“Alla Pugacheva is a whole era” – Kommersant FM

Press Secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov said that he knows nothing about the beginning of the procedure for recognizing singer Alla Pugacheva as a foreign agent. However, later the head of the Federal Project for Security and Anti-Corruption, Vitaly Borodin, published a document from which it follows that the corresponding request was indeed sent by the Prosecutor General’s Office to the Ministry of Justice. Moreover, the supervisory agency asks that the performer be given this status. Kommersant FM political commentator Dmitry Drize considers this decision ambiguous.

In 2022, People’s Artist of the USSR, laureate of the State Prize of the Russian Federation Alla Borisovna Pugacheva appealed to the country’s leadership with a request to recognize her as a foreign agent. This was the singer’s response to giving the corresponding status to her husband Maxim Galkin. Apparently, this appeal was ignored at that time.

Nowadays, it seems like a corresponding request to the authorities was sent by a representative of the angry public. It is not entirely clear on what basis and what the essence of the claims against the prima donna is from a legal point of view. The question was even asked to Dmitry Peskov during daily communication with the media. The press secretary of the Russian president said that he had not heard anything about this.

This can be interpreted as follows: the Kremlin has nothing to do with this problem; the decision, even if it is ultimately made, will be technical and non-political. There are reasons – we add them to the list of foreign agents; no means no.

As for the consequences: Alla Pugacheva already takes her place in history; it is not possible to erase her from there under any circumstances. Yes, you can try to consign it to oblivion, to say that this happened a long time ago, but now we have different stage images. But why then, every New Year, they show “Blue Light” on TV, which sends us back to that very calm time of Brezhnev’s stagnation?

Pugachev is a whole era, part of it. We still love the past, and even so it may seem that we are trying in every possible way to return to it. To one degree or another, this works out. Judging by numerous surveys, many Russian citizens (especially the older generation) would not mind being there again. They lived carefree, listened to “Harlequin” and other popular songs. They didn’t exist so richly, but they were friends and joked that we were living in the times of Alla Pugacheva and Mikhail Boyarsky.

But let’s not indulge in nostalgia and idealize the Soviet way of life. This question, as you know, is controversial. But in the USSR, not only were prima donna songs not banned, but, on the contrary, Alla Pugacheva was at the zenith of her fame. Although she was criticized, of course, what happened was what happened. So what happens? All songs and concerts are now crossed out, there was nothing, supposedly? Or were our people mistaken? Only now is real art being discovered, but what was then wrong?

Others will try to object: songs cannot exist separately from the performer. Or how? Are we going to label it? Is the song “Antique Clock” or “A Million Scarlet Roses” performed by foreign agent Alla Pugacheva? Something’s not right here, isn’t it?

Yes, we must agree that past merits do not save us and do not relieve us from responsibility. It’s just not entirely clear what the prima donna was so guilty of.

However, enough reasoning – the competent authorities will figure out how and what, and act fairly. That’s what we hope for.

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