“Get down! - shouted Captain Soluyanov, but the soldiers continued to stand at full height, protecting the wounded battalion commander with their bodies. “I ask you as a human being: lie down!” Then for the first time the paratroopers disobeyed the commander - they knew that in their place the battalion commander would have done the same.
Officer's yeast
In the 90s, when the famous song was born, the director Nikita Mikhalkov, musician Nikolai Rastorguev and composer Igor Matvienko The idea arose to shoot a video in which the role of a battalion commander would be played by a real combat officer. We turned to the paratroopers for advice. And they unanimously named General Soluyanov, who has been famous since the days of Afghanistan that he treats soldiers like his own sons.
Battalion commander Alexander Soluyanov in Afghanistan. Photo: From personal archive
To earn a soldier's thanks in war is no less than the hero's star that Soluyanov was awarded in Afghanistan. The operations of his battalion were included in Russian military textbooks. Here's just one of them - in 1982, Captain Soluyanov and his soldiers landed in the mountains directly at the Mujahideen command post. There were 20 people on our side, and 70 on the enemy’s side. This did not stop the paratroopers from destroying fifty dushmans and taking another 15 prisoners. During the two and a half years that Soluyanov commanded a parachute battalion in Afghanistan, he lost less than a dozen soldiers. And this is a happy record of that war. " When I arrived in Afghanistan to the place where Captain Woitsekhovsky was killed, on the third day they told me: “Now go to the airfield, receive your personnel.” I came and they unloaded five dead soldiers from my battalion. We had to prepare documents to send them home. Then I thought: “I will take care of each of my soldiers as if they were my own.”", he recalls.
Suvorovets Alexander Soluyanov. Photo: from personal archive
Soluyanov received his officer qualifications thanks to front-line teachers at the Suvorov School in Kazan, where he, a rural boy, entered despite a big competition - more than 10 people per place. From his native Orenburg region, 15-year-old Sasha Soluyanov was brought to Kazan for exams by his grandfather, a front-line soldier. Mom, having learned that her teenage son would live away from home, immediately came and asked with tears: “Come back home!” But Sasha firmly answered: “I made my choice.”
Dangerous potato
Sasha graduated from the school, like before that school, with a gold medal. He received “Gold” after graduating from the famous Ryazan Airborne School (RVDU). The tactics exam at the RVDU was taken by the legendary commander of the Airborne Forces, General Vasily Margelov. And he was so pleased that he gave cadet Soluyanov a watch, adding: “Don’t ask this mustachioed guy anymore, he passed all his exams.”
But Sasha’s studies at the Ryazan school could have been interrupted in his first year, when their company was sent to harvest the crops. A car with sacks of potatoes, on which the cadets perched, overturned into a ditch with its wheels up: “ Next to me was cadet Volodya Sharikov, he died on the spot. His blood and brains got on me. Losing consciousness, I thought: “How stupid!” I woke up in the hospital. Sharikov and I were taken to the morgue. One of the nurses said: “It’s a pity for the boy.” Then I started to move. I was sent for an x-ray and diagnosed with a fracture of the 4th cervical vertebra" The military doctor was already preparing to commission Soluyanov - what kind of paratrooper was he? Then Sasha sent a healthy friend for a final examination, quite surprising the surgeons: “How beautifully everything grew together!” And he continued to successfully develop his spine. So he remained in combat formation.
Three times Alexander wrote a report to be sent to Afghanistan. I believed that it was in combat conditions that an officer passed his real exam. The 27-year-old captain was accompanied to the war by his pregnant wife Larisa, a medical student. Soluyanov received news of the birth of his son in the mountains after a difficult battle via radio communication.
In that war he could have died several times. " During one of the battles in the mountains, I clearly heard a voice behind me: “Look around!” I turned around and saw a mujahideen five meters away from me, who was aiming a machine gun at my head from behind a rock, but for some reason didn’t shoot, - says AiF Alexander Petrovich. - And I had a machine gun hanging on my shoulder, because at that moment I was in command of the battle. My sniper, Markhotin, took advantage of the pause and killed this Mujahideen. After the battle, we examined his weapon - it turned out that the dushman had a cartridge jammed in the chamber, although it was our famous AK - the most reliable machine gun in the world. And the voice that said: “Look around!” is still in my memory: God and the prayers of loved ones saved us. When I was wounded in the hip and arm, but thanks to my paratroopers I survived, I discovered already in the hospital: my grandmother had sewn into my overalls a belt with the text of the 90th psalm “Alive in the help of the Most High...” and a small icon of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker. Recently I was on Holy Mount Athos, a monk came up to me, hugged me: “Hello, commander!” It turned out that he is one of the fighters of my Afghan battalion».
