Vakhtang Kikabidze: “I will never forgive myself for never fulfilling my mother’s request. Vakhtang Kikabidze: biography, photo, personal life of actor and singer Mom, beloved mother

Vakhtang Kikabidze is a famous Georgian actor and musician. His songs have long been beloved by millions of listeners. And the films have become true classics of world cinema. Just look at the famous song “Chita Gvrito” from famous film"Mimino".

This picture has been for many years business card famous Georgian master. But what else bright works Is it worth highlighting in the career of our today's hero? What events brought the actor into the world of Soviet cinema? We will try to tell you about all this, as well as shed light on unknown moments in the life of a musician, right now.

The early years, childhood and family of Vakhtang Kikabidze

Vakhtang Konstantinovich Kikabidze was born in the city of Tbilisi in the area of ​​​​the famous Mtatsminda pantheon, where famous cultural and artistic figures of Georgia are buried. The actor's childhood neighbor and friend was the famous Armenian-Georgian director Sarkis Parajanyan. However, today we will leave this episode from the life of Vakhtang Kikabidze outside the brackets.

IN early childhood our today's hero often came into contact with the world of music. His mother was a professional singer, and therefore the future famous artist often attended various concerts, performances and rehearsals. Music surrounded him literally everywhere, but despite this, at an early age the future artist showed absolutely no interest in it.

Much more interesting and attractive to the young actor it seemed... art. He often painted various landscapes, portraits, and still lifes. It is quite remarkable that he did this mainly on the pages of books, because paper was often tight in the Soviet Union.

Only in high school did Vakhtang Kikabidze start singing. It happened quite banally - during friendly gatherings. His friends played the guitar, and he methodically performed Georgian folk tunes with his voice. After this, one of the future singer’s comrades brought him to a rehearsal of an amateur school ensemble.

It was here, according to Vakhtang, that he first saw a microphone, which at first seemed to him something completely amazing. Subsequently, our today's hero became a permanent member of the school ensemble. He played the drums and also sometimes sang, replacing his cousin, who was the main lead singer of a local band.

I want Larisa Ivanovna (“Mimino”)

As for the school itself as such, in this context it is worth saying that the actor did not study well. Moreover, he even stayed for the second year three times! The reason for this was a dislike for mathematics, as well as innate restlessness. Vakhtang Kikabidze wanted to sing, but he was practically not interested in everything else.

As a result, somehow the Georgian guy finished school. In 1959, he entered the Tbilisi Philharmonic, and two years later he also began studying at the institute foreign languages. According to some reports, the reason for this decision was again music.

The thing is that even in his youth, Vakhtang really liked to copy the singing style of foreign performers. Distorting the words, he sang songs in unfamiliar languages, and therefore at one point decided to correct this annoying little thing. Thus, the singer’s repertoire included songs not only in Georgian and Russian, but also in English and Italian.

Star Trek by Vakhtang Kikabidze: first songs and great success

In 1966, our today’s hero and his friends organized their own group, “Orera”. Together with this group, he began performing as a vocalist and drummer. He was noticed, and very soon Vakhtang Kikabidze received an offer to try himself as... an actor. The singer decided that it would be a sin to refuse such an offer, and therefore very soon appeared on the set.

So in 1966, our today's hero made his film debut. The actor’s first work was the musical film “Meetings in the Mountains.” The debut turned out to be very successful, and therefore Vakhtang Kikabidze soon began to appear frequently in various film projects.

Among the most famous works The films “I, Investigator...”, “The Lost Expedition”, “TASS is Authorized to Declare” stand out among the actor’s films, as well as Georgy Danelia’s films “Don’t Cry”, “Completely Lost” and the famous film “Mimino”.

Vakhtang Kikabidze gives an interview in Kazakhstan

The last of these works became a true classic of Soviet cinema and brought the actor the USSR State Prize, which in those days was comparable to the Academy Award. In addition, over the years, Vakhtang Kikabidze received prestigious awards at festivals in Cartagena, Gabrovo and some other cities.

It is very noteworthy that our today’s hero was awarded prestigious awards not only as an actor, but also as a director and screenwriter. So, in particular, in a new capacity for himself, Vakhtang managed to work on the films “Be Healthy, Dear” and “Men and Everyone Else.”

In total, the great Georgian master managed to work on more than twenty films as an actor. His longest and most fruitful collaboration was with his compatriot Georgy Danelia.

Among latest works Vakhtang Kikabidze’s films, presented in modern times, include the films “Fortune”, “Love with an Accent”, as well as the animated film “Ku! Kin-dza-dza”, on the creation of which the actor worked as a voice artist.

Concerning musical creativity our today's hero, it has also always been successful. Throughout his life, Vakhtang often toured countries former USSR, where he always drew full houses.

His significant contribution to the development of Georgian and Soviet cinema and musical art brought the actor many significant awards. In 1980, our today's hero received the title of People's Artist of Georgia, and subsequently the Order of Honor, the Order of Victory named after St. George, as well as the title of Honored Artist of Ukraine were added to this. But the actor refused the Russian Order of Friendship. The reason for this was the military conflict between Russia and Georgia that occurred in 2008. The geography of his touring performances is also very indicative in this regard. The artist often comes to Belarus and Ukraine, but refuses offers to perform in Russia on principle.

