Some harshly criticize Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, others, on the contrary, are standing firmly behind Putin. Still others remain silent out of fear or flee Russia. There are those who returned to bombed Kyiv too. Because as it is in wartime – also the most shining Russian show-business stars, alike politicians and oligarchs, have become hostages to this dramatic situation in which masks are falling off and you need to show your true face.

Alla Pugacheva, Maxim Galkin, Nikolay Baskov, Philipp Kirkorov, Valery Meladze, Viera Brezhneva, Vierka Serdyuchka, Ani Lorak. Even if one is just vaguely interested in the Russian pop-culture, they can’t be unfamiliar with these names. These stars are the brightest of the bright. Anyway, it is enough to watch the New Year’s “star parade” customarily preceding Vladimir Putin’s annual speech.

WAR IN UKRAINE

Just as back in the day the presence at the stand of Lenin's mausoleum in Moscow (and the order of seats) during the parade on the occasion of the October Revolution reflected the rank in the hierarchy of the Soviet power, the same applies to the New Year's "star parade": everyone who counts on the Russian stage must appear there. Pugacheva, Meladze, Baskov and a few others from among the brightest stars had performed at this concert since the dawn of time. Some of them disappeared in 2014 after the annexation of Crimea, and now Russians won’t probably see many more for a long time. At least as long as Putin rules.

On the Kremlin’s black list

Russian and Ukrainian social media are buzzing with rumours on which star supports the war and which doesn’t. While, as it is perfectly known, the word “war” is strictly prohibited and its public use is punishable by up to 15 years in a prison colony.

The one most at risk of this punishment today is Valery Meladze who was the first of the Russian stars galaxy to publicly protest against the assault on Ukraine.

“Today something happened that should have never happened” – said Meladze, dressed in black, in a heart-breaking video posted on Instagram. “History will judge it all one day and will deliver a judgement. But for today I am begging you: stop the hostilities and sit down to talk. People should be able to reach an agreement, that’s what the language is for, we have other means. People shouldn’t perish, we must immediately end it” – he appealed.

Valery Meladze (Валерий Шотаевич Меладзе) is a singer of Georgian origin, holder of the “Merited Artist” title, multiple winner of the most prestigious show-business awards: “Gold Gramophone” and “Song of the year”. He was promoted by Alla Pugacheva, in Moscow, in 1995 and since then, thanks to his unique timbre and scale of voice, Meladze hasn’t come off the heights of popularity. He was perhaps the most-performing singer in Russia, one who could give up to 24 concerts per month.

Now his name is placed on the official black list of artists banned from performing and being shown in any archive materials in Russia.

Officially nobody knows where Meladze is hiding but most probably he’s already in Ukraine as his concerts in Kiev on April 1 and in Kharkiv on April 6 have already been announced.

Anyway, his older brother Konstantin, a famous composer and creator of the super-hot female music trio Via Gra (Виа Гра) celebrating huge success in Russia some time ago, has long lived in Kyiv. In Russia there is perhaps nobody who wouldn’t know by heart the great hit by Via Gra „Вот таки дела” (aka „Я не поняла”) without which no dance party can do. Speaking of Via Gra, Viera Brezhneva, who is now wife to Konstantin Meladze, had performed in the band for some time.

“Viera Brezhneva” is the stage name of Viera Galushka (Вера Викторовна Галушка), a Ukrainian singer over whom Russia had simply gone mad. Her stage career left aside, the stunningly beautiful Viera Brezhneva was not only awarded the “Woman of the Year” title but also four times named the sexiest woman in Russia by the international men’s magazine “Maxim”. In Poland you could see Viera in the commercials of Rexona cosmetics.

Now Viera Brezhneva also figures, next to her brother-in-law, on the Kremlin’s black list. In her emotional posts on Instagram Viera accounts the nightmare of bombings and calls on the Russians not to believe Putin’s propaganda. “A war is going on. Not a special operation, as you are told, nor military exercise. It’s a war! Ukraine in your news and Ukraine in real life are two completely different countries. Human life is most precious. Stop this war!” Millions of fans follow her posts. Viera is to give a concert in Turkey, in May.

