The editorial staff of the “Noev Kovcheg” newspaper asked a friend of Armen Dzhigarkhanyan Artur Soghomonyan, a member of the Board of Trustees of the Heritage and Progress Foundation for the Development and Support of Russian-Armenian Humanitarian Initiatives to provide an explanation.
- It is hard to say who spreads such information, and for what purpose. Such a great man as Armen Borisovich Dzhigarkhanyan, who had done so much for the development of culture in the country, deserves a different attitude towards his person and his memory.
As for the condition of Armen Dzhigarkhanyan’s grave, we are currently fixing it up. At the request of the architects and sculptors who are currently in the process of designing the monument, the ground has been leveled and rammed. On the very next day after these works had been finished, the temporary tombstone was restored. Who needed to take a photo of the grave of Armen Dzhigarkhanyan in the middle of such a working moment?
I consider it extremely tactless and unethical to interfere in this process, to try to speculate and do PR on the name of a great man even after his death. Love for Armen Dzhigarkhanyan, for his work is enormous.
Currently, we, his friends, are hosting a competition to design a tombstone. There are already several proposals for the creation of the monument. And we count on the fact that, in accordance with the Armenian traditions, a monument will be erected on the anniversary of his death. By the way, with regards to the “fence” that the author of the article did not see at the grave. The design of the monument does not provide for a fence. All tombstones on the graves of famous actors - Andrey Mironov, Alexander Abdulov, Leonid Filatov, Spartak Mishulin, are arranged in an “open” design so that admirers of their talents could come freely and lay flowers.
The works are underway at the grave of Armen Dzhigarkhanyan. It was a rather harsh winter, there were many dried flowers on the grave, and it was necessary to clean everything up and tamp the ground before erecting the monument.
Armen Dzhigarkhanyan wanted to be buried next to his daughter at the Vagankovskoye cemetery. And the burial place is very small. A lot of time has passed since the sudden death of the actor’s daughter, and other graves have occupied the space around her burial site. But, nevertheless, the authors of the future monument are looking into the possibility of installing it in such a limited space.
By the anniversary of death of Armen Borisovich, all works on the monument installation shall be complete. And it is unethical to discuss this issue, to say the least. I think that those who report such “news” should not even be called journalists.
- Who, in your opinion, is the instigator spreading such inaccurate information and why?
- I believe that these are the people who cannot come up with anything better than shamelessly intruding on someone else’s privacy and trying to make a name for themselves.
Armen Dzhigarkhanyan and his memory deserve a different attitude. It is difficult to overestimate what he had done for the world of culture in Russia, Armenia, and the Soviet Union. Not many can measure up to him in terms of their contributions to the national art.
I hope that self-respecting periodicals will refute this inaccurate information.
Today everyone can come to the grave of the people’s idol, lay flowers and honor his memory. Access to the grave is open. We often see fresh flowers at the grave of Armen Dzhigarkhanyan, including from the representatives of his theater.
NK Public Relations Department
Source: NovostiNK