‘Ukrainians are being treated as enemies, as wild animals’ – film star Ada Rogovtseva

One of the proudest boasts in any realm of the performing arts in Soviet times, be it acting, music, ballet or comedy, is the accolade of “Narodny Artist” or “People’s Artist”. Imbued with a sense of duty and service, it’s a title that has far more significance and gravitas that “Academy Award winner” or “Hollywood star”. It also contains a linguistic contradiction – because when you say “people”, which people are you talking about? In Soviet times, a blurring of distinctions of nationality and identity was encouraged, using the ubiquity of the (enforced) state language – Russian – to paper