FRUNZE DOVLATIAN AND HIS TIME

[MosJan]

FRUNZE DOVLATIAN AND HIS TIME

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In 1996 during a regular congress of Tekeyan Cultural Union I became an eyewitness to an interesting conversation that occurred between Frunze Dovlatian and a man who had held different high positions in Soviet Armenia. The conversation was about a film called Yerkunk (Birth)

 

“The scene with drunken Charents was indeed great,” said the former leader-intellectual. – Indeed, it was a profound, great scene!”

 

“Yes, yes,” the prominent film director said. “I wanted to squeeze it into a ten-minute-long screen time and to grasp the contradiction of that time. I guess I did it.”

 

“You are right,” the former leader went on. Seeing that scene I realized one thing: if we want Yerkunk to go through the censorship that episode must be removed and eliminated. I am very sorry, but there was no other way out.

 

-Yes, the director consented modestly; there was no other way out.

 

Prominent Armenian film director Frunze Dovlatian, whose 75-th birth anniversary is marked May 26, shot only 9 full-length films, which all, without any exception, were subjected to ruthless censorship and were ideologically edited. The record holder was a film based on a screenplay by Perch Zeytuntsian, called the Chronicle of Yerevan Days, which was shortened by 45 minutes. The fate of another film, The Saroyan Brothers, was most noteworthy. At the orders of the top leader some episodes were supplemented to it to make it “ideologically correct.” But along with it, the legacy left by Dovlatian is our national wealth, our pride and our highest achievement in the realm of filmmaking.

 

In 1950 the 23-year old Frunze Dovlatian was awarded a Stalin prize for the leading part in a play called ‘These Stars are Ours.” He received a certificate signed personally by “the teacher of peoples.” Neither Vahram Papazian, nor Hrachya Nersisian, two other prominent Armenian actors of that time , were awarded such prizes, and none of Armenian art men at all. It was decided that a young actor should be awarded the prize. No one could imagine that after winning all the possible awards and prizes in Soviet Armenia, having been elected to the last Soviet parliament and becoming a senior member of the Communist party, the man who was called “the favorite of all regimes” would decide to join the ranks of the Ramkavar Azatakan party, would be elected member of its ruling board and would lead the Tekeyan Cultural Center, but would not be elected to the parliament of new Armenia because of being member of Ramkavar Azatakan, that he would be awarded a medal of independent Armenia and that a book dedicated to him, would be published only after his death. This all comes to prove that Dovlatian was a true citizen-honest and with a principled stance on every issue and at every minute.

 

Hello, it’s me!

 

In 1963 Dovlatian came back to Armenia and was given a work at ArmenFilm studio. Before that the 40 year –old director got a brilliant professional education in Moscow, working as an assistant with prominent Soviet movie director Sergey Gherasimov on Quite Don, a film, that became a phenomena in the world of cinema, as well as on documentaries.

 

In the 60-s which were the years of awakening not only in the USSR but in Europe as well, when the youth took to streets in Paris and other Europe’s capitals, the first anti-war generation wanted new realities, real masterpieces were being created in art. In those years the Armenians raised for the first time their voice for return of historical lands and establishment of historical justice. The people were not scared of powerful Soviet secret service and took to streets. Those were the years when a peculiar kind of connection was established between the Soviet Armenia and Diaspora. In those years great works of Armenian poet Paruyr Sevak, Hovanes Shiraz, writer Sevak were published, which were awakening the national memory and pride. Interesting and new plays by Aramashot Papayan, Vardges Petrosian and Hrant Matevosian were staged in the Armenian theatres.

 

The man who told all this to the Armenians and to the world in an understandable language was Frunze Dovlatian, who shot the film Hello; It’s Me in 1965. This was probably the sole work in movie that praised an intellectual Armenian. Its main character was a physicist, the most advanced and most fashionable science branch in those years. The plot story expands in Armenia, on the slopes of Aragats Mount where a physical observatory is located and its character is a prominent scientist who takes the Armenian science several steps ahead.

 

In 1994 Frunze Dovlatian joins the traditional Armenian party-Ramkavar Azatakan and takes the lead of Tekeyan Cultural Center. He was elected ruling board member at the fourth congress of the party. The policy of then authorities was harshly criticized by the congress and it announced that the party would go to 1995 parliamentary elections with its only ally-the people. Political collisions of that sort did not push Dovlatian away from active participation in the political and public life. His name was among the first on the Ramkavar Azatakan electoral list and he was nominated under a majoritarian electoral system in a Yerevan precinct.

 

In 1990 he shot his latest, the ninth film he called Karot (Yearning). In early 90-s it became clear that the rulers of the new independent Armenia were not interested in art in general and in Dovlatian, in particular. The election campaign for 1995 parliamentary elections was in full swing and the ruling regime decided to put an end to every kind of democracy and did not spare in its drive none, even Dovlatian.

 

The Respublika alliance, led by the Pan-Armenian national movement (HHSH) was keen on pushing two doctors as representatives of intellectuals into parliament and as they failed to find true doctors, they pushed in two chief doctors, one of which was competing with Dovlatian. Back from a meeting with voters, Dovlatian, who was used to applause, was stunned. “You know, he said, hiding a smile. The hall was full of nurses and even of patients, who were promised a two-day free treatment and when the chief doctor entered the hall he was greeted by a storm of applause.”

 

One of the finds of the ruling regime in 1995 was the Shamiram organization, a kind of hen party, created by the interior ministry. The Tekeyan Cultural center was given to a beggarly caricaturist, which made an announcement in the press that he was sacking Dovlatian from his post. After that announcement Dovlatian used to joke that he was the second Armenian after Charents, to have been sacked from a cultural union. The Tekeyan center was for a long denied registration. Everything came to an end in 1996 winter when Dovlatian had a high level meeting, in which he was advised not to deal with politics with wrong people. Immediately after that Tekeyan Cultural Center was re-registered. Then came 1997.

 

As an afterward

 

Researches, dedicated to Frunze Dovlatian, whether they are monographs or articles, should not have afterwards, as the gifted man of art lives in two times-in his own and in the upcoming. His time is not only the surprising time of the 60-s but also our dreams of future. His time is still ahead; it is the time when we shall be priding ourselves of being compatriots of Dovlatian. When we shall be priding of our gifted men.

 

By Rouben Mirzakhanian

 

 

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