Golden time
The general took over the military baton from his grandfather, a front-line soldier. Photo: from personal archive
He meets his subordinates and students in different corners. In Kirov, his former radio operator, now a colonel, bowed to Soluyanov in front of everyone on behalf of all the soldiers who served under him. The current head of the Airborne Forces is Colonel General Vladimir Shamanov was a student of Soluyanov when he commanded a cadet company at the Ryazan school before being sent to Afghanistan. Shamanov even now refers to Soluyanov as “commander” and speaks of him as the ideal of a Russian officer.
One of Alexander Petrovich’s sons chose the military path, the second succeeded in technical sciences. Having returned from Afghanistan and seeing his two-year-old pink chubby son, Alexander Petrovich decided to start raising him like a man and... took the baby for a morning run. His wife and mother-in-law ran next to him, sobbing. " I quickly realized that I had gotten carried away", the general recalls with a smile.
After Afghanistan, he rose to the rank of general, passing on his combat experience to his subordinates in the regiment and division he commanded.
To Mikhalkov’s unexpected request to appear in the video for the song “Batyanya Kombat” he replied: “If it’s necessary, then it’s necessary.” " There were three days of filming in the Novorossiysk division, which was then also commanded by my former cadet - General Solonin Igor Vilyevich. But it didn’t get to the point of editing the video - Nikita Sergeevich’s work on the film “The Barber of Siberia” intervened., - says Alexander Petrovich. - And this is good, because in truth, the image of the battalion commander is collective. How many worthy officers there were in both Afghanistan and Chechnya!..»
Even our opponents recognize the merits of our officers. In 2003, General Soluyanov in London at a conference on countering terrorism met with the English General Spooner: “ At the time, Spooner commanded the British Airborne Brigade in Afghanistan. And he said: “I can state: 80% of the inhabitants of this country consider the decade of Soviet troops in Afghanistan to be a golden time. They have no complaints against the Russians. Well, the way the Russian paratroopers fought in the mountains is fantastic. We don't know how to fight like that».
Alexander Petrovich quotes the English general and adds: “ Our new generation of paratroopers is also no mistake!»
National Indian make-up gave a makeup artist from Stavropol a ticket to the finalssensational TV project on “Friday” - “Makeup Artists”, and refined brush movementsfor makeup elevated her to the rank of artist of our time.
I got into the “Makeup Artists” project by accident. I always thought that people should find out about me themselves. Then I realized that I needed this, and sent a video in which I told about myself and explained why they should hire me. As a result, I was called to filming the next day after the casting. This is also stress: when all the participants are filled with fear and anxiety, there is no time for fun, and there could be no talk of friendship with them - we are competitors. Despite the fact that I didn’t win, the project gave me a lot: collaboration with famous brands in Moscow, publicity and the opportunity to be part of a crowd of creative people. Open road to a huge number of activities. And this is also an experience: I realized that I don’t need to listen to anyone. I act only according to my feelings in everything.
If you are talented, then you are already loved and respected and you don’t care about competition.
The idea of creating my own make-up school was only a matter of time. People like my creativity and my style, they come to learn something new from me and become full-fledged masters. I give my all and give them a lot of time and attention. I think this is my calling. At the same time, I think it’s absolutely normal if it changes several times throughout my life, so it’s not a fact that I’ll be stuck in it forever. I like to do everything, and makeup is one of the manifestations of my creativity.
It is difficult to survive in conditions of fierce competition in Moscow: advertising and connections decide here. That is, you can break out not through talent, but through development in the digital sphere. In the South the situation is different: if you are talented, then you are already loved and respected and you don’t care about competition. In general, the main thing is not to try your best to be different from others. You're either special or you're not. And this will be noticed in any case.
According to my personal forecasts, the beauty industry will develop in two directions: super-
natural and freak. That is, either complete absence or complete trash. This can be seen especially clearly in Central Russia; trends come to us, in the South, a little later. But I urge you not to follow trends blindly. Among them there are those that are good for a certain period of time, but taking them as a constant reference point is the first sign that a person does not have his own taste.
The global philosophy of my life is boundless self-love and development.
In my work I do not focus on anyone. I am a supporter of the expression “Don’t create an idol for yourself,” because I may like all the people today, but tomorrow I won’t remember their names. Therefore, I am always inspired by myself, my inner state, but not by people. So I am an icon for myself. And the images and ideas in my head are born unexpectedly and from the mood tandem of me and the person. I never think through what I want to do in advance. If we are on the same wavelength with someone, we create together.
