru