Rashid Behbudov

Actor · 1915 – 1989 · Tiflis, Tiflis Governorate, Russian Empire [now Tbilisi, Republic of Georgia]

Rashid Behbudov (Azerbaijani: Rəşid Məcid oğlu Behbudov) was an Azerbaijani singer and actor. He sang in Azerbaijani, Turkish, Russian, Persian, Georgian, Hindi, Armenian, Urdu, and Bengali among other languages. Rashid Behbudov was born in Tbilisi, in 1915. His father, Majid Behbudoghlu, was a singer as well. From 1938 to 1944, Rashid moved to Armenia and worked at Yerevan State Philharmonia and Opera House, and in 1945, upon the invitation of Tofig Guliyev, Rashid Behbudov moved to Baku. In the same year, he was assigned the main role of Asgar in the film The Cloth Peddler, based on a play by Uzeyir Hadjibeyov. His role in this film combined with his vocal skills brought him fame throughout Azerbaijan. In a short time, Behbudov became also prominent Azerbaijani pop singer. His combination of vocal masterpieces ranged from classical performances to lyrical songs. Behbudov's rare vocal talent gave him opportunity to travel beyond the "Iron Curtain" of the Soviet Union, and as a singer he toured with concert performances in several countries of the world, including Iran, Turkey, China, India, Japan, Argentina, and many other countries in Europe, Asia and Latin America. In 1966, he created the State Song Theater, which still carries his name, and became its soloist and artistic manager.