He’s barely over 28, and the guy has already gone through numerous vicissitudes of life, one of them having a huge bearing on his shining personality. He is ready to ask, and it will be given to him; he is desiring to seek, and he will find; he is determined to knock, and the door will be opened to him. Andro Chichinadze of Tbilisi, Georgia, is a professional actor with a special theatrical education and the specific qualification of cinematographer. As he puts it, films have been his lifelong passion, but how truly smart of him to have revisited the theater stage in the strong belief that theater would contribute tremendously to his cinematic future. In his own words, a moment of sudden and great revelation visited him to help him make this brilliant decision to put together these two differing and mutually complementing ways of artistic storytelling.
As fate would have it, three years ago, Andro received a very serious injury from a deafening explosion at a shooting ground, which left him in a state of disconnect with reality, generating an overwhelming sense of existence in a surreal milieu. Using medical terms, one could describe the resultant condition as derealization mingled with depersonalization. The trauma seemed enormous, the disorder grave, and the challenge almost insurmountable.
Psychologically speaking, the disorder had to be handled professionally and without delay. The athletically built, handsome young man, with the looks of a typical Western frontiersman, found himself on the brink of giving up on his beloved trade of movie-making in order to take care of his health and functionality. All was done in good faith and sequence. The gradual recovery moved on its way, and, little by little, the boy returned to his habitual way of life.
Yet something was still wrong with the mind. And this is exactly when it all started. Believe it or not, Andro Chichinadze found relief in the mountains! Says he: “The high-altitude environment offered me a unique refuge and perspective, serving as a very important component of my healing process. The serenity in nature helped me reconnect with myself and regain my sense of clarity, which had been elusive to me for such a long time.” Amazing, isn’t it? And the continuation of the story is even more exciting.
The experience was outstanding in terms of its transformative character, and, as a result, Chichinadze made up his mind to venture into the morally elevated and physically challenging mission of climbing seven mountain peaks, including Everest, Kilimanjaro and Elbrus, and, based on the acquired experience, to create a documentary, recording the details of his heavenly expedition. The preliminary title of the future documentary is ‘The Journey of Transformation’, the “transformation” being that the extensive and venturesome crusade turned into prevailing evidence of resilience and self-discovery, attesting to the hope for renovation even at the harshest moments of losing the will to live.
Why a film? Because the film would provide the best language of communication between the healing power Chichinadze had discovered and the patients who are compelled to fight the same disorder he suffered. Andro couldn’t have found a stronger source of hope or a sharper means of inspiration for his fellow humans. He says he believes that recovery is right behind the closest curve thanks to the magic the mountains exude. Yes, the spectacular mountains, his incredible supporter in the virtuous deeds of this Georgian Good Samaritan.
Andro says that, as an actor, he understands the importance of storytelling, and its power to encourage the interconnection between people and their mutual empathy. By sharing his journey, he hopes to encourage others to seek for their own remedial ways to convalescence, and to remind them that they are not in heartbreaking solitude in their tenacious fight for life. How very Western!
I remember the renowned western journalist, America’s true darling Katie Courc’s heroic struggle to rescue her husband from a lethal disease. After he had succumbed to colon cancer, his courageous wife vehemently propagated the idea of timely colon checkup, thus alerting others all over the world towards the cunning ailment. Andro Chichinadze is exactly the same kind of a warrior for saving human lives, the only difference between him and Katie being their dwelling place. This model of behavior definitely makes Sakartvelo an organic part of Western culture. Hurrah to this wonderful similarity between us and the West!
Blog Nugzar B. Ruhadze
