Hamida Omarova
Encyclopedia
Hamida Mammad qizi Omarova ' onMouseout='HidePop("41337")' href="/topics/Baku">Baku
) is an Azerbaijan
i actress.
and after being sure the newborn would survive, they named her after the sanctuary. Following her parents' divorce in 1960 and her father's permanent departure to his native Gazakh, Hamida Omarova was raised by her mother and grandmother. After graduating from high school she enrolled at Baku State University
to study philology
. While finishing her first year in 1975, she entered an academic contest along with other 300 people and was among the 15 contestants who were admitted to the Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography
in Moscow
.
, she is known mostly for acting in Yuli Gusman
's film Gorkhma, saninlayam / Не бойся, я с тобой ("Don't Be Afraid, I'm with You", 1981), staged in Gakh, Azerbaijan. Her performance was rewarded with numerous awards including that of a People's Artist
of Azerbaijan. With the collapse of the Soviet Union
in 1991, Azerbaijan's movie industry experienced severe decline. This became both a career decay and a psychological ordeal for Omarova. After going through a period of depression, she got married in 1992 and gave birth to a son. At the same time, she hosted the late night show Retro, a weekly review of classic movies from Azerbaijan and abroad. In 2006 Omarova was elected President of the Azerbaijani Union of Cinematographers.
Baku
Baku , sometimes spelled as Baki or Bakou, is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. It is located on the southern shore of the Absheron Peninsula, which projects into the Caspian Sea. The city consists of two principal...
) is an Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...
i actress.
Early life
Hamida Omarova was born to a family of teachers, Mammad and Nasiba Omarov. Her parents met at university where both of them studied foreign languages, and went on to have four children, three of whom died in their infancy. When Hamida was born, her parents visited the Sufi Hamid shrine in QazakhQazakh
Qazakh is a rayon of Azerbaijan. It has two exclaves inside Armenia, Yukhari Askipara and Barkhudarli, both of which came under Armenian control during the Nagorno-Karabakh War.- History :In antiquity, this rayon was part of the province of Utik...
and after being sure the newborn would survive, they named her after the sanctuary. Following her parents' divorce in 1960 and her father's permanent departure to his native Gazakh, Hamida Omarova was raised by her mother and grandmother. After graduating from high school she enrolled at Baku State University
Baku State University
Baku State University is a public university located in Baku, Azerbaijan. Established in 1919 by the Parliament of Azerbaijan Democratic Republic, the University started with faculties of history and philology; physics and mathematics; law and medicine with an initial enrollment of 1094...
to study philology
Philology
Philology is the study of language in written historical sources; it is a combination of literary studies, history and linguistics.Classical philology is the philology of Greek and Classical Latin...
. While finishing her first year in 1975, she entered an academic contest along with other 300 people and was among the 15 contestants who were admitted to the Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography
Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography
The Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography All-Russian State University of Cinematography named after S. A. Gerasimov), VGIK for short, is a film school in Moscow, Russia.-History:...
in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
.
Career
Omarova's first role was in a short film entitled The Dentist in 1977. Since then, she starred in over 30 films and became the most successful Azerbaijani actress of the decade performing at times in up to 4 movie shootings simultaneously. In RussiaRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, she is known mostly for acting in Yuli Gusman
Yuli Gusman
Yuli Solomonovich Gusman is a Soviet, Russian and Azerbaijani film director and actor. He is the founder and CEO of the prestigious Nika Award.- Life and career :...
's film Gorkhma, saninlayam / Не бойся, я с тобой ("Don't Be Afraid, I'm with You", 1981), staged in Gakh, Azerbaijan. Her performance was rewarded with numerous awards including that of a People's Artist
People's Artist
People's Artist is a honorary title in the Soviet Union, Union republics, in some other Eastern bloc states , as well as in a number of post-Soviet states, modeled after the title of the People's Artist of the USSR....
of Azerbaijan. With the collapse of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
in 1991, Azerbaijan's movie industry experienced severe decline. This became both a career decay and a psychological ordeal for Omarova. After going through a period of depression, she got married in 1992 and gave birth to a son. At the same time, she hosted the late night show Retro, a weekly review of classic movies from Azerbaijan and abroad. In 2006 Omarova was elected President of the Azerbaijani Union of Cinematographers.