Pulat Saidkasimov

Pulat Saidkasimov was born on 8 October 1931 in Tashkent. In 1954 he graduated from the acting faculty of the Ostrovsky Tashkent Theatre and Art Institute. He began acting in films in the early to mid-1950s (sources give 1953 or 1954).

From 1954 to 1957 he worked at the Hamid Alimjan Samarkand Regional Theatre of Music and Drama, and from 1957 he was an actor of the Hamza Uzbek Drama Theatre (now the Uzbek National Academic Drama Theatre). His stage roles included Rustam in «Kholiskhan» (his first notable part), Pulat in O. Yakubov's «The Heart Must Burn», Abdullatif in «Mirzo Ulugbek», Ilyas in Ch. Aitmatov's «My Slender Beloved», Edgar in Shakespeare's «King Lear», Karimjon in A. Kakhkhor's «Ayajonlarim», Salimboy in Oybek's «Qutlug' qon», Aurangzeb in «Zebunniso», Sobirov in I. Sultan's «Imon», Zargarov in «Sakhro tor» and Bobo in U. Azim's «Bir qadam yo'l».

His first major film role was Makhkam in Shukhrat Abbasov's «Drama of Love» (1971). In «Abu Raykhan Beruni» (1974) he played the scholar as an adult. He became widely known through the epic «Fiery Roads», in which he played Zavki, the democratic poet who was Hamza's teacher and mentor. Other films include «Beware! Snakes!» (1979), «Distant Close Years» (1976), «The Shameless One» (1992), «Patience» (2004), «Grandfather and Grandson» (2009) and «The Melon» (2012), as well as the series «Shaytanat», in which he played Zelikhan. On television he also played Cherkashin in «Ichkuyov», Tugonbek in «Alisher Navoiy» and Abdullatif in «Ulugbek's Treasure». His last film is given as «Qor yog'moqda oppoq qor», directed by Rikhsiboy Muhammadjonov.

He was Honoured Artist of the Uzbek SSR (1969) and People's Artist of the Uzbek SSR (1979), and received the Order «El-yurt hurmati» (2001) and a Certificate of Honour of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Pulat Saidkasimov died on 18 January 2019 aged 87 and was buried at the Chigatai cemetery in Tashkent.