For Maxim Galkin (Максим Алeксандpoвич Галкин), Russian comedian and parodist nr 1, current husband of Alla Pugacheva, there is no point going back to Russia either. Galkin who perfectly imitates voices and mimics of various famous people had for some time, more and more boldly parodied Putin. Accused of bisexual inclinations Galkin had also quite openly laughed at Kremlin’s strict regulations prohibiting the “promotion of homosexuality”. But, apparently thanks to the powerful influence of Pugacheva, he would get away with it, and it was him who traditionally opened the New Year's "star parade" on Russian television.

However, when the war broke out, Galkin dropped his comedian’s mask and, on February 25, posted a heated post on Instagram: “since this morning I have been over the phone with my family and friends in Ukraine. Words cannot express what I feel. How come it is all possible?! There is no justification for war. No to war!”

The Kremlin reacted at once – Uralsib’s commercials in which Galkin appeared immediately vanished from all TV channels. On February 28, world media circulated the news that Galkin, Alla Pugacheva along with their two adopted children had hastily left Moscow. It is already now known that they took refuge in Israel, in a rented villa at the resort of Caesarea by the Dead Sea.

Meanwhile in Russia the state television is delighted to show people returning tickets for Galkin's performance in Arkhangelsk on March 14 "with disgust". Thunderbolts and insults are striking the comedian. “Such things are happening in our country, and he is against Russia, going the whole way. It's not funny at all. How dare a Russian artist act against the Russian Federation? On Ukraine’s side?”, say the “outraged” inhabitants of the city, and the clips from Galkin's old performances posted on YouTube are full of insults such as: “traitor”, “salesman”, ”fagot”, “Jew”, etc.

Strategy of silence

Although Alla Pugacheva (Алла Борисовна Пугачёва) escaped to Israel with her husband, she is trying to avoid open criticism of the war and of Vladimir Putin. The 72-year-old queen of the Russian stage, who had lived side-by-side with every Kremlin leader since Leonid Brezhnev, is now making attempts to convince the public that she only went on “a planned vacation, sick leave and medical treatment, so this is no emigration”.

It is no secret that the 72-year-old singer who owns theatres, cosmetic lines, etc., made a great fortune running into hundreds of millions of dollars and would have much to lose in Russia, so would the oligarchs who hired her for private concerts (for an average of $1 million each).

But day by day more and more calumnies fall on her on the part of Russians outraged at her departure. Others do not hide their joy that the diva has moved out. “At last! She has left Russia forever. God, how long I've been waiting for this!”, announced an Orthodox pop - celebrity Andrey Tkachev, who notoriously shows up in the media, breathing hatred for the West. “Don't rejoice too early”, Pugacheva repulsed him on Instagram. “When I come back, we’ll count. I'll go to your Orthodox church and pray for you”. Except - what everyone is pointing out - she did not write when this return would take place. According to the “Forbes” magazine, Pugacheva and Galkin are already using Cypriot passports.

still an undisputed king of the Russian stage. Kirkorov avoids talking about politics like fire, but for the fact that he gave concerts in the Russian-occupied Crimea last year he was recognized as persona non grata by the Ukrainian authorities, and the Lithuanian authorities, also for this reason, prohibited him from visiting their country for five years.

Today many Russian celebrities accuse him of cowardice and silence. “So why do you remain silent? You mean you agree with it? We will never forgive you this silence and submission to the regime” – Kirkorov has been attacked on the Instgram by the well-known Ukrainian presenter Vladimir Ostapchuk, those two up till now having been friends. “I will not get caught up in such discussions” – Kirkorov replied. And when Ostapchuk accused Kirkorov that he too “had the Ukrainian blood on his hands”, the upset latter blurted out: “I'm ashamed that we knew one another. I will not tolerate your rudeness. You've finally shown your true face. I’m banning you!”

In 2010, Kirkorov sang the song “Glos” (“Голос”) in a duet with the opera diva Anna Netrebko (Анна Юрьевна Нетребко), which became a huge hit in Russia and for which both of them received the highest award – the “Golden Gramophone”.

Now this world-famous soprano who inaugurated the Olympics in Sochi with the Russian anthem has also become a hostage of Putin's war and, alike Kirkorov, does not want to openly condemn the invasion of Ukraine.

