Moldovan president participates in event on launch of book by Romanian film director in Cahul

Chisinau, 16 March /MOLDPRES/ - President Maia Sandu participated in an event on the launch of a book by a film director from Romania, Cristian Mungiu, during a working visit to the Cahul city, on 15 March. The book is titled, Tania Ionașcu, bunica mea. O biografie basarabeană (Tania Ionascu, my grandmother. A Bessarabian biography) and represents the story of Mungiu’s grandmother, born in Cahul and who crossed the Prut river on the period of the World War II to be in safety, the presidential press service has reported.      

„Some books directly touch the soul, remain in your mind and make you spend time while thinking at its heroes, at the events of history hitting human destinies, destroying them or radically changing the existential trajectories. The book, Tania Ionascu, my grandmother. A Bessarabian biography, by reputed film director Cristian Mungiu is just some those books. With scrupulosity and attention for details, as well as with a huge love of grandson, Cristian Mungiu describes the drama of the life of his grandmother, who was born in Cahul in 1916 and then took refuge fleeing the war in Iasi,’’ President Maia Sandu said.        

The head of state noted that she had remained impressed to listen to the story of a Bessarabian woman, Tania Ionascu, in Cahul, where Cristian Mungiu, through his book, brought his grandmother to the place where she had been born. ‘’We spoke about wisdom, about empathy, about resilience, about the fact that we must know our history, first of all, through the history of our families, as this is the only true history, non-contaminated by ideology and false patriotism,’’ the head of state stressed.        

President Maia Sandu also said that the people from Cahul had embraced Cristian Mungiu with heart and soul, declaring themselves to be quite proud of the fact that Mungiu ‘’is one belonging to them.’’ The head of state awarded an honorific title to the Romanian film director. The decree signed by President Maia Sandu contains the special merits of Mungiu in the development and promotion of the cinematographic art and in the assertion of the Romanian cinematography internationally, as well as for substantial contribution to the consolidation of the cultural dialogue between Moldova and Romania.        

„With the feeling that I committed an act of justice, I handed the film director, script writer and writer Cristian Mungiu the Order of Honour. For the fact that, through book or film, he puts the recent history of our nation on the stage of the entire world. For the courage to choose subjects which are not in the likings, which distress, which disturb, but which need to be assumed and metabolized. For the attention paid to our cinema men and his unconditional support. Cristian Mungiu said that he had come to Cahul this time ‘’in research,’’ looking at the city with an eye of film director. We are looking forward to his next film!’’ President Maia Sandu said.