On 1st December, the year dedicated to the great writer’s 190th anniversary wrapped up.
In the morning, guests arrived to the Main Building’s courtyard to reveal a bust of Leo Tolstoy. The monument is a part if the Russian Glory Alley project curated by Mikhail Serdyukov. Earlier, busts of Gavriil Derzhavin and Musa Dzhalil (the latter - at KFU as well) had also been unveiled within this project.
Rector Ilshat Gafurov congratulated everyone on the occasion and noted that Leo Tolstoy is fondly remembered in Kazan as a young man that he was during his university years. Tolstoy’s great-great-grandson, Adviser to the President of Russia, Director of Leo Tolstoy Yasnaya Polyana Museum-Estate, Vladimir Tolstoy said, “We are opening this bust not for Tolstoy – he has nothing to prove. We are doing this for the young people. I am very grateful to your university and amazed by its scale – dozens and hundreds of facilities, Russian and international students. Today, KFU is one of the leading institutions in the country.”
Later, the guests moved to the Emperor Hall, where they were joined by honored visitors, such as Vice-Premier of Tatarstan Leyla Fazleeva and others.
“How multidimensional was the great author’s personality, and how multifaceted has been his anniversary year. It has comprised many significant events at Kazan University and other institutions, at secondary schools in Kazan and other cities,” said Dr. Gafurov.
Mr. Tolstoy then elaborated on which ties the big Tolstoy family had with the Kazan land. Leo Tolstoy’s grandfather, Ilya Andreevich was a governor here, his father Nikolay Ilyich lived here after retirement and only moved to Yasnaya Polyana after marriage.
International guests also deemed it necessary to partake. Sylvia Kakubari (Japanese Society for Russian Studies) and Girish Munjal (Delhi University, Department of Slavonic and Finno-Ugrian Studies) contributed to the meeting.
Svetlana Frolova, Director of KFU Museum Complex, received a letter of appreciation from the President of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov from Vice-Premier Fazleeva’s hands. Some other KFU employees were also awarded for relevant merits.
Other speakers included Chief of Staff of the International Association of Russian Language Teachers Natalya Brunova, Minister of Culture of Tatarstan Irada Ayupova, and First Deputy Minister of Education and Science of Tatarstan Andrey Pominov.
Source text: Kamill Gareev, Adelya Shemelova
Translation: Yury Nurmeev