“I am giving up all performances until further notice. This is not the right time to perform and make music”, she publicly announced, but it was widely recognized that it was not enough.

“Due to the cruel Russian aggression against Ukraine and the lack of proper distance from it by Anna Netrebko, we are cancelling all her performances”, announced the Bavarian State Opera in Munich, with which the star had a long-term contract. The Metropolitan Opera in New York did likewise, ensuring that Netrebko “will probably never perform again” on their stage.

Ultimately, Netrebko “condemned the war” by and large but did not hesitate to express her discontent at “forcing artists to express their political views publicly and condemn their homeland”.

Firmly behind Putin

When Russian bombs are being dropped in Ukraine, is it worth writing about those celebrities who stand firmly behind Putin? They are also there, in Russia.

It is enough to give an example of Nikolay Baskov who simply shocked the Russian-speaking artistic world with his attitude. For Nikolay Baskov (Николай Викторович Басков) who thanks to his charming tenor voice is as popular as Meladze, Galkin or Kirkorov, holds not only the title of Russia’s Merited Artist but also its Ukrainian equivalent (which, most probably, will now be taken away). Together with Galkin Baskov he would open the New Year’s “star parade” for many years, and almost every Russian knows by heart his greatest favourite from 2010 “All the flowers” („Все цветы”).

In the Russian celebrity community Baskov has always had a reputation for seeking fame and applause at all costs. But now he has outdone himself. In a post on Instagram he wrote that Russian actions in Russia “are completely in line with international law and the United Nations Charter, which gives us the right to self-defence”. The singer stressed that "the purpose of the special operation in Ukraine is to protect Russia from obvious military threats at her borders” and that it is “a peacekeeping operation to end genocide, prevent attacks on Russia and protect her allies”. In his long post, of course, there were all, even the most absurd “arguments” cited by Putin and a board with an extremely hideous slogan: “Russia does not start wars, Russia ends them”. Baskov's Instagram is followed by nearly five million people.

Baskov was crucified for this post. “You coward and liar, you will burn in hell for this”, wrote the famous Ukrainian rapper Potap. “If you have any courage or conscience, go to the rally and stop your army! Shame on you, it's disgusting! Be brave at least once in your life and tell the truth!”.

Hundreds of thousands entries had been maintained in a similar vein before Instagram removed Baskov's post for "spreading false information". On March 7, the Ukrainian authorities officially sprang into action and issued a warrant for Baskov’ arrest under the charge of "promoting and justifying the war."

His reaction was no surprise to anyone. “I read in the media that the Prosecutor General of Ukraine called me a suspect. In view of the above, I would like to say the following: Irina Venediktova, I hope that this will soon happen to you too. But not just an investigation and a trial, but a tribunal for actions against your own people and for the sake of support for biological weapons experiments in your territory. And of course because of supporting fascism at the state level”, Baskov wrote on Instagram.

The Prosecutor General of Ukraine, Irina Venediktova, also issued arrest warrants of two other Russian artists who loudly and openly support Putin - the famous director Nikita Mikhalkov (Никита Сeргеевич Михалков) and the very popular singer Oleg Gazmanov (Олег Михайлович Газманов) who has long been listed among Russian artists being Putin’s major apologists. In her typical fashion, Venediktova addressed Gazmanow via Facebook: “I have a message for you. Nothing personal. As they say, everyone does their job. As a Ukrainian prosecutor, I would like to officially inform you that the Ukrainian court consented to the request of the Ukrainian prosecutors and allowed them to arrest you for the purpose of delivering you to the territory of Ukraine and applying a coercive measure”. Ukraine has already issued an international warrant for Gazmanov’s arrest.

Great escape

However, before Baskov, Gazmanov or Mikhalkov start fleeing the Ukrainian judiciary, the list of those who are escaping Putin's revenge for openly criticizing the Russian invasion is growing. On it there is already the very popular Ivan Urgant (Иван Андреевич Ургант), a Russian actor, TV presenter and showman. Until now, Urgant had been one of the faces of the Russian TV Pervyj Kanal, where he hosted the wildly popular evening talk show "Viecherniy Urgant". After posting a black board on Instagram with the appeal "Fear and pain. NO to war! ”Urgant fled with his family to Israel.

