BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 18. The mono-performance "Immortal," dedicated to Azerbaijan’s National Hero Natig Gasimov, has been presented in Mingachevir, where he once lived,TurkicWorld reports.
The presentation was organized with the support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, along with the Ministry of Culture, the Azerbaijan Theatre Workers Union, the Sumgait State Drama Theatre, and the Mingachevir State Drama Theatre.
The stage production was authored and designed by Elshan Sarkhanoglu, directed by People’s Artist Firudin Maharramov, with staging by Umid Abbaszade. The performance featured actor Elay Khasiyev from the Sumgait State Drama Theatre.
The production portrays Natig Gasimov’s bravery, patriotism, and self-sacrifice. It depicts his resistance after losing six comrades, as he held out alone against encirclement for five days, as well as his heroism in saving the lives of 22 residents taken hostage in Khojaly.
Natig Gasimov was born in 1971 in the village of Kichik Garamuradli in the Gadabay district. When he was young, his family moved to Mingachevir. During the First Karabakh War, he volunteered for the front and demonstrated exceptional courage in battle.
In 1992, in the village of Pirlar in Khojaly, Gasimov remained surrounded for five days but refused to surrender, continuing to resist. After being threatened with the execution of 22 hostages, he laid down his weapon and emerged from the Albanian church where he had taken refuge, but did not relinquish the Azerbaijani flag he held until the very last moment.
He was posthumously awarded the title of "National Hero of Azerbaijan" by a decree signed by President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev on June 25, 2024.
