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‘This way up’: What goes on in the city of Izhevsk, famous for Kalashnikovs

Symbol of Izhevsk - The Peoples' Friendship monument

“Here everyone knows each other. This is Izhevsk! They make Kalashnikov machine guns here. The whole world uses them. What else do we have? The Buranovskiye Babushki [a pop group with eight grannies] also produce here.”

The mustachioed taxi driver bursts into laughter after mentioning the grandmothers. His fingers tap the steering wheel to the rhythm of Udmurtian rap. The Buranovskiye Babushki are the republic’s brand. In 2012 they participated in Eurovision with their song “Party for Everybody” and came second. Buranovo village is located 36 km from Izhevsk. The grandmothers are indeed “self-produced”: They have three groups. But the Kalashnikov still reigns supreme in these parts in terms of status. Little here alludes to the presence of the Udmurt people though - just the bilingual road signs.

“Do you know that Steve Jobs is an honorary Udmurt,” the taxi driver asks me.

Yes I know. Other honorary Udmurts are Kazimir Malevich, Emir Kusturica, Albert Einstein, and John Lennon. People say that somewhere in the city you can find extensions of their graves (with the exception of Kusturica) in the form of iron leaves on the ground. The honor was awarded for having a “special influence on Udmurtia,” but it’s actually just a result of Izhevsk artists fooling around. It was the same when the city’s residents erected a small copy of St. Petersburg’s Alexander Column, cast a small Tsar Cannon, and placed a portrait of the Romanovs by a cemetery entrance - although not a single Romanov is buried there.

The car stops and the taxi driver winks conspiratorially.

“Don’t pay any attention to it, everything here is…a bit surreal,” says Nikita. He’s lived in Izhevsk all his life and is shooting a documentary film about the republic.

"Everything here is…a bit surreal”

The local Indians

The Russian Drama Theater stands in Izhevsk’s historical center. It’s a three-story building with columns like those outside the entrance to Moscow’s central metro stations. The adjacent building houses another drama theater, showing only Udmurt productions. It’s smaller and without columns.

“We don’t understand the difference between ourselves and the Udmurts. It’s obvious but it’s not clear where the border lies,” explains Nikita.

In the past the Udmurts were called Botyaks because 40 km from Izhevsk lies the city of Votkinsk and the Votka River. Here the people are considered something like local Indians. American artist Nanibah Chacon from New Mexico came to Izhevsk and spent two weeks painting a mural. It was a profile of a woman wearing a traditional Udmurt shawl (indistinguishable from a Russian one). The artist was amazed by the relation between the distant cultures: Elderly women from the Navajo tribe wear the same shawls.

Mural by Nanibah Chacon in Izhevsk

Obviously there is no Udmurt Reservation here. But there are elements that allude to it.

During the Soviet Union Russians worked at factories as the qualified labor force, while Udmurts did the “dirty work” or were employed in villages. The local people were considered savages. During Joseph Stalin’s reign the word “ votyak ” became a pejorative term. Many were ashamed of their origins. But today, Nikita says, attitudes are changing. People are treated as equals.

From the window of his 13th floor studio apartment the “progressive” district of Izhevsk looks like it can fit in your palm: Pipes, concrete, Factory smoke, a colorless sky.

“Progressive” district of Izhevsk looks like it can fit in your palm: Pipes, concrete, Factory smoke, a colorless sky.

Explosive subject

A blinding light reflects from a large water stain. This is the Izhevsk Pond. It was excavated by hand where the Yagul Udmurt village once stood during the Russian Empire in 1760, in order to build the city’s first enterprise – an iron factory. The old building with the shabby stucco still stands on the shore as a silent reproach to the authorities, who have no money for its reconstruction.

Old iron factory's building

In the winter practically no one walks around the pond. There are no mothers with carriages, no tourists. It is two o’clock in the afternoon and only two men and I are here. They are both pensioners who moved to Izhevsk more than 20 years ago. They were struggling to feed themselves and it was “just fantastic here.” The hungry times were the 90s: After the collapse of the USSR many factories closed down. The men find it difficult talking about it - they still resent the Soviet government...and the current administration.

The hungry times were the 90s. The men find it difficult talking about it.

Izhevsk wasn’t even hit that hard. It was saved by a large concentration of factories, some of which are still going. Those that were shut down have been turned into commercial centers - the same gray hangers simply house something else.

Until the middle of the 80s there was no direct road connecting the city to neighboring regions. Because of the state defense industries, one could only enter with the special pass. The place was not secret enough to bear a code number instead of a name but tourists were still not allowed, unlike today. Travelers are attracted to the city’s ethnic character and its industries (tours of the plants are available). However, the locals are indifferent to the fact the city produces the most popular weapon in the world.

“No one here really knows what this city actually produces. I’ve never really given it much thought… But actually, yes, this place has a lot,” says Kolya, a 27-year-old shop assistant. 

Izhevsk city

A drowned Udmurt

Starting in the 2000s Izhevsk residents were told that soon the city would have a million residents. But this has not happened. Currently, there are just over 646,000 people here. The shop assistant does not hide his disappointment. “It’s stale and dull,” this is what he thinks of Izhevsk. Next year he’s moving to St. Petersburg. You can hear the same type of talk among the students standing by the entrance of the women’s dormitory.

In part this mood can be explained by the typical imbalance between the provinces and the capital in Russia. It is thought that all the best things are in Moscow and St. Petersburg. Many people feel Izhevsk fails to deliver as a city in terms of things to do, but Nikita thinks the place has an interesting internal cultural life.

Currently, there are just over 646,000 people in Izhevsk.

Between the middle of the 80s and the beginning of the 2000s there was a myth surrounding the city: “Izhevsk is the Russian capital of electronic music.” It had a few record labels, such as Kama Records (no longer around), about 50 groups, performances by DJs from England, the U.S., Germany, and Iceland. Despite the disappearance of the label, there are still many creative people here.

“Everyone sits in their bedroom. Actually, this is very Russian: A musician who composes in the bedroom. Then he uploads it all into the Internet”.

You can understand the people who want to leave the city. But some say they are happy here.

On Nikita’s wall hangs a poster of his documentary film, The Drowned Man . It shows upside down silhouettes of the factories and the pipes “drowned” in Izhevsk Pond. Catching my worried look, he notes: “In the minds of Udmurts a drowned person is not a dead person. It is a person who went to live in a parallel world and does not interact with the world of the people who remained on the ground. This is a metaphor for Izhevsk life. We even had a collection of music called ‘News of the Underwater Izhevsk.’ This is the underground we have. There isn’t one nice club around. Yet we have really exciting cultural life.”

You can understand the people who want to leave the city. But some say they are happy here. It’s just that Izhevsk can come across as a bland city. For example, you can be walking down a street and see nothing but high-rise apartment boxes, one after the other.

People say the city resembles a microchip

Suddenly I see a sign on one of the buildings written in large letters: “This side up.” What does it mean?

“This is what they wrote on TV boxes or on various cargos. The installation appeared on the building in the beginning of the century.”

It means that people are very fragile, that they are not merchandise, says Nikita. I can imagine thousands of fragile people assembling machine guns and the country’s nuclear shield. And then they return to their concrete boxes and muse over who had a bigger influence on them: Native Udmurt and avant-garde artist Kazimir Malevich or distant Udmurt John Lennon.

Nightlife in Izhevsk

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Russian stuff blowing up: Big bavovna at Russian missile plant

Big bavovna. Really big.

Reports say it is the location of a plant outside of Izhevsk that produces ballistic missiles and Iskanders. Izhevsk is about 1,100 km east of Moscow. It is said to be a major arms production region and home to t he Kalashnikov Museum and Exhibition Complex of Small Arms.

The Russian Defense Ministry said the fire was caused by rocket engine testing at the Votkinsk Machine-Building Plant.

Of course, if Ukraine was looking for a big juicy military target to blow up, this would be a great place. That’s a hell of a distance for a drone to cover, but it might be a special forces operation. 

If you kind of squint at the fireball, you can sort of see Ammo Dump Jesus allegedly blessing the Sacred Bavovna.

Russian Telegram channels publish a video of a fire in the area of a military training ground in Russian Izhevsk. No official comments from Russian authorities so far. Locals reported hearing explosions prior to the fire. Upd.: some Russian Telegram channels report that the… pic.twitter.com/mQtDwjbbZ5 — Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) February 7, 2024

Massive explosion rocks Russian plant producing ballistic missiles for Topol-M and Iskander systems near Izhevsk. Russian state media insists blast occurred during routine "missile engine tests" 🤡 📹 https://t.co/WpAFbo5cxK pic.twitter.com/TYIjQUyBfb — Euromaidan Press (@EuromaidanPress) February 7, 2024

Izhevsk, Udmurtia, russia - massive bavovna! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/UCzeJ9OFNT — WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated) February 7, 2024

Russia’s apparent first use of its new hypersonic missile looks like a big flop. The missile appears to have been shot down.

Russia might have used its new 3M22 Zircon hypersonic missile for the first time against Ukraine this morning — Defense Express. Photos of the wreckage labeled "ZM22" have been published. They were found allegedly in Dniprovsky district of Kyiv near the affected power line.… pic.twitter.com/R9v8LtVHN1 — Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) February 7, 2024

Russia’s new high-tech demining tool.

Luhansk Oblast, a Russian soldier removes an antipersonnel landmine by hitting it with a short log. pic.twitter.com/UZSVEnq9RK — OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) February 6, 2024

This map video illustrates how Russia has slowly crept forward at Avdiivka.

The Russian offensive in #Avdiivka from 10/01/2023 to 02/07/2024... #UkraineWar #UkraineRussianWar #OSINT #Ukraine #Russia pic.twitter.com/Oy3fooOB26 — OSINT (Uri) 🇺🇸 🇨🇦 🇬🇧 🇺🇦 🇮🇱 (@UKikaski) February 7, 2024

Waves of missile attacks on Kyiv are reported to have killed four people and injured about 35.

A severe fire in a residential building after a russians’ missile strike on Kyiv. pic.twitter.com/nw5lXIYnjg — Maria Drutska 🇺🇦 (@maria_drutska) February 7, 2024

Belgorod came under attack today. The audio in this video records powerful explosions, which could be coming from Ