"MY SECRET IS OUT"

Merited Artiste Ayan Mir-Qasimova is emotional and natural, not only in films and on the stage, but in real life too. She loves her profession which requires a great sense of responsibility and the ability to assert oneself, and she believes that success only comes when you immerse yourself completely in the creative process - selflessly and with love. She spoke to Regionplus about her favourite roles, her relationship with her father, the director Oqtay Mir-Qasim, about her daughter Ceyran and many other things.

- When did you first come face to face with the stage at the theatre ?

- The first time I acted on the stage was at the Theatre of Young Spectators [in Baku], when I was eight years old. It was a staging by Azar Pasa Neymatov of Anar's play "The Last Night of the Out-going Year". Firangiz xanim[a term of respectful address for Azerbaijani women]Sarifova played the main part, and I had been given the part of her grand-daughter. When I was a child, any type of acting was an amusing game for me. I enjoyed going on the stage and was relaxed about it. I never felt worried or afraid. That is probably because childhood is a happy carefree time. It was not until much later that I experienced the feeling of responsibility when going out onto the stage.

- What do you really like best - acting in films or in the theatre? Where is it easier to work and where do you enjoy it most - on the stage or the film set?

- I have experienced quite a few happy and even wonderful moments on the film set. You see, films are the real miracle of the age, both of the past and of the present. In spite of the enormous complexity of the acting profession, I never ceased to thank fate for letting me have this fantastic destiny. The time I like best in the theatre is the everyday activities, the rehearsals. I enjoy the process of working on a role.

- Your favourite role, which you are prepared to perform for ever…

- I have been acting at the Samad Vurgun Russian Drama Theatre for 23 years now. In my early years at the theatre I acted in the crowd scenes, I tried furiously, danced in the corps de ballet, played the little animals in the fairy-tales and rejoiced when I managed to get "plump" bit parts or secondary roles. Later on, they began to give me the main roles. Among them my favourite ones were from the classical repertoire: Zoya Okayemova in Ostrovsky's "Handsome Men", Olivia in Shakespeare's "As You Like It", Angelique in Moliere's "The Imaginary Invalid", Katerina Verkhovtseva in "The Brothers Karamazov" and naturally the part of Fenisa in "Fenisa's Hook" by Lope de Vega. We performed this play for 10 theatre seasons, from 1995 through 2005. I had 40 pages of text in verse, huge monologues, numerous events and intrigues, passion,love jealousy and Spanish songs and dances. It is precisely thanks to this character that that I understood what an important part craft plays in our profession, which can continuously be polished. I acted in films at the same time as I was working in the theatre.

I went throughthe school of life, my role matured along with me. New hues of colour appeared in each subsequent performance, feelings became sharper, a new concealed meaning arose.I would like to play a part like that forever. It is a pity that they have not yet invented the elixir of youth.

- In March this year Oqtay Mir-Qasim's film "To Die Avenged" was premiered in Baku, in which you starred. What was it like to work under your father's direction?

- Incidentally, my father won the prize in the "Best Director of a Full-length Feature Film" nomination at the recent Xth International Festival of Muslim Cinema in Kazan. Of course, acting in the film "Die Avenged. The Letters from the Past" left its mark on me. Not only was it a very interesting job from the point of view of practice in my profession, but also the ideas which formed the basis of the film were incredibly dear to me and interesting from the point of view of their profound philosophy. I think that many people who took part in making that film experienced a considerable boost in their experience of life and a broadening of their awareness. And perhaps their world outlook even underwent a cardinal change. We traversed a difficult path with our characters, both territorially (the film was shot in Azerbaijan, Georgia and Germany) and spiritually. As far as relations with the director, my father, were concerned, I can truthfully say that he is a professional and talented person, with whom it is very interesting to work.

- Ayan, at what age did you realise that your father was a well-known director?

- I felt myself to be a child for quite a long time. Naturally, I found my father interesting right from early childhood. But, when I was a child, for me he was first and foremost a caring and loving Dad who brought me and my sister up side by side with my mother, tried to convey to us all that was most valuable that one could get from one's parents. It was only later that I understood that my father was a well-known personality. Today the thought comes to me increasingly often that it was not only a great honour and a gift to be born into the family of the Mir-Qasimovs, but an enormous responsibility and has given me a sense of pride. My Dad's father, Mir-Asadulla Mir-Qasimov was the first Azerbaijani scholar and surgeon, D.Sc. (Medicine), the founder of modern medical education and science in our country. My father's mother, Ceyran xanim, the youngest daughter in the well-known family of the Axundovs and Bayramalibayovs, received the most refined of educations, like many of her coevals from noble families.

- You graduated from the All-Union State Cinematography Institute (VGIK), where your father had studied before you. Was it easy for the daughter of a well-known director to study at the main cinematographic institute?

- The children of many famous film-makers like Fedor Bondarchuk, Anna Tikhonova and Olga Shukshin and others were studying with me at the Cinematographic Institute. That was a time when it was not customary to talk about being related to famous people. We all tried to prove to ourselves, to each other and to the lecturers, that it was not by chance that we were at the institute, but that we were indeed personalities who could make their own way in life. This was all the more so since my Dad had graduated from the Cinematographic Institute in his time, and naturally the professors and lecturers remembered him.

I remember that my father's film "Devil under the Windscreen" was presented for discussion at a seminar on the history of contemporary film. At that time, it was one of the most popular films. The film had won first prize at the All-Union Film Festival. I sat in the overcrowded assembly hall and watched the film, holding my breath. I was very worried that the students would spot the surname Mir-Qasimov in the titles. I did not want to hear people gossiping and conversations behind my back saying that Oqtay Mir-Qasim's daughter is studying at the Cinematography Institute "because of her father". The students applauded the film "Devil under the Windscreen" for a long time and heatedly discussed the striking episodes in the film and theactors'performances.

I already thought that everyone had decided that I just had the same surname as Oqtay Mir-Qasim, when one student from the Moldovan course came up to me and asked with a smile, "Ayan, what's it like to be a director's daughter?". I was ready to fall through the floor, that they had "uncovered my secret". How stupidly I behaved at that time! Now I understand that what is most important in this life is not personal ambitions, the desire to show that you have done something to advance your career. The main thing is your family and your roots, which form a strong framework for present and future generations.

- Tell us something about your daughter. What is she interest in? Has she already chosen a profession for herself?

-Many actors do not want their children to follow in their footsteps. I am no exception. My daughter Ceyran is an observant and clever little girl. At the present time, she hasn't decided on a choice of profession, but it is clear that it will be something in the humanities.

- You have been recorded reading several poems by Leyla Aliyeva. How dear are they to you and what feelings do they evoke?

- I was interested in the poetry of Leyla Aliyeva right from the first time I read the verses, right from the very first line: "I don't want to leave you, I can't leave you…" You understand that in the theatre and in film my professional experience has mainly been gained in drama, in the interpretation of contrasts. In the verses of Leyla Aliyeva there is something founded on doubt, on inner struggle, touching the most sensitive parts of the human spirit. What is most important is that the sorrow in Leyla Aliyeva's poetry is filled with light, and the drama inherent in it is not suppressing, but on the contrary challenges you to reflect on it. These are positive, human, feminine and very sincere verses.

- You are regarded as one of the best contemporary Azerbaijani actresses. What is the formula for your success?

Thank you. Success comes when you set yourself the goal of having to achieve it, and, forgetting about the outcome, you immerse yourself in the creative process, selflessly and with love.