"Thanks also to those who got in the way": Ali Khamraev spoke about what stands behind his Golden Globes award
Uzbek director Ali Hamraev, who received the Golden Globes Meridian Award in Tashkent, dedicated part of his speech to the people who helped him and to those who put spokes in his wheels. He also shared how, at the age of ten, he watched Charlie Chaplin's film "City Lights" and decided to dedicate his life to cinema. The director shared his speech with us. On October 23–24 in […]
"Thanks also to those who got in the way": Ali Hamroyev explained what lies behind his Golden Globes award
Uzbek director Ali Hamroyev, who was honored with the Golden Globes Meridian Award in Tashkent, expressed gratitude in his speech not only to those who helped him, but also to those who put spokes in his wheels. In addition, he shared how, at the age of ten, he saw Charlie Chaplin's film *City Lights* and decided after that to dedicate his life to cinema.
On October 23–24, Tashkent hosted the inaugural Golden Globes Silk Road Tribute Gala ceremony. Held under the auspices of the American Golden Globe Awards, the project brought together representatives of cinema and television from Central Asia and the Caucasus. The Meridian Award honors were presented to Ali Hamroyev and People's Artist of Uzbekistan Gulchekhra Jamilova.
In his speech, Ali Hamroyev recalled his childhood and the film that determined his choice of profession. He was ten years old when he watched Charlie Chaplin's *City Lights* in a Tashkent movie theater.
"Back then, as a barefoot boy, I was choked with tears during the finale of this great film. It was in those very moments that I realized I would give my life to the great art of cinema," the director shared.
He noted that he had spent 70 years behind the camera, making the receipt of an international award a particularly meaningful event for him.
Hamroyev expressed his gratitude to his family, his wife Gulbustan, his teachers, and masters of cinema. Among them, he named Uzbek directors Nabi Ganiyev, Malik Kayumov, and Shukhrat Abbasov. He also mentioned Akira Kurosawa, Orson Welles, John Ford, Alfred Hitchcock, Federico Fellini, and other filmmakers.
The director gave special thanks to the people who supported him during difficult years. However, he did not overlook those who stood in his way either.
"Thanks to those who always helped, they inspired me; thanks also to those who always got in the way, they strengthened my will and my passion!" Hamroyev said.
This very phrase essentially holds one of the key meanings of his speech. In the director's view, obstacles can also become part of the creative journey and strengthen the desire to forge ahead.
Hamroyev also emphasized the contribution of the people who helped him during challenging periods. Among them, he named Alisher Usmanov.
The director has worked in Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Italy. However, he defines his professional identity unequivocally.
"I have worked in Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Italy, but when people ask me, I always answer: I was, am, and will be an Uzbek director," he stressed.
At the end of his speech, the director addressed his young colleagues. He urged them not to get overly carried away with artificial intelligence and to develop their own abilities instead.
"I ask my young colleagues in Uzbekistan not to get carried away with artificial intelligence, and to make the most of their natural intelligence and their rare, God-given talent," Hamroyev said.
In his opinion, it is important for young filmmakers to seek their own creative path and win the audience's recognition.
The first Silk Road Tribute Gala ceremony took place in Tashkent on October 23–24. According to the Golden Globes, the event was dedicated to the achievements of cinema and television representatives from Central Asia and the Caucasus. In addition to Hamroyev and Jamilova, awards were also presented to filmmakers from Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, and Armenia.