In turn, the no less popular Xenia Sobchak (Ксения Анатольевна Собчак), TV presenter, scandalmonger and celebrity, who is daughter to the famous Russian politician Anatoly Sobchak (Mayor of Petersburg in 1991–1996) and the Russian parliamentarian Ludmila Narusova, left for Turkey. “We are all hostages to this situation from which there is no way out. We, Russians, will now spend many years repairing the effects of this day”, she wrote on Instagram, referring to Russia's assault on Ukraine.

On the other hand, the famous Russian alternative rock singer Zemfira (Земфира Талгатовна Рамазанова) fled to France. Just before leaving Moscow, like many other anti-war Russian celebrities, Zemfira posted a black board with the slogan "Not for War" ("Нет войне") on her Instagram and deleted all other posts.

It is not yet known whether Elena Kovalska (Елена Kовальская), who in an act of extraordinary courage resigned from the position of director of the state, prestigious theater of the Meyerhold Centre in Moscow made it to escape, if she intended to do so at all. “In protest against the Russian invasion of Ukraine, I am resigning as director. You can't work for a murderer and receive money from him” was Kovalska's statement, which echoed widely around the world.

Under bombs

For many years, one of the brightest stars of the Russian stage had been Andriy Danylko (Андрій Михайлович Данилко), an extremely talented Ukrainian comedy actor, singer, satirist and songwriter, who played the role of a drag queen under the pseudonym Vierka Serdyuchka (Вєрка Сердючка). The Russians loved the busty Vierka with a huge five-pointed star on “her” head, shining with sequins so much that “she” became as popular as Kirkorov, Baskov and Galkin.

Without Serdyuchka, nicknamed “the singing Kremlin” because of the star on “her” head, no New Year's "star parade" or any prestigious concert could do; “she” also appeared in leading roles in almost all New Year's musicals, filmed on the basis of famous fairy tales, adored in Russia. And of course even Vladimir Putin ordered a special, Serdyuchka’s closed show. Serdyuchka is remembered from “her” famous performance at the Eurovision Song Contest in 2007, in which “she” came in second, having performed the provocative song “Dancing Lasha Tumbai”. This work, the text of which is a mixture of English, Russian, German and Ukrainian words, met with harsh criticism even in Ukraine, where some politicians accused it of “grotesque and vulgarity” and “making Ukraine the laughingstock of the whole world”. In Russia, on the other hand, the words “lasha tumbai” were found to be phonetically similar to “Russia goodbye” (so “goodbye Russia”) therefore Danylko was accused of trying to slip an anti-Russian message after the Orange Revolution. Ultimately, Danylko stopped performing in Russia after the annexation of Crimea in 2014 and ever since has been living in Ukraine where he is an absolute idol.

After Russia's assault on Ukraine, Danylko continues to comment on the situation in besieged Kiev in long interviews for the Ukrainian media. In one of the latest, he argued that "Putin should shoot himself like Hitler", and called his old, now supporting Putin, Russian colleagues - Baskov, Gazmanov and Kirkorov - "ordinary cowards". Danylko admits that, like many people in the world, he was fascinated by the Russian culture for a long time, but now he has but one thing to say: “Russian culture – go f*** yourself”, which is a reference to the famous response of the Ukrainian defenders of the Snake Island to the Russian call for surrender: “Русский военный корабль, иди нахуй” – “Russian warship, go f*** yourself”.

Since the annexation of Crimea in Russia, another Ukrainian star Ani Lorak (Ані Лорак) i.e. Karolina Kujek (Кароліна Мирославівна Куєк) hasn’t performed either. Her popularity in Russia equalled that of Danylko; she often sang in duets with Kirkorov and Baskov. It was Kirkorov who wrote the lyrics to her song “Shady Lady” for which Ani Lorak came in second at the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest.

Living in Ukraine, the singer does not speak publicly about the war against Russia, but she did embed on her Instagram a significant post showing photo of a boy wrapped in a Ukrainian flag embracing a girl wrapped in a Russian flag. This photo is circulating on the Internet among all those who realize that sooner or later the war will be over and that Ukrainians and Russians will have to go on living together.

– Krzysztof Darewicz
– Translated by Dominik Szczęsny-Kostanecki