Вахтанг Кикабидзе

Vakhtang Konstantine dze Kikabidze (Georgian: ვახტანგ კიკაბიძე, Russian: Вахтанг Константинович Кикабидзе, romanized: tr, lit. 'Vahtang Konstantinovich Kikabidze'; born July 19, 1938), also known as "Buba" (Georgian: ბუბა) is a Georgian (formerly Soviet) singer, actor, screenwriter, producer, composer and politician. He became famous as a lead singer of Orera, a Georgian estrada group that was registered as the first Vocal-Instrumental Ensemble in the Soviet Union in 1958. He performed in a number of films, among them the main role of a helicopter pilot in the iconic Soviet film Mimino. The son of Princess Manana Bagration-Davitashvili, Kikabidze was born in Tbilisi. He is a People's Artist of Georgia, has been awarded the USSR State Prize and the Order of the King Vakhtang Gorgasali as well as of Nikolai Wondermonger and Knight Cross of St. Konstantin the Great. He was also acknowledged by a number of various music contests and film festivals in the Soviet Union, Georgia and worldwide. In 1999, his star was embedded on the "Star Square" in Moscow. Apart from Mimino, Kikabidze also performed in a number of other films, including Don't be Sad (Ne Goryui), Melodies of Veriski Quarter (Melodii Verijskogo Kvartala), and Completely Lost (Sovsem propaschij). His last film, Fortune (Fortuna), was directed by the famous Georgian and Soviet film director Georgi Daneliya in 2000. As a screenwriter and director, Kikabidze produced two feature films: Be Well, Dearest One (Bud' zdorov dorogoj), which received the top award at the International Comedy Festival in Gabrovo, Bulgaria, and Men and All Others (Muzhchiny i vse ostal'nye). During the August 2008 Russian-Georgian war, Kikabidze rejected Russia's Order of Friendship bestowed upon him in July 2008 and cancelled the concert dedicated to his 70th birthday which was to be held at the Kremlin as a protest against Russia's actions. During a visit to Batumi, Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky congratulated Kikabidze on his 83rd birthday, inviting him to Kyiv for Ukrainian Independence Day. Vakhtang Kikabidze is married and has only one child, a son named Konstantin, and two grandchildren: Vakhtang (Vato) and Ioan. Vato married Ana Davitashvili on November 24, 2019 at Svetitskhoveli Cathedral. Vakhtang's wife, Irina, has a daughter named Marina, from a previous marriage to her first husband Guram Sagaradze. Through her he has a grandson: Giorgi and a great-granddaughter, Alexandra. The Kikabidze family is from the Kartli region.