Kamil hazrat Samigullin: ‘We didn’t even know what the Tatar saber looked like’
An animated series is being filmed as part of Tugan Batyr project
Kinomax-IMAX Kazan cinema hosted a closed screening of three episodes of the animated series Tugan Batyr, with children as the main audience. The young audience appreciated the cartoon in terms of detail and was interested in creating a full-length picture. Radik Abdrakhmanov, the author of the project, announced that the team will begin negotiations with Internet platforms on the screening of the series soon.
“We have read it, Tatiana Petrovna!”
The first book about the Tatar hero, “Legends of Tugan Batyr," published in Russian, Tatar, English and Arabic, was presented at the National Library in 2022. The work was created by writer, playwright and singer Zulfat Khakim. Later, a sequel was released: “Tugan Batyr and the Saber of Truth”.
At the end of August 2024, Radik Abdrakhmanov, the co-founder of Tugan Avylym complex, presented his third book, Tugan Batyr and the Moon Flower, on his birthday. In the story, the young hero went to Turkey. The authors of the project also went there in November to present it at the Rami Historical Library in Istanbul in order to interest foreign partners. Abdrakhmanov also stated that he plans to release a mobile game and a musical.
It became known in February 2023 that Tugan Batyr's story would also become a cartoon. The illustrations for the third book were drawn by Dilyara Gazeeva, and the animation is being worked on by the Moscow studio Terra Anima, which was founded in 2021 by Irina Grebennikova, the former CEO of Aeroplane studio (where they created The Fixies cartoon). In addition to Tugan Batyr, the website lists the project “Main Children's Songs” consisting of 11 episodes.
For the closed screening, the team rented three halls at Kinomax, with a significant portion of the audience represented by children with their parents. Hockey player Danis Zaripov and Alfiya Avzalova's daughter Zulfiya Nigmedzyanova stood out among the guests. State Duma deputy Tatyana Larionova spoke enthusiastically about the book:
“Indeed, many people know this book, not only young fans, but also adults, because mothers and fathers, grandparents also read this book. I came here from Yelabuga today, visited an orphanage, and when, thanks to Radik Mukharlamovich, I gave the children a book, they said, “We've read it, Tatiana Petrovna!”
According to her, this is an example of what needs to be done, how to live, “to create the miracles that we expect from our kids, and the guys expect from adults”.
Work on the full-length film will begin concurrently
As Abdrakhmanov explained, they arranged a private screening in order to get feedback from the audience. To do this, flyers with a QR code referring to the questionnaire were placed on each seat in the cinema hall.
“We would like to talk, get your opinion, maybe someone will have ideas, maybe something should be added to the series, some fairy-tale characters," explained the main author of the project. “Because we will gradually have fairy-tale characters, there are a lot of them. Our professional team has delved into Tatar folklore, we all have. It turns out that we have so many unique fairy-tale characters that you just can't even imagine!
Before the show, five-year-old Dina Zakirova read the poem “Телсез калма”/“Don't be left without a language” by Lilia Gibadullina. But the closed screening of the cartoon was held in Russian. The children were greeted by Ded Moroz.
"52 episodes are planned for the first season," Abdrakhmanov explained when one of the young viewers complained that she would like more “detail in the effects.” “Of course, we want to start working on the feature film simultaneously, to show it on the big screen.”
At the same time, Abdrakhmanov pointed out that the script of the series will be different from the book. In the feature film, the works of Zulfat Khakim will be more accurately reflected.
The boy who was friends with the falcon and the wolf
“These are pilot episodes,” the project’s author commented on the aired episodes, which are shown, so to speak, in a scattered manner.
In the first episode, a boy named Tugan Batyr tells his brother and sister how he found a faithful falcon and taught it to fly. The other two tell the story of the hero's relationship with Ak Bure, the White Wolf. First, Albasty (very similar to Baba Yaga) steals a wolf cub from him, for which the Wolf turns almost the entire village to stone, but does not touch Tugan Batyr, who helps him save the baby. In the third episode, Tugan Batyr goes with a neighbour's boy to the forest to understand the power of wolves, but the neighbour, as it turns out, has a craving for theft. From the point of view of the plot, these are simple stories with one or two understandable twists, sometimes with educational explanations at the end.
The opening scenes depict a city with a settlement, though its appearance, such as the presence of ornate window frames, typical of the late 19th to early 20th century, suggests a timeless quality rather than a specific historical period. The 3D animation frequently shifts perspectives, and the characters' clothing is carefully detailed. Notably, there is significant attention to the interiors. However, there is sometimes a sense of “cartoonishness” in the movements. There is also a heroine named Gulchachak, but her role is mostly contemplative — in the third episode, she twists her leg and is treated by a local scientist, Alim Babay.
Abdrakhmanov also thanked the mufti of the republic, Kamil hazrat Samigullin, for his consultations, who offered a magic ring-zighir, talked about the history of the heroes, clothes.
“A couple of years ago, when the film was being prepared, a big problem arose, we thought, what should a Tatar batyr, a Tatar warrior look like?” recalled the head of the Duma of the Republic of Tatarstan. “How to dress up the fighters, how to portray the role of Bulgarian warriors, there was nothing in front of our eyes. We didn't even know what the Tatar saber looked like. You can imagine an Indian shamshir, a katana, a saber, even a kladenets sword.”
“No one could imagine the image of a Tatar warrior," said Samigullin. “What came to mind was the Nightingale the Robber with a terrifying hat.” There was no image. But today, thanks to the efforts of Radik-aby and his team, we now have Tugan Batyr in front of our eyes, in addition to Kamyr-Batyr.
After the New Year, Abdrakhmanov is scheduled to negotiate with online cinemas: Okko, Ivi, Kion and others: “We will also arrange for it to be on federal channels. Plus, the cartoon will be translated into other languages to be released abroad. Some fragments are going to be posted online soon.”