Zigzags of fate of Natalia Bondarchuk: Three marriages and an affair with Tarkovsky, which nearly cost the actress her life

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

It seems that her fate was predetermined from the very birth, because she was the daughter of the best representatives of the world of cinema: director Sergei Bondarchuk and actress Inna Makarova. But Natalia Bondarchuk as a child dreamed of becoming a scout or, in extreme cases, a firefighter. However, she became an actress and later a director. The profession gave her three husbands and one unforgettable romantic passion, which could end very tragically.

Father's daughter

As a child, Natalya Bondarchuk was a happy and carefree child. True, exactly until the time when dad, Sergei Bondarchuk, left the family. Then she experienced her first tragedy in her life. For a long time, the actress believed that her father had betrayed her and did not want to see her or communicate anymore. Only many years later Natalya found out: her mother, Inna Makarova, was against meeting her daughter with her father, believing that this would injure the child.

However, she was much more traumatized by the cruel questions of adults who asked her where her dad was, and then reported that he was now with another aunt. Natasha often cried and did not understand why her father did not come to visit her. She was only eight years old.

For five whole years she did not have the opportunity to communicate with her father, and then they had to get to know each other again and learn to love. But Natalya Bondarchuk learned the most important lesson from this: you can never forbid a father to see children and participate in their life. She herself tried to do everything so that her children did not feel abandoned and unnecessary.

Life at the bend

Natalya met Andrei Tarkovsky as a teenager, when she returned the book she had read to Irina Zhigalko, who taught in the course of Mikhail Romm and was Inna Makarova's neighbor at the dacha. Zhigalko's graduates and students have just gathered. Irina Aleksandrovna ordered to give the book to Andrei Tarkovsky, who had not read it yet. It was Stanislav Lem's Solaris.

Several years will pass, and they will meet again, this time at the screening of excerpts by students of the acting department of VGIK. Soon Natalia was invited to audition for Tarkovsky. Despite Hari's excellently played monologue, the director refused to approve her for this role, explaining his refusal by the too big age difference between her and Donatas Banionis, who was supposed to play Chris Kelvin.

But then Tarkovsky "gave" Natalia Larisa Shepitko, who then removed the actress in the role of Nadia in the film "You and Me". After filming, Bondarchuk asked Larisa Efimovna to show working materials to Tarkovsky, who, having looked through many candidates, could not find an actress for the role of Hari.

After an excerpt where Nadia cuts her veins, then throws a tantrum and then delivers a very funny monologue, Tarkovsky asked about the name of the actress: he simply did not recognize Natalia. When Shepitko said that it was his gift, the director demanded to return it immediately. And approved by Natalia Bondarchuk without any additional tests.

During the filming of Solaris, a sympathy arose between the actress and the director, which quickly grew into serious feelings. But both of them by that time were not free: Natalya, at the age of 19, married a cameraman. He was 11 years older and the girl married him, mistaking falling in love for serious feelings. Tarkovsky was also married, he had a son and he could not leave his family and child. Their feelings were sharp and hopeless. They enjoyed their stolen happiness, and both knew that all of this had to end.

Solaris combined them and then scattered them in different directions. Later, when Andrei Tarkovsky and Natalya Bondarchuk were visiting Larisa Shepitko and Elem Klimov, the director confessed his love to the actress. And she did not know what to do with this love of his. And I couldn't find anything better than to try to commit suicide.

She broke up with her husband, but then she endured the consequences of this not at all romantic story for a very long time. Nikolai Burlyaev, who became her second husband, helped her return to life.

Two degrees of happiness

They learned about each other long before they met. Burlyaev saw Natalia in Solaris and immediately decided that she would certainly be his wife. Bondarchuk drew attention to Nikolai in the film "Mom Got Married", noting the extraordinary thinness of the actor. The acquaintance took place during the filming of the film "How the Steel Was Tempered", where Nikolai Burlyaev was to play the main role. Later, he was replaced by Mikhail Konkin, and Natalya simply left after the person whom she managed to fall in love with.

They called themselves the Bourbon family after the first syllables of their names. All 17 years that they lived together, passions were constantly boiling in their family, they quarreled, reconciled and quarreled again. However, they both find the time incredibly happy. The family had two children, then the actors entered the directing department of VGIK to Sergei Gerasimov. After parting, the former spouses maintained a warm relationship, and Natalya Sergeevna never interfered with the communication of children with dad.

And then, when she had already shot several films and organized her own children's theater "Bambi", fate gave her another chance to be happy.

With "Bambi" Natalia Sergeevna arrived in Kiev, where the actor of the youth theater Igor Dnestryansky, seeing how difficult it is for her to cope with a large number of children, began to help. Then they began to meet, but Natalia was very complex because of their 14-year age difference.

Over time, all the complexes have disappeared, and only love and happiness remained in their pure form. They have been together for almost a quarter of a century, Igor became for Natalia Bondarchuk not only a husband, but also a friend. He communicates well with her ex-husband Nikolai Burlyaev and found a common language with the children of the actress.

Natalya Sergeevna is happy, full of creative plans and hopes. And even if she had such an opportunity, she would not change anything in her life.

The visiting card of Natalia Bondarchuk's mother, actress Inna Makarova, is considered the role in the film "Young Guard", which she played in her student years. This work became significant for her also because on the set their romance with Sergei Bondarchuk began. She played more than 50 movie roles ("Height", "The Marriage of Balzaminov", "Girls", etc.), however, in sacrifice to her beloved profession, she had to bring things much more valuable - the love of her husband and care for her daughter.