Tbilisi said goodbye to actress Sofiko Chiaureli

The famous Georgian actress Sofiko Chiaureli, who died on March 2 at the 71st year after a long illness, was buried in the pantheon of outstanding public figures of Georgia in Tbilisi next to her husband - actor and sports commentator Kote Maharadze.

When the coffin with the body of Chiaureli was carried out of the Mardzhanishvili Theater, people applauded and exclaimed: "Bravo, Sofiko!" The funeral procession with the coffin of Chiaureli passed through the whole of Tbilisi, on the way thousands of residents of the city expressed sorrow about the death of their favorite actress, Interfax reports.

As the ex-president of Georgia Eduard Shevardnadze said on the civilian memorial service, the death of Chiaureli has become an irreparable loss for the entire Georgian people. By decision of the Georgian authorities, one of the streets in Tbilisi will be named after Sofiko Chiaureli.

Over the 50 years of creative work, Sofiko Chiaureli played 150 roles in the cinema and theater, was a laureate of Georgian, all -Union and international awards. In 1974-1979, he was a deputy of the USSR Armed Forces, during the years of independence of Georgia she was awarded the State Bedes and Orders of the country. Chiaureli led the Tbilisi "Theater of one actor", which she founded in the 90s along with Maharadze.

The family of Chiaurels was condolences in connection with the death of an outstanding actress was expressed by Russian President Vladimir Putin, Armenian President Robert Kocharian, prominent figures of Georgian and Russian culture, and representatives of other countries.

On March 2, the head of Roskultura, Mikhail Shvydka, said in Moscow that "Chiaureli is an outstanding Georgian actress in itself, but at the same time she performed an important mission of combining artistic eras and styles." “Her mother - Veriko Anjaparidze (1897-1987) - was a great romantic actress who essentially stood at the origins of the Georgian Professional Theater, and father - Mikhail Chiaureli (1894-1974) - was a recognized master of domestic cinema. Sophico inherited a creative vein from her mother and father, but her path was completely special,” he said.

According to Schwydky, "in the most difficult years, the Russian-Georgian political vicinity of Sofiko Chiaureli and Kot Maharadze have always been faithful to the great spiritual relations of the Georgian and Russian peoples."