By
Shevlin Sebastian
As
Yana Fillipova stood in the lobby of a hotel in Kovalam, the manager
came up and presented her with a saree. She had a sudden urge to try
it on. Immediately, two women employees helped her to wear the saree.
“It looked so amazing,” says Yana, while on a recent visit to
Kochi. “Then they put some flowers in my hair.”
At
Kovalam, she gazed at the Arabian Sea. “Back home, in Altai
{Russia], we have no sea,” says Yana, who has travelled to many
countries. “The Arabian sea is very gentle as compared to the
Mediterranean Sea.”
Yana
has just been appointed the Goodwill Ambassador for Russia for the
Kerala Travel Mart (KTM), which will take place in September. Last
year, both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President
Vladimir Putin had announced that this year would be celebrated as
the Year of Tourism in both India and Russia.
Asked
about her duties, Yana says, “I have to give publicity about the
beauty of Kerala. I will mention places like Munnar and Alleppey and
emphasise the importance of Ayurveda. I will do this by uploading
photos and messages on Instagram and other social media platforms.
They are very powerful tools.”
But
Yana has a tough task ahead, to change the mind-set of the people in
her own country. “The general impression is that they think India
is a poor country,” says Yana. “They believe that most of the
people have baths in rivers. This is the stereotype. I feel
disappointed when I put up a post about a wonderful place in Kerala,
and in the comments section, they ask whether it is possible that in
India you have such nice places. I tell them that travelling to
Kerala is worth their money, time and effort.”
Not
surprisingly, Yana loves the people in Kerala. “They are
open-hearted, communicative and sincere,” she says. “In contrast,
the Russian people are very closed and serious. You have to spend
some time with them before they open up.”
When
asked whether the people are like this because of the extreme cold,
Yana says, with a twinkle, “People are like this in summer too.”
Yana’s
home town of Altai is close to the border of Mongolia, China,
Kazakhstan and about 4000 km from the capital, Moscow. “Russia is a
huge country,” says Yana. “Right now, the temperature in Altai is
minus 35 degrees (centigrade).”
Interestingly
she is an English professor at the Altai State Pedagogical
University. She is also a singer, a model for print advertisements
and a beauty queen.
In
November last year, she won the Queen of Tourism award at The Queen
of Eurasia competition held in Anatolia, Turkey.
Meanwhile,
when asked to compare Russian and Malayali women, Yana says,
“Malayali women are polite and calm, but they are shy about
revealing their feelings. In most cases, they retain their
femininity. Many are happy to take care of their husband and
children.”
On
the other hand, Russian women are very ambitious. “They behave like
men,” she says. “Women take on a lot of male responsibilities,
like working in the fire services or the army. They cannot accept the
fact that a man should give them money and protect them. They want to
do everything themselves. They have become very independent.”
There
is one fall-out in this changing dynamics between man and woman. The
divorce rate is more than 50 per cent. “I am told that Indian women
have also started divorcing their husbands,” says Yana. “It is
very sad as it has a big impact on the children.”
Yana
speaks from personal experience. Her own parents divorced when she
was ten years old, while her brother was four. “So I know how it
feels,” she says. “Both of us suffered a lot. It is completely
unacceptable. When I marry it will be for life. This is what I want.”
Meanwhile,
KTM President Baby Mathew is very happy with the presence of Yana.
"We expect more participation from Russia for the event, because
of Yana,” says Mathew as she smiled. ” In fact, we are hoping for
a record number of registrations this year. We also expect more
tourist arrivals from Russia to Kerala in the coming years.”
(The
New Indian Express, Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode)
golden goose sneakers
ReplyDeletefear of god
supreme
goyard bag
nike off white
jordan travis scott
supreme
off white clothing outlet
off white
steph curry shoes