Kakhi Kavsadze was born in Tbilisi. However, shortly after, his parents left to live in Tkibuli. His father, chirmaster David Kavsadze in 1941 was mobilized to the Second World War. He served in the 224th shooting brigade of the Red Army. Then he was taken prisoner. In the Georgian prisoner camp he was appointed the ethnographic chorus master. After the war end, on January 10, 1946 the Soviet government has imprisoned David Kavsadze and has accused him in fatherland treason. He was resettled to Sverdlovsk region, where he died.
In 1959 Kakhi Kavsadze finished the actor faculty of Shota Rustaveli Theatre Institute and became the actor of Rustaveli Academic Theatre. In movies he debuted in 50es. Mr. Kakhi is the Georgian public actor (1981), Dushanbe Soviet Union film festival premium laureate (1989).
He has created excellent, unforgettable faces: Adam – “Divine comedy”, prince Kotsya – “The yesterdays”, Devdariani – “Judgment of conviction”, Iliko – “I, grandmother, Iliko and Illarion”, Simon Chachava – “Caucasian Chalk CirclWe”, lord Hastings – “Richard the III”, Kent – “King Lire”, Rasputin – “Kvachi Kvachantiradze”, Mr. Devi – “Wet is the lilac, so what…”.
He was not intended to enter the Theatre institute. He was attracted by the music, he was playing the piano well, he had the strong voice. The musical talent he had genetically. His father was singer as well as his grandfather – in Ilia Chavchavadze “Urmuli” and “Orovela”. He liked very much to listen to Sandro Kavsadze’s singing; he could listen to his sweet voice for hours… Kakhi remembers well the day mother took her children to prison to see father.
Datashka set sons on his knees and asked whether they learned music. After that Kakhi had this always on his mind… That’s why he learnt music so hard; he wanted to continue his father’s and grand father’s deeds. Everybody was astonished, when Kakhi, instead of conservatoire, entered the theatre institute. He made the decision after one occasion: he was in the tenth form, when he was offered to play the main role in the film “They came down from mountains”, Kakhi had to play Vepkhia Khalibauri’s role.
He agreed because of the interest only, and he was glad to bring the salary to his mother and help her a bit. He was not lucky then: shooting one episode he had to jump into the river. He was a rather good swimmer, so he jumped into the mountain river fearlessly and … has broken his ribs, he has a serious trauma. He underwent the treatment during six months, he survived at last.
If the played the role then in the film, he would not even think to become an actor and his childhood dream to become great musician would come true, but the occasion has evoked interest in him, so he took documents and entered the theatre institute. “He is not talented, but how we can deny to Sandro Kavsadze’s grandson, the son of Datashka” said then the examination commission members and Kakhi entered the institute. Kakhi is grateful to those shootings, because then he got acquainted with the beautiful, airy, very cute and already famous actress of those times Bella Mirianashvili.
For the first time Kakhi saw Bella in the institute corridor – she was talking to her course mate, they were laughing much. He saw her and fin! He fell in love like crazy, but very long time he could not say anything.
Kakhi worked hard on himself. After finishing the institute, he began to work in Rustaveli theatre. He could not open his heart to the loved woman. Bella already had her Nanuka. “So what, I cannot live without that woman”, said Kakhi to his friends…
And the tale of lofty love between Kakhi and Bella began. During pregnancy she got terrible virus, but she did not take antibiotics in order not to do harm to the fruit. The flu was complicated and grew into the lungs inflammation, the treatment helped, but after hard childbirth, Bella’s health was undermined. Kakhi took her everywhere, even in Germany, but the
patient was localized only tor some time…
Little Irakli was asking mum to take him in her arms, but Bella could not do it and she was sitting before the child on the stool, telling him wonderful tales. Kakhi had to work, they had no other way, he thought about Bella every minute. He was playing on the scene and at home. At home he was playing because of Bella, not to show her his hopeless thoughts…
Once a jeweler from Dagestan has brought to Tbilisi a whole bag, full of silver things. Bella loved silvery more than gold and Kakhi took the men together with his bag home to Bella. Bella was looking at jewelry, at last she choose the two. Kakhi has bought everything. Later, Bella was showing to her friends every part of the silver jewelry and womanly proudly was telling them about Kakhis’ “craziness”.
In the end of August of 1992 Kakhi was in Moscow, shooting a film. He was to come back to Georgia on the 29th, but Bella asked him on the telephone:”Come”. Kakhi understood that Bella felt badly. He left the stage immediately and came back to Tbilisi. Two days they spent together, on the third day, on the 27th of August, Bella died. While she was ill, she always asked Kakhi to find his way, get married, she knew she was to die, but Kakhi was joking: I will never let you go… After Bella’s death he did not marry anyone, even today he lives having the lofty love in his heart that Bella Mirianashvili has shared to him.
…I am the artist and everybody is my spectator, says Kakhi, the spectators mean for me more than my son. I respect them all. Absolutely all! When I begin to gradate the spectators, I become degraded myself. Once they have written about me – Kakhi plays every performance to the end. I cannot behave other way. If you do not let me play my way, I will not become yours. Finally, in one film I say the phrase: “All the artists are buffoons”. You know what it means – if you do not tell the truth, then you are not an artist. The truth is hard to listen to. One must be clever enough to hear the true word.