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Hope Stalin will raise a toast to Glasnost

Malayalis with Russian names meet at `Moscow' today At 4 p.m., all these `Russians' will gather at `Moscow' junction, sporting name badges. They will then move in a procession to the nearby school and enter `Sheremetyevo-II,' where they will explain how he or she got the Russian name

Things will be a bit crowded at the `Sheremetyovo-II' airport at `Moscow' on the evening of Saturday. Security has been stepped up, and special visas are needed to enter the airport for all except Stalin, Lenin, Breshnev, Kruschev, Gagarin, Volga and Tereshkova.

And yes, there will be seven Lenins, three Stalins and two each Breshnevs, Pushkins and Volgas at the `airport' located in Good Shepherd School near `Moscow,' a junction at Changanassery. Manning the gates will be `Sergei,' who will ensure the smooth flow of passengers into the terminal building.

Behind the scenes for this coming together with a difference is the Russian Cultural Centre, Thiruvananthapuram. This is for the second time that the centre is hosting a get-together of Malayalis with Russian names. Already a `Roadoflot' bus has been readied to take 12 `Russians' from the capital city to `Moscow.'

At 4 p.m., all these `Russians' will gather at `Moscow' junction, sporting name badges. They will then move in a procession to the nearby school and enter `Sheremetyevo-II.' Once inside, each person will explain to the audience how he or she got the Russian name. Moreover, there will also be a competition wherein the Stalins, Lenins and Breshnevs will speak for a few minutes on the original Russian personalities they are named after. So far, 45 people have signed up; this includes Tania, who is all of eight years, and Ivan, who is 75.

The programme is being organised to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the Russian Friendship Centre in Russia.

The most number of `Russians,' 12 of them, will be from Thiruvananthapuram. The director of the Russian Cultural Centre, Ratheesh C. Nair, said the whole show is being sponsored by Qatar Airways.

At the end of the day, one lucky `Russian' selected from among the participants will get a free air ticket from the sponsor to Moscow; the capital of Russia, that is.

G. Mahadevan

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