The global philosophy of my life is boundless self-love and development. What about the principles? They change over time. What was fundamentally important to me yesterday does not make any sense today. I am a dynamic person, an emotion person. Over the past two years, I have become so immersed in creativity that I am losing my sense of reality and the ground under my feet. I think one way at one moment, and a couple of minutes later – completely differently. But the main thing is that this does not stop me from creating.
Text: Yulia Grablyuk
They tirelessly take selfies, share their impressions during long journeys, and use square photographs to talk about their unusual hobbies. the site scrolled through the most popular Instagram feeds in Stavropol and got to know the owners of the most “liked” accounts.
Alexandra Soluyanova
Nick: A_alexalexalex_a
Number of subscribers: 13,000
Sasha quite deservedly boasts about her work on Instagram: the girl is a talented stylist, with a queue lining up for months in advance. Soluyanova’s appearance is also captivating; the resident of Stavropol is very attractive and keeps herself, as they say, with a tight rein: she doesn’t skip the gym, and with her impeccable figure she makes all the readers puff with envy, and men sigh when they look at the photo.
First hand: “On my Instagram there is no affiliation with cities: there are subscribers from Stavropol, other regions of Russia, and foreign users. I have been running the feed for three years: I publish my works on Instagram - I create images for the most magical girls in the world. I do make-up and hairstyles professionally. There are also a lot of photographs where I show off my body: there is nothing to be ashamed of, I am seriously interested in sports. I admit: I often spam and use filters. The beauty of Instagram is that there are no unnecessary conversations that take up a lot of time. I usually monitor fitness profiles. It’s also very interesting to watch your loved ones and acquaintances.”
Bela Aslanyukova
Nick: bela_aslanukova
Subscribers: 9508
The sexy blonde has been driving her subscribers crazy for a long time. Either she is at the microphone, then she is posing in front of the mirror, or she is taking a “selfie” with her favorite cat. Bela also shares photos from her vacation: but when she travels, she prefers to photograph the beauty of nature and gorgeous views of exotic places, rather than herself. “The main thing is not to overdo it with selfies,” Bela believes, and savors every photo, generously sharing them with subscribers.
First hand: “There are a lot of out-of-town subscribers in my feed. I have been making Instagram posts for four years. Favorite posts – pictures taken while traveling, photos with friends and my favorite cat! I try to take new selfies no more than once a week, or even less often. I process photos using filters. I’ve been on Instagram for a long time: at first it was boring, because few people knew about the existence of the network, but now you rarely meet a person without an Instagram page. I love viewing profiles with video jokes and video jokes. I also follow updates in my friends’ accounts: sometimes it happened that we ended up in the same place, at the same time, but we had no idea about it!”
Irina Bogolyubova
Nick: @BOGOLI
Subscribers: 5500 subscribers
From publishers to confectioners. The sharp turns of this girl’s career beckon and force you to look at her profile even more carefully. Irina is a macarons maniac! Five years ago, she first saw the website niksya.ru, became acquainted with Nina Tarasova’s excellent recipes, from which she first learned about the French dessert Macarons. The idea to immortalize Macarons in bijou and decor came to her after the girl realized: the dessert takes almost two days to prepare, and is eaten in 10 minutes!
From the horse's mouth: “I felt so offended! And then it dawned on me that this ideal shape had to be made from clay! The Macarons BOGOLI workshop is my favorite project I've ever done. The funny thing is that I don’t know how to cook at all... nothing at all except desserts. This is a complex from childhood: my mother is an expert in Russian cuisine... and my husband is also a good cook.”
Irina also wrote about herself that she loves silence, her dreams, the sun and the sea. Her ideal day is to wake up at +17 °C around 10 am from the bright sun and cook Macarons all day in silence! True, for now she can count such days on the fingers of one hand... “Insta,” writes Irina, “is my main platform!” I accept orders through the website. But subscribers to the “square” feed most often become my clients.”
Olga Panova
Nick: Olga_Panova_vintage
Subscribers: 4168
Her earrings will be able to decorate the ears of even the most whimsical fashionista. And the page of vintage craftswoman Olga Panova is full of photographs of handmade notebooks: the ruffles and beauty will make any sentimental young lady’s head spin! Hand-made fabric flowers and Dimasya’s mint bear – Panova has no problems with ideas for orders, and therefore photographs. Olya also likes to post photographs from her travels: in her account, non-glossy Istanbul is adjacent to snowy Dombay.