Personal life, Vakhtang Kikabidze today

Currently, the artist is writing a book of memoirs and leads a quiet, measured life. He owns a prestigious mansion in an elite area of ​​Tbilisi, in which he lives with his wife, ex-ballerina Irina Kebadze. Vakhtang and Ira have two children - daughter Marina and son Konstantin. Today they are known as prominent figures in Georgian art (cinema and fine arts). Vakhtang Kikabidze also has three grandchildren who live in different parts of the world.

Actor and singer Vakhtang Kikabidze has not come to Russia for a long time. So long ago that many of his fans, who do not miss a single television showing of “Mimino” or “Don’t Cry,” think that the favorite of the entire Soviet Union is already in the best of all worlds.

In fact, Vakhtang Konstantinovich is alive and preparing to celebrate his eightieth birthday. He rarely gives interviews today, but for a journalist Zhanna Nemtsova, working for the DW portal, made an exception.

The material was published under a headline that speaks for itself: “Vakhtang Kikabidze: I hate the coat of arms of the Soviet Union.”

We will give just a couple of fragments from the answers of the People's Artist of the Georgian SSR.

Nemtsova:— When the Soviet Union collapsed, how did you react to it?

Kikabidze: - I was very happy. I even set the table. The guys sat, walked and got very drunk then, I remember. Such unusual stories told everything related to this event. Probably, if it had not fallen apart, they would not have opened their mouths in life. It was, of course, a shock, but we already felt that this was going to happen.

Nemtsova:— In one of your interviews you said that there was spirituality in the USSR. Why do you think so?

Kikabidze:— I hate the coat of arms of the Soviet Union, the hammer and sickle. It was necessary... What kind of brains should we have to come up with such a coat of arms of the country? It was all connected with, excuse the expression, the shitty life of this huge country. But still, people respected each other more. At that time... There was spirituality. We didn’t even think about why, but we knew that we had to live in this country. But since, let’s say, one is a Tajik, another is a Jew, the third... They should still respect each other. That's how we grew up. Everything else was very bad. Very.

“If I were young, I would also be in the ATO now”

For those who may not have followed the artist’s revelations in the post-Soviet period, his words will come as a shock. But in fact, Vakhtang Kikabidze has been saying something similar for a long time.

It is known that ten years ago, after the war in South Ossetia, Kikabidze renounced the Russian Order of Friendship and stated that due to “Russian aggression” he would no longer perform in the Russian Federation.

One may not agree with this position, but it can be understood: Georgian Kikabidze, as he did before him Rudyard Kipling, is guided by the principle “Right or wrong, this is my country.”

But in 2014, the artist, in an interview with the Ukrainian portal Segodnya, said: “If I were young, I would also be in the ATO now and resist, defending the honor of the country. There is no second option!” This is much more difficult to understand.

The artist dedicated his performance in Kyiv to the memory of the heroes of the Heavenly Hundred. And the question immediately arose: doesn’t the public’s favorite want to dedicate anything to the people burned in Odessa? And what about those whose lives were taken by Ukrainian artillery in Gorlovka, Donetsk and Slavyansk? And what about those who died in Lugansk?

There is a direct answer to this. In an interview with a Ukrainian journalist Dmitry Gordon in 2018, when asked whether he was invited to perform in Donetsk, Kikabidze replied: “Yes, it was. I said no... And that I said something nasty.”

In general, for the Mimino star, the residents of Donbass are, as it were, not people. As well as for his current powerful friends in Kyiv.

Sweet life at the expense of the hated empire

But let’s leave this on the conscience of Vakhtang Konstantinovich.

As the artist himself admitted, he and his friends cheerfully celebrated the collapse of the Soviet Union.

And this comes from a man whose fame and popularity arose only thanks to Soviet Union.

The authorities of the Soviet Union attached importance to the development of the cultures of the peoples of the USSR special meaning. If this had not happened, the Orera ensemble, with which the glory of the young Vakhtang Kikabidze began, would not have thundered across the vast country.

If not for this, the colossal popularity of Georgian cinema, which made Vakhtang Kikabidze a star of the first magnitude, would not have arisen.

The artist, who does not travel to Russia, tours in the former Soviet republics, where he sings songs in Russian and earns impressive fees. Everything is current material well-being Vakhtang Konstantinovich stands on the insane popularity among Soviet viewers of the films “Don’t Cry!”, “Mimino”, “TASS Is Authorized to Declare” and others.

KGB premium under duress?

And if Vakhtang Konstantinovich hated the Soviet Union so fiercely, then why did he work within the framework of this stifling system? Convinced dissidents protested, left the country or locked themselves within the borders of their own republics. And what about Kikabidze?

1972 In the film “I, Investigator” the artist plays main role: the extremely positive Soviet captain of justice Georgy Mikeladze.

1976 In the film “The Lost Expedition,” Kikabidze played Commissar Arsen, a fiery Bolshevik who was worried that he did not have time to take part in the storming of the Winter Palace.

1984 In the political detective story “TASS Is Authorized to Declare,” Kikabidze plays a role more suitable to his current statements: American intelligence officer John Glebb. But after the success of the film, the artist did not forget to receive the USSR KGB Prize awarded to him.

Kikabidze’s claims to the Soviet coat of arms are an absolutely amazing story. For tens of millions of Soviet citizens, the hammer and sickle were symbols of the labor of workers and peasants. Why, in Kikabidze’s view, are these symbols of “shitty life”? Probably because in his life he never held a sickle or a hammer, but always lived off creativity, that is, off the money paid for tickets and records by those who worked with a hammer and sickle all their lives.

Where is your father, Vakhtang Konstantinovich?

Today’s attacks by the public idol against the Soviet Union are also a savory spit in the direction of our ancestors.

In December 1942, a junior lieutenant went missing in the battles near Kerch Konstantin Kikabidze, father of the artist. He gave his life defending his great Motherland, like millions of other soldiers and commanders of different nationalities. And in his declining years, Vakhtang Kikabidze tramples on the memory of his own father.

It sometimes seems as if many of the artists who rose to fame during the Soviet Union were subsequently infected by some strange virus that ultimately caused them to spit into the well they had been drinking from all their lives.

School of hypocrisy

Mihai Volontir, famous Budulai, as a deputy Supreme Council The Moldavian SSR cursed the “Russian occupiers” from the rostrum and voted for independence.

Star of the epic film “Eternal Call”, People's Artist USSR Ada Rogovtseva today he supports Ukrainian nationalists and gives concerts for punitive forces in the Donbass, as well as Vladimir Talashko, remembered for his role as senior lieutenant Skvortsov in the film “Only “old men” go into battle.” The Estonian singer who thundered throughout the Soviet Union Tõnis Mägi, performer of the hit “Olympics-80”, is now a fierce fighter against “Russian aggression” and in this capacity achieved a ban on coming to the republic Steven Seagal: he, according to the performer, “supported the annexation of Crimea.”

Climbing to the top is easy, but falling face down into the dirt is as easy as shelling pears. Vakhtang Kikabidze is clear proof of this.

Georgia is the birthplace of many talented people, world-famous musicians, poets, and sculptors were born here. Vakhtang Kikabidze is one of the most popular Georgian singers and actors, loved by millions of people around the world. He attended concerts on 5 continents and was greeted with delight and gratitude everywhere.

Biography of a Georgian nugget

Vakhtang Kikabidze was born on July 19, 1938, in creative family. His father’s name was Konstantin Nikolaevich, he worked as a journalist, and his mother Manana Konstantinovna Bagrationi was a famous singer in Georgia.

The surname “Kikabidze” belongs to an old Imeretian noble family, and the roots of the maternal line go back to ancient times, because Bagrationi is the oldest Georgian royal dynasty. The boy was raised by his mother and uncle, since his father died at the front of the Great Patriotic War in 1942. Patriotic War and was buried in mass grave near Kerch.

Since childhood, his middle name has been assigned to him - Buba, and to this day he is often called Buba Kikabidze. He did not do well in school. The hardest thing for him was mathematics and exact sciences, like most creatively oriented individuals. In his interviews, he admitted that three times he was left for the second year for this reason.

My biggest hobby at that time was drawing. Due to a shortage of paper, he drew on everything he could get his hands on - magazines, newspapers, even books.

His passion for the stage and passionate desire to perform came to him in middle school. Young Vakhtang quite by chance found himself at a rehearsal of an ensemble, the leader of which was his friend, and became so carried away by a new type of creativity for himself that he learned to perform songs on his own.

From 1957 to 1959 he studied at State University in Tbilisi, after graduation he began singing in the capital’s Philharmonic and actively going on tour. He perfectly parodied popular foreign pop stars and sang masterfully in Italian and English. He even specially went to study at the Institute of Foreign Languages ​​in the capital from 1961 to 1963.

But he wanted to develop in a different direction, and soon he founded his own ensemble, calling the group “Dielo”. The ensemble did not last long; in 1966 it moved to VIA Orera, where the young talent was both a drummer and a soloist. Together they released 8 albums, as well as the most popular hits of their time “Love is Beautiful”, “Song about Tbilisi”, “Native Land”. But Vakhtang soon felt too crowded in this group, and he decided to start an individual solo career.

Film career of Vakhtang Kikabidze

1966 became the most important year in Buba’s biography, since it was then that he made his debut on big screen. The colorful Georgian guy was noticed when he performed on stage and his candidacy for the role in the musical film “Meetings in the Mountains” was approved. Actor career began very successfully, films with Vakhtang Kikabidze were loved by millions of viewers in the Soviet Union.

In 1969, collaboration began with fellow countryman-director G. Danelia. Vakhtang Konstantinovich starred in the film “Don’t Cry!”, for which in 1970 he was awarded a prize at the International Festival in the Spanish city of Cartagena. Three years later, another film with his participation was released - the musical film “Melodies of the Verian Quarter”.

But, of course, the most outstanding film in Kikabidze’s cinematic career is the cult film “Mimino” directed by Georgy Danelia, released in 1977. In 1978, for playing the main role in this film, he was awarded the USSR State Prize - an honorary and very important for anyone Soviet film actor. Since then, his second name has become the nickname Mimino, which means “falcon” in Georgian.

In the film, a Georgian guy plays a provincial pilot, Valiko Mizandari, who dreams of big aviation. Fate gives a chance to the ambitious young man, but on the way to his goal he finds himself in various funny and touching situations, encounters love, friendship, betrayal, and disappointment. Nostalgia for one’s native land turns out to be stronger and, in the end, main character returns to his village, realizing that happiness does not depend on external circumstances, but lies within himself.

The film “Mimino” was shot by the director in the comedy genre, but the secret of its continued popularity lies in the fact that it combines colorful Caucasian humor with deep meaning. The picture is filled with subtle notes of sadness and wisdom, pushing the viewer to the idea that a person’s place is in his native land, among loved ones and relatives who are able to understand him and accept him for who he is. The film became a cult almost immediately after its release. And now, despite the fact that it was filmed more than 40 years ago, its philosophy is understandable to any modern person.

In cinema, Vakhtang was able to prove himself not only as an actor. In the films "Bless You, Darling" (1981) and "Men and the Rest" (1985), he worked brilliantly as a writer and director. These films have been awarded many film awards and prizes, because they are imbued with kindness and love of life, full of a taste for life and purely Georgian humor.

During his life, Vakhtang Kikabidze starred in more than 20 films and now also continues to periodically take part in filming and dubbing films. Some of the master’s last roles were “Love with an Accent” and “Fortune”.

Buba Konstantinovich as a musician and singer

Music became the most important part of the life of Vakhtang Konstantinovich Kikabidze. In 1979, his first album, “While the Heart Sings,” was released, which included 11 songs. The second album was released in 1981 and was called “Wish”. At this time, one of the most popular songs was the lyrical composition “That’s the whole conversation,” which is also often called “Two Loneliness.”

The records sold in large quantities, the songs were played both in his homeland and throughout the Soviet Union. Lyrics filled with deep meaning and rhythmic melodies, combined with Kikabidze’s hoarse voice, made an indelible impression on listeners.

In total, about 20 solo records were released. Also, his songs were constantly included in record collections along with compositions of other popular Soviet performers.

It is difficult to name the most popular song sung by Vakhtang Kikabidze, but his calling card, perhaps, was the composition “My years are my wealth.” It was written in 1981 by the poet Robert Rozhdestvensky and composer Georgy Movsesyan.

To this day, not a single Kikabidze concert, and not a single broadcast about him, is complete without the performance of this composition. Performed by the actor, this song sounds especially soulful, because all appearance spoke about his wisdom and solidity, although at the time of the premiere of the composition he was only a little over 40 years old.

In general, the theme of past years and true life values– one of the most important in the musician’s work. Another famous song performed by Vakhtang Kikabidze is universally recognized as “Grape Seed” by Bulat Okudzhava.

The author himself called it “Georgian song” because it is full of associations with. And ripe bunches of grapevines, and golden trout, and warm earth - all these images transport the listener to beautiful Georgia, and the light accent of the most famous performer of this song enhances general impression and encourages philosophical reflection.

One of Buba’s most famous songs is the song from the movie “Mimino” - “Chito Gvrito”. Despite the fact that the composition was performed in Georgian, it gained incredible popularity throughout the entire Soviet Union; many people like to listen to this song.

Not understanding the words, but feeling their special meaning, in broken Georgian people chanted “Chito-drito, chito-margarito,” which translated means “small bird, pearl bird.” The lyrics of the song are very touching, filled with deep lyrics and bright images nature of the picturesque Georgian land.

Music brought not only real folk and international recognition, but also a large number of honorary state regalia.

• Laureate of the USSR State Prize (1978).
• People's Artist of the Georgian SSR (1980).
• Prize of the KGB of the USSR (1984).
• Honorary citizen of the capital of Georgia - Tbilisi (1998).
• In 1999, the Kikabidze Star was laid in Moscow on the Square of Stars.
• In 2006, a star was opened on the square near the Tbilisi Philharmonic.
• Honored Artist of Ukraine (2013).
• State Prize of Georgia named after Shota Rustaveli (2013).

In addition, Vakhtang Kikabidze was awarded the Order of Honor, the Order of Victory named after St. George, the International Order of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, the International Order of Constantine the Great, and the Order of Vakhtang Gorgasali III degree.

In 2008, the Russian authorities awarded the artist the Order of Friendship, but he refused to accept this award and decided to cancel the anniversary concerts in the Kremlin Palace, thus expressing a personal protest against the Russian military operation in . He has always been an ardent patriot; the theme of love for the Georgian land, for, runs through all his work and his whole life, so he reacted very dramatically to the events of August 2008.

Since then, the artist has not come to Russia as a matter of principle, has not given concerts or taken part in film festivals. However, despite this, he still has millions of fans in our country who never cease to be interested in where Vakhtang Kikabidze is now, what he does, how he lives, what goals he sets for himself.

In his interviews he constantly emphasizes that he still loves and respects Russian people, but he cannot sing in a state that, in his opinion, has annexed part of his country for his own political reasons.

Family and Children. One wife for life...

Vakhtang Kikabidze does not like to talk about his personal life. And despite the fact that about him romance novels They have said a lot since Soviet times, he has been married to one woman for many years - his only wife, Irina Kebadze. They have been together since 1963, according to the artist himself, it was love at first sight.

The future wife was a ballerina of the Tbilisi Opera and Ballet Theater, an Honored Artist of the Republic. They met during a foreign business trip, in Budapest, where both took part in the Days of Soviet Art as part of the same concert group. A few months after they met, their wedding took place.

The wife sacrificed her career and became a housewife. Together they raised two children – Irina’s daughter from her first marriage, Marina Sagaradze, and their common son, Konstantin.

Kikabidze's son also went along creative path, he became the artist his father dreamed of being in his youth. Konstantin successfully graduated from the Art Academy in Tbilisi and now lives with his family in Canada. In 1986, his son was born, who was named after his famous grandfather - Vakhtang. And in 1995, their second son, Ivan, was born. Daughter Marina gave the artist a grandson, his name is Georgy Areshidze.

How creativity inspires creativity

There was always sincere interest in Buba's name and personality. Now few people remember this, but in 1985, three Ural residents Yuri Demin, Yuri Aptekin and Valery Pakhaluev founded a group called “Waterfall named after Vakhtang Kikabidze”. For the end period Soviet era this group was very unusual and had an “anti-Soviet” orientation.

The vocalists performed compositions in the punk-folk-rock style and used special sound engineering techniques. The tracks were recorded with a slower speed of the magnetic tape, as a result of which the voices turned out to be puppet-like and unnatural. During its existence, it included more than 100 participants.

In 2011, a monument by sculptor Zurab Tseretelli was erected in the Georgian capital to the heroes of the film “Mimino”. Initially, the monument was supposed to stand in one of central regions Moscow, on Chistye Prudy at the house of Georgy Danelia. But the Russian authorities delayed the process of its installation for several years, and therefore it was decided to move the monument to Georgia. In the same year, a monument to the heroes of “Mimino” was erected in the Armenian city of Dilijan.

Live for others, not for yourself

Vakhtang Konstantinovich in interviews often repeats the words of his mother that he should live for others, and not for himself. And he follows this advice in everyday life, helping his many friends and relatives who find themselves without work or in difficult situations. financial situation, and in creativity, giving away his talent to millions of fans.

Despite his very advanced age, he continues to create. He is writing a script for a comedy under the working title “Diagnosis – Georgians”, about the adventures of . According to his idea, the film will consist of six short stories, and filming could take place in Ukraine, Georgia or Azerbaijan. He also continues to tour; on his 75th birthday, he visited Italy, Israel, Greece, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, with concerts. But most currently lives in Tbilisi and writes a book of memoirs about his life.

Name: Vakhtang Kikabidze

Age: 80 years old

Place of Birth: Tbilisi, Georgia

Height: 176 cm Weight: 70 kg

Activity: actor, singer, film director

Family status: married

Vakhtang Kikabidze: biography

Vakhtang Kikabidze - famous singer in the Soviet Union and throughout Georgia, an actor with an incredibly radiant smile. The Soviet Cinema Foundation carefully preserves films in which the actor played.

Childhood, family of Vakhtang Kikabidze

The Kikabidze family is an ancient noble family. Vakhtang’s father, Konstantin Nikolaevich Kikabidze, is a journalist, his mother is a singer. The boy lost his father due to the Great Patriotic War; this happened at the very beginning of the war. The young man did not grow up fatherless; male upbringing fell on the shoulders of his maternal uncle. TO creative biography predisposition was with early age.

Music and theater scenes became close to Vakhtang, because the child often accompanied his mother. At that time, music had not yet had time to capture the boy’s heart. Vakhtang studied poorly, failed three times because of mathematics, and the boy loved Fine Arts the most. Because of this love, all books, notebooks and newspapers - everything that could replace paper, were covered with Kikabidze's handwriting, and he spent a lot of time on this.

Music, songs by Vakhtang Kikabidze

There was also time for music, which was able to find its place in the heart of Vakhtang, who was already in high school. There was a rehearsal for the ensemble, in which a friend of the future artist played. This really captivated him, the guy chose percussion instruments, mastered them and began to try himself in the art of vocals. School was left behind, it was necessary to choose a further path in life, and Kikabidze entered the University of Tbilisi, was able to study for 2 years, and studied exactly the same amount at the Institute of Foreign Languages.

The desire to be on stage overpowered, Vakhtang was taken to the Philharmonic, and along the way he went on tour with pop artists. The aspiring artist sang Georgian and Russian, Italian and English songs, he made parodies not only of Soviet, but also of foreign performers.

Kikabidze showed organizational skills by creating a quartet, which after some time became a full-fledged group “Orera” (translated from Georgian this meant: la-la-la). Vakhtang himself claims that their ensemble became the founder of all future VIAs in the Soviet Union. “Orera” created many hits, 8 records were recorded. The next step towards popularity was the beginning of an activity separate from the ensemble, as a soloist.

One of the most often sounding songs Kikabidze of that time had a song about a small bird - “Chito Gvrito”. Very quickly, the singer’s first album and a record with songs by composer Alexei Ekimyan performed by Vakhtang appeared on sale. And the musical composition “My Years...” became the calling card.

Magazine covers were full of photographs of the singer. In the Urals, one of the groups working in the rock style used the actor’s name in its name. Many records and albums with Kikabidze’s songs were re-recorded onto discs in a new format. With the advent of new technologies and modern requirements, video clips began to appear for many of the singer’s compositions. On the Internet you can find videos of the performer’s concert performances. This all testifies to Vakhtang’s incredible, undying popularity.

Acting career, Kikabidze films

A career in cinema and vocal activity went hand in hand. Noticing Kikabidze on stage, film studios began to invite the Georgian with a radiant smile to star in a comedy film. Vakhtang Kikabidze’s first film was “Meeting in the Mountains.” The debut was a success. Director Georgy Danelia found in the colorful figure of a singer from sunny Georgia a performer for the main role in the comedy “Don’t Cry!” and I was not mistaken. The audience fell in love with the hero, and the artist was awarded the Cartagenga Film Festival prize with international level carrying out.

Director for a long time collaborated with the actor, but those who look through the credits after Danelia’s films will not be able to find a familiar name. The thing is that Vakhtang had the nickname Buba as a child. In the roles you should look for the name of just such an artist. The actor was also in demand by other directors. Kikabidze's film biography turned out well. In his piggy bank there were not only comedy films, there were detective stories, musical films, musicals, children's and spy films.

Vakhtang could boast of the fact that he worked on the same site with Vyacheslav Tikhonov, Yuri Solomin, Nani Bregvadze and others. Kikabidze proved himself to be a professional director. He made short films, combining them into one collection. And the comedy, as well as the short films, were filmed based on the original scripts of Vakhtang Konstantinovich.

Vakhtang Kikabidze: biography of personal life

Vakhtang always had many fans, but only one wife. His wife - famous prima ballerina Irina Kebadze. A woman danced at the Academic Opera House in Tbilisi. They named their son in honor of his grandfather - Konstantin. Kikabidze Jr. is a professional artist, lives in Canada, he chose the city of Toronto. Irina already had a daughter from her first marriage, who was raised by the Kikabidze couple, but the girl Marina’s surname was given by her own father, actor Guram Sagaradze.

Now Marina teaches at a university that trains theater actors. Happy grandfather Vakhtang has three grandchildren. Kikabidze is happy in his family, happy from the attention of the state, society and fans. He is an honorary citizen hometown Tbilisi, on the square near the Philharmonic building there is his “star”, in addition, there is his “star” in Moscow.

Author bio: Natsh 612

The descendant of the Georgian kings stayed for the second year three times, and then entered the faculty without exams... in English. The famous singer and actor spoke about his youth, his favorite film and his future book in exclusive interview"Republic"
Tatiana Dugil
In the hall of the Simferopol tourist center "Tavriya" he suddenly appeared before my eyes - an elderly, tired, thin man in a simple, even modest tracksuit:
- Hello! Are you waiting for me? - the voice was low, dull, unhurried, little emotional - where are you, temperamental Mimino?
We settled down on a small sofa in the hall - and the interlocutor took a drag of a very strong cigarette with pleasure:
-That's it, I'm ready!

“Father, out of love for mother, was poisoned by hot pepper.”
-Vakhtang Konstantinovich, you are of noble origin...
-Not just a nobleman - we must take it higher! - he smiled sparingly and began to tell: - Since the 9th century, the Bagrationi dynasty reigned on the Georgian throne. - On them,
in the 19th century, the Georgian kingdom ended. My mother, singer Manana Konstantinovna Bagrationi-Davitashvili, is from this family...
In 1936-37, our family was destroyed: some were shot, some were evicted. My aunt, elder sister Mom, she was in exile somewhere in Siberia. Such a story still circulates in Tbilisi. Once the poets gathered around the table. Someone raised a toast: “To Beria!” And my uncle, my mother’s sister’s husband, a famous poet and writer, one of the group of the symbolist movement “Blue Horns,” said: “I won’t drink for this scoundrel!” His father had already been imprisoned for several years by that time. That night my uncle was arrested. Someone reported and snitched. And two days later, his wife was taken away... An aged, lame woman returned from exile. But the artist Lado Gudiashvili used it to paint Queen Tamara. Do you remember when there were postcards like this?
Life was difficult then, there were no apartments, we huddled in some closets. My childhood was spent in a former kitchen, on a cement floor. Because of this, my legs hurt all my life - I caught a cold.
My grandfather - Konstantin Bagrationi - kept saying: “Until Tamara returns from exile, don’t worry - I won’t die!” And so it happened. That evening when she came, I was probably already nine years old. At night, hiding (we were considered the “family of the enemy of the people”!), friends came to visit. Grandfather met them, then went to his room. Mom said: “Well, now she’ll sleep peacefully!” In the morning we look - by nine o’clock the grandfather does not come out, by ten... We went in to him - and it turns out that he died in his sleep...
My grandfather's brother was in the hospital at that time. The family decided not to tell him that Konstantin had died. But, apparently, one of the strangers let it slip - he escaped from the hospital, but came to say goodbye. I remember: such a handsome man, seemingly strong... I saw my grandfather, fell to the floor - and also died. Both were buried.

-And your father was a journalist, right?
- Yes. I often tell your colleagues the story of how my mother met my father. They met at some holiday with mutual friends. Mom is thin, very beautiful. It was just spring, there were already a lot of different greens on the table. “I look,” she says, “a handsome young man is sitting opposite. And he started courting me!” In the end, he asked directly: “What should I do to make you pay attention to me?!” And on the plate in front of my mother, among the vegetables, there was a lot of green pepper, capsicum, hot. Well, she, young, go ahead and say: “Now, if you can eat five peppers at once...” He immediately grabbed these peppers - and into his mouth! Of course he felt bad. An ambulance was called. While the doctors arrived, my mother wet a napkin and from time to time placed it on the unfortunate fan’s forehead. When I came home, it turned out that word of mouth had already worked. The grandfather almost from the doorway began asking: “Manana, who was looking after you there?” “Young journalist Konstantin Kikabidze!” - Mom answers. And then she told everything: about the peppers, and about how the guy felt bad. The grandfather clarifies: “When you applied the lotions, did you touch him?” "Yes!" - Mom answers. “Since you touched him, that means you should marry him!” - concluded the grandfather.

“I started singing at the entrance...”
- Amazing! Vakhtang Konstantinovich, do you remember when you started singing?
-I started singing quite late. I really wanted to... draw! - the tone suddenly became conspiratorial and confidential. - I was strongly drawn to this. Drew on clean sheets in books, on wrappers. Life was difficult; there was nothing to buy normal paper with.
I still have many artist friends, and I love watching them work. I come running when there is free time, to the workshops, I'm watching. And they crawl out with a hangover - and suddenly they start creating! Do you understand? And they are so happy! And then they sit on chairs on the street, selling paintings - and no one buys them, unfortunately. You probably need to die to be appreciated: this one was a good artist, and that one was a bad one...
I started singing by accident - in high school. Then all the boys sang in the hallways. It was everywhere: guitar, boys doing their best for girls. We also had such an old house with good acoustics in the entrance. And one of the older guys once told me: “Come with me to the institute - to the rehearsal of an amateur pop orchestra, try to sing there!” I went with that guy and saw the microphone for the first time - it was so square and huge. And I really wanted to hold him! Since then, no one has seen me on the street - I was always running to various rehearsals. I sang quail in all universities except veterinary - they had no amateur performances... I went to the student orchestra, played the drums... By the age of twenty, I was already known as a performer among the students.
I did very poorly at school. I didn’t get along so well with mathematics that the first time I was left for the second year in the third grade, then in the sixth, then in the eighth. Mom always cried and was upset. And my Russian language teacher Nina Gazelevna loved me very much because I loved to read. And she reassured my mother: “Manana, don’t worry, he will be an actor!”

“Kikabidze’s voice smacks of the decaying West”
-Why is this so? Many artists, singers, clearly well-educated people, admit that they did not study well at school...
-...Well, the brains are probably wired differently for those destined for art - I think so now! And then I didn’t understand why this happened with the sciences.
But I remember well... We had such a big yard. And there we all, of different nationalities, grew up together. So, when the weather was bad and we had nowhere to go, we climbed into the attic, and there I told the guys stories - with music, with shooting. It’s like watching a movie and retelling it. Then I didn’t even think that I would write real scripts...
And in 1959, one of my comrades arrived in time prom in foreign language... And then he comes: “If you can, sing with us!” Someone lent me a suit. We performed two songs with the institute orchestra. And the rector was at the evening. He began to ask: “Doesn’t he want to come to us?” That's how I got to college! - a short, hoarse laugh seemed to warn that humor was just beginning. - When they told me: “Here is the English department, will you go?” - I was taken aback: “Are you crazy?!” But they gave me a teacher. I studied with him for three months, and he told me: “You have talent, you perceive the language perfectly!” And it was terrible heat, I remember I came for a history exam. I knew that I still had to enroll, but, as a decent person, I showed up for the exam. I go into the classroom, and there are about 30 girls getting ready to answer! And the teacher is sitting there, with a red nose, apparently with a hangover... “Go,” he says, “from here, and come back in two hours, bring three bottles of beer with you, cold!”
When I returned, the last girls were already leaving. I waited until the last door closed, took out the beer, and placed it in front of the teacher. He raised his eyes in embarrassment: “I was at the anniversary yesterday...” “Yes,” I answer, “yesterday we were invited to the name day!” He took a sip of beer and became cheerful. And you can see: he’s hungry, he wants to eat - he’s hungover, and he spent three hours on the exam! He began to ask: “And what was on your tables?” “There was a barbecue,” I obediently list, “that was, that...” “And there was a pig?” - he suddenly clarifies. "Yes!" - I say. “The hell?!” And I knew at that moment that “horseradish” was a bad word! I heard: “Go to hell!” or “No shit!” I blushed! “No,” I answer, “no damn thing. They probably cut it off before serving it...” You laugh - so does the historian. He started laughing! And then he asked: “Tell me, what was the greatest thing Peter I did for Russia?” “I brought potatoes!” - I answer. "Well done! - he says. - Four. Is that enough for you? - "For God's sake!" He gave it a four...

-How did your studies at the institute go?
- Not good. I come to the classroom on the first of September - the girls there speak English, I don’t understand anything. And I wait all day in the evening to go to rehearsal. And in the brain there is only the Philharmonic! “Nah,” I think, “we need to leave the institute!” And so they took me to the Philharmonic to get checked. And then there were artistic councils. And it’s good that they were, because today’s pop music, which gets onto the stage in incomprehensible ways, is simply ridiculous! OK…
For some reason, I was sure that my appearance at the Philharmonic would make everyone very happy, that their arms would open open: “Finally, he has come to us!” And from the artistic council... they kicked me out with the verdict: “Kikabidze’s hoarse voice smacks of the decaying West!” I returned home - dead: I left the institute, they didn’t take me...
And in the evening the administrator of the Philharmonic called. It turns out he was also at the audition. And he suggested: under a different name (so that the management of the Philharmonic would not find out!) He would quietly take me on tour to Rostov-on-Don. I go to my mom for advice: “What should I do?” And she, a professional singer, immediately suggested a way out: “Take my last name! There is no better surname!” And I went on tour as Vakhtang Bagrationi. First and last time performed under this name, and earned the worst review in the press. The Rostov newspaper wrote: “A thin young man came onto the stage and started yelling into the microphone with a hoarse voice” - and so on, such a big article. Hoarseness was then considered something seditious. And then the film “Yves Montand Sings” was shown throughout the Soviet Union. They found me, dragged me to the Philharmonic, put on a turtleneck like Montand’s, and I started working. And since then, since 1959, I have been officially on the professional stage. Such a dinosaur...

“Mimino is not a comedy”
-Your most famous role is Valiko Mizandari in the film “Mimino”. Is this picture significant for you? If yes, why? If not, which movie is closest to the ones you've been in?
-Well, “Mimino” for me is much lower than the painting “Don’t Cry.”
"Do not be sad!" - masterpiece! When the centenary of world cinema was celebrated, one hundred of the best films of the century were selected, and the film “Don’t Cry!” entered this hundred.
And “Mimino” is a mass film.

- Simple…
-But that's the beauty of it. Now the picture has become very popular. Why, do you know? It is not commercial, it is a philosophical film. The story is simple and sincere. What is its meaning? A person must be in his place, where he is needed. Everyone wants to live well, but someone has to fly a helicopter and carry this goat. A neighbor should meet and help a neighbor. I don't think it's a comedy at all. This is a serious picture. People laugh at it first, then think about it. This is the talent of Georgy Danelia.

-Have you finished your book “A Person of Caucasian Nationality”?
- Almost. But I changed the name, because this expression is very offensive. It sounds as indecent as “Jew”, “Chuchmek” or “Khokhol”. I couldn’t start writing for a long time until the first sentence of the book was born: “If a person of Caucasian nationality is talking to you, do not consider him a fool for his accent and grammatical errors, remember that they are speaking to you in your language, fluent in their native language, which you do not know at all.” In the book I remember my fellow countrymen, the various eccentrics on whom life rests. By the way, I write in Russian - it turns out worse in Georgian, it’s slower. The short stories turned out to be very interesting. And the book is now called “They”.

Vakhtang Konstantinovich, probably each of your listeners associates you with a specific song. Which song is dearest to your heart?
-There are a lot of songs - and there are also several suitcases with sheet music that I haven’t touched yet. People bring it - it’s awkward to refuse. I say: “I’ll take a look!” and... it doesn’t work.
But in Lately I realized that I had found a song that I enjoy singing all the time. This is Okudzhava’s song “Grape seed in warm earth I'll bury it." Bulat called it “Georgian song”. Yesterday at the concert I also sang it, and the whole audience sang along with me...

“Children are the best thing I have done in my life”
-Are you happy with your children and grandchildren?
- Very much! - A smile beamed on her tired face.

-What do they do?
-Now my son has come here to Crimea. And he makes sure that I take my medicine on time. Konstantin is an artist, graduated from the Academy of Arts, worked for three years under contract in Moscow at the Georgian Embassy. He is a Canadian citizen. Lives in Toronto,” the interlocutor glanced with hidden pride at the handsome guy sitting next to him with a laptop on his lap, and lit another cigarette. - I was recently in Israel, to see doctors. The diagnosis was not very good, related to the kidneys. And I am not a regime person. I constantly forget and confuse when to take which medicine. So Kostya volunteered to keep order.
My eldest daughter is Marina. She is an actress of the Tbilisi Academic Theater named after Shota Rustaveli, acts in films, teaches at theater university stagecraft. Three grandchildren. Not spoiled, normal guys. There was never a time when any of the children in our house demanded: “Mom-dad, buy me this or that!” They knew how I grew up hungry all the time as a child. Echoes of that famine still remain. The wife jokes and scolds: “Buba, it’s dangerous to let you go to the market! You will buy and bring into the house everything that is there!” But the children grew up in a healthy environment. Well-read, speak Russian perfectly. Honest, decent. Probably the main thing that I have done good in my life is them!

About Tbilisi
-I consider myself, first of all, not a singer, not an actor, not a director, but... a Tbilisi resident. We, in Georgia, have such a position. Tbilisi residents are a separate caste. You recognize them immediately, because from childhood they are taught to respect friends and neighbors. They have their own code of life. There was, in any case. Now it seems to have started to disappear, but, thank God, it’s still holding on.
Let me tell you this story. I had one friend, he is now National artist, famous dancer. And in our yard his family lived in a two-room semi-basement apartment. He decided to get married. He had many friends, but no money. He couldn’t invite friends to the restaurant; they didn’t fit in the apartment. And Aunt Raya lived nearby - not a Georgian, just a Tbilisi woman - half-Jewish, half... someone else by blood. Very educated, the widow of a general, she came to Tbilisi from some city. She lived very poorly: a chair, a table, a bed and an insane amount of books - everything! Aunt Raya was very loved in the yard. So, she lived in a four-room apartment - and dismantled the wall between her home and the neighbor’s, “so that the boy could invite friends.” And we had our wedding in six rooms! And then for several months they could not restore this wall - there was no money... This is such a city - Tbilisi!