“Culture is also a kind of weapon, and often it can accomplish more than an entire diplomatic team.” - film director Samvel Tadevosyan

On April 26, the premiere screening of Nemesis Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow: Nemesis in Culture, a documentary by military film director Samvel Tadevosyan, took place at Tekeyan Centre in Yerevan.

The event was attended by descendants of the heroes who, following the Armenian Genocide, pursued justice against the perpetrators of the massacres, as well as cultural and political figures, historians, artists, members of the film crew, and other guests.

The attendees were welcomed by Armen Tsulikyan, Director of Tekeyan Centre Fund. A clergyman offered the Lord’s Prayer and a blessing, emphasizing the importance of films that address themes of national memory and history.

In his remarks, director Samvel Tadevosyan said: “The Armenian ‘Nemesis is a significant chapter in the chronicle of the Armenian people’s centuries-long struggle for liberation, while those who carried it out were pioneers of our just struggle. The film focuses on one episode of their heroic deeds.” He also spoke about the origins of the film and the ideas that inspired its creation.

The national anthem of the Republic of Armenia was followed with a minute of silence in memory of the victims of the Armenian Genocide.

The film and the historical significance of Operation Nemesis were discussed by journalist Artyom Yerkanyan, grandson of a member of Nemesis operation Aram Yerkanyan; politician Abraham Gasparyan, founder and director of the Genesis Armenia Fund; literary scholar, Doctor of Philology and Professor Samvel Muradyan; Academician Ashot Melkonyan, Director of the Institute of History of the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia; and Armen Gevorgyan, grandson of Artashes Gevorgyan, one of those who assassinated Kemal Pasha, who also played an important role in the making of the film.

Through video link, Armenian artists living abroad also spoke about Operation Nemesis and the film. Austrian writer and diplomat Birgit Kofler, author of I Have Killed a Man, but I Am Not a Murderer, a book about Soghomon Tehlirian, also addressed the audience.

The event also featured certificates of appreciation presented by the film’s production team to those who had supported the project amongst who were Professor Gurgen Melikyan, Executive Director of the Gurgen Melikyan Multichildren Family Foundation of Kashatagh, members of the Foundation’s Board of Trustees painter Shmavon Shmavonyan, Bagrat Nazaryan, and Tony Kahve, as well as Artyom Yerkanyan.

The full article by Zohrab Erkoyan was published in Meran, the official newspaper of the Kashatagh Region of the NKR.