First hand: “I publish my creativity on Instagram: I make vintage jewelry and accessories. There are photos of most of my works on Instagram: if my subscribers like something, I offer to buy ready-made products or immediately start ordering them! I don’t like making copies, so an exact repetition, of course, is impossible. I post pictures at different stages of creating products - “working” moments and photos of finished jewelry and accessories. I also love sharing culinary recipes and travel photos on Instagram. I don't take selfies. I spam when I travel. I don’t use filters, but I pay great attention to the quality of my photos. I have creative colleagues and a few simply beautiful pages in my subscriptions. I fundamentally ignore profiles of stars and public figures.”
Alexander Engelhard
Nick: @engelgard
Subscribers: number 2150
Alexander is a media personality: that’s why his feed includes work photographs (Engelhard is the program director of four Stavropol radio stations: “Europe Plus”, “Avtoradio”, “Radio Record”, “Humor FM”), and pictures from noisy parties, where Alexander is invariably a guest star. Most of the most high-profile Stavropol events with the participation of stars were organized by him. Engelhard does not deny himself selfies, but notes: the main thing is not to overdo it with “yourself.”
First hand: “My subscribers include people from different cities in Russia and abroad. I have been keeping an Instagram chronicle since the advent of the social network. I post pictures dedicated to events in my personal life; much less often, some work moments appear on my account. I try to track updates in the profiles of loved ones, friends, and famous artists. I understood one thing: before calling your friends, you need to look at Instagram and it will become clear where they are and what they are doing at that moment! I noticed that every day I take less and less selfies. I realized that no one is interested in what you eat, where you go... I try to post photos selectively. I don’t use filters often, but I think they add beauty to a photo. The profile is open - come in and take a look.”
Ekaterina Lapina
Nick: @kathryn_lapina
Subscribers: 3800
And on this page you will definitely want something sweet! Katya Lapina is a professional pastry chef: truffles, panna cotta, cake pops - in a word, you will lick your fingers! Ekaterina is ready to share recipes for delicious lemon and orange cupcakes with everyone, and she also makes caramel that tastes and looks fantastic! If the pastry virtuoso is still sleeping in you, welcome to her page!
First hand:“I started an Instagram feed as soon as the smartphone appeared. I publish photos of my family, travel and food, because most of the time I cook, go to various master classes, and my entire Instagram is closely related to my hobbies and work. All my photos are thanks to my husband: he takes them with a professional DSLR, and then I post these photos. I take photos from my travels “live” on my phone. My profile is open: that’s why I started it, to communicate, not to hide. All subscriptions are either friends or professional hobbies - pages of confectioners, chefs and everything connected with it. It often happens that I find out news from Instagram, it’s very convenient! And not necessarily the actions of friends, but also course schedules that are important to me, events in Moscow and St. Petersburg... In general, I update the feed regularly.”
Dimoss Locust
Nick: dimoss_sarancha
Subscribers: 2087
Dimoss is an artistic, temperamental person. Readers from Vladivostok to Kaliningrad are subscribed to his “Insta”: a successful musician, so what? Locust opened his account 65 weeks ago. Mainly publishes concert posters and reports on events and photo shoots. Sometimes she posts “everyday” photos: for example, from meetings with friends. He also posts photos of his paintings as they appear.
From the first t: “I always liked the 1x1 photo size; even before the advent of Instagram, I often cropped photos this way for other social networks. On Instagram it is convenient to make a photo post with a description and automatically publish it to other resources.
It’s interesting to watch updates from fellow artists: Instagram gives birth to an artist and designer in everyone. People try to show the most interesting things that happen in their lives. I am an artist, and on duty I travel to different cities. There are people I like everywhere: if it weren’t for social networks, and in this case “Instach”, then everyone would forget about each other. And so people subscribe and follow the best events of their friends. Often these photo squares motivate people to various kinds of achievements: for example, friends look at photos of their friends from the gym and start playing sports themselves!”
Sergey Gnezdilov
Nick: gnezdilov
Subscribers: 2222
In his account you will not find any pictures where the horizon is blocked or the composition is not built - that’s why Sergey Gnezdilov is a professional photographer. On his square “cards” there are weddings that sing and dance merrily, brides preening, and grooms excited. Unusual angles, extraordinary photo ideas. Sergey also likes to share personal photographs: for example, he recently posted a square frame taken while swimming in icy water. In general, if you want to get aesthetic pleasure, then @gnezdilov is for you! Sergey has been running the feed for 2.5 years now, so he has accumulated quite a lot of photographs.
First hand: “My profile favorites are real-time wedding photos, family photos, nude photos. I rarely post selfies, only if they were taken in a very interesting place. I sometimes use filters – most often black and white. I really like the square format: a laconic post from one photo can say a lot. Moreover, I am not a fan of writing long texts. I myself like to look at the pages of professional photographers and accounts dedicated to healthy eating on Instagram.”