In the coffee shop at Cidade de Goa in Vainguinim, Nikita Mikhalkov, relaxes on a sofa, wrapping up an interview with a television channel. In between takes, the band outside strikes up a merry Goan tune, trumpets ablazing. Mikhalkov smiles and does a merry dance. Interview over, he takes a sip of his drink and chats with his interpreter Nataliya Polyakova.
Mikhalkov is film royalty. For commercial cinema fans, he’s an unknown. But to Russia and those that watch independent and art house cinema, Mikhalkov is brilliant. He captures life in Russia in poignant fashion, from a family cut off from the horror of ethnic cleansing yet agreeing with Stalin’s sentiments to a love story set in old Russia, during the time of the Tzars. His film Burnt by the Sun, on Stalin’s Purge of the 1930s, won him an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language film. Nikita Mikhalkov is great for those reasons and many more.
At the International Film Festival of India though, he’s set to receive the Lifetime Achievement award, for his work in film. But, for him life is still unfinished. He cherishes the award but maintains that he has never worked to win awards. “When I was young, yes you want to be known, but even then I worked for work. When you work for awards it is never enough,” he says.
A culture rich home
Mikhalkov may have, when he was younger, worked to get known but he already was. His father wrote children’s literature and even the national anthem thrice in 60 years, which includes the current Russian national anthem. His mother is the descendent of artists, both her father and grandfather were iconic names in the world of art. She was a poet. His elder brother is a filmmaker too, and has directed a few Hollywood movies including the popular Tango and Cash, as well as The Nutcracker in 3D. “I woke up every morning to the music of Rachmaninoff. It was a strict household, but full of love and rich with culture,” he says of his childhood. It certainly would have been a tad difficult to relate to all the different classes of people that lived in Russia at the time, coming from a life of privilege but Nikita Mikhalkov shrugs off the suggestion that his background made it difficult to understand people. “It was natural,” he states.
With his father and mother, as well as his grandfathers, doing great things, was it difficult to find his way? He says not. “In that atmosphere it was very easy to develop. But it was difficult too,” he says with a smile, explaining that it was other people’s jealousy that made it so, or perhaps the time when he unknowingly set himself apart from others. “One time I was late for school. I explained to my teacher that I was up in the night at this piano recital. She had stood in line for days to get tickets but couldn’t. My honesty made my teacher feel bad,” he says with a tinge of sadness.
Different landscapes on screen
With his films, he has managed to capture the imagination of Russians everywhere, as well as set stories in troubled times. But he never really set out to change perceptions. “I never did it specially. Only those things that are truly national can become international,” he states. For him, a film was just that “ a story. It didn’t exist for an agenda. While he has strong political views, he doesn’t bring his politics to the set or impose it on his characters. “I’m not involved with politics, not a member of any party or group… I never brought my politics onto film. I have my opinions, I say what I mean. But my films have a history of love, they reflect the atmosphere of the times. In Burnt by the Sun, we talk about how Stalin was. I don’t know how to shoot a political film. I’m a conservative person, I don’t like liberal things,” he says unapologetically.
So, how does a conservative person manage to live his life via a liberal medium like films? Mikhalkov explains, “You have to understand what my perception of conservatism and liberalism is. Imagine a tree, but this tree has very strong roots deeply embedded in the soil. Higher up, the branches and the leaves sway in the wind, going from left to right. These are liberal, but the roots they are strong. They are holding the tree in place. That is conservatism.”
Mikhalkov goes on to stress on the idea of conservatism. “Knowledgeable conservatism…” he says. “…if you don’t have strong roots, everything will fly away. The standards that the world is living, it will lead to its destruction.”
The intelligent Russian
His point made, he smiles and takes another sip of his drink. In the background, the serenaders have stopped and the evening entertainment is underway in the bar at the lobby. He makes sure that he has a table reserved at the restaurant for dinner and then proceeds to talk about the intelligent Russian. “In many dictionary there are two definitions of intelligent. There is the intelligent Russian, and then there’s everyone else who is intelligent. It’s very simple. Every person has his own point.”
It’s interesting, learning about how he thinks and how Russia thinks. The country is misunderstood. It has gone through a dark time at the turn of the 19th century and even later after the World Wars. It has been shut off from the world and engaged in a Cold War with the West, a war that some say still carries on in the background. Where does this leave the rich culture of Russia? “It is there,” he says emphatically.
Nikita Mikhalkov is a strong supporter of Russian president Vladmir Putin. His tee shirt has an image of Putin on it. “He is the first person that I can remember, over the past few decades, who is not afraid to speak. I have seen his speeches in Berlin and other places. A lot of people agree with him, but they are afraid to say it out loud. There is a truth behind him. Yes means yes. No means no. In Europe, I do not see any other leader like him. Maybe Angela Merkel,” he says the last line as an afterthought, but with a cheerful smile on his face.
Nataliya is translating all the while, but takes a moment to describe the impact that Nikita Mikhalkov has had on Russia. “When you watch his films, you get this feeling. It’s not a usual feeling. He is a good director, and working with him for the past two days, I see how strong he is. I can only imagine what his team must feel,” she says. Mikhalkov gets up from his seat and says, “Yes, my team… I am a difficult person to work with, but they are soldiers…” And then the intelligent Russian goes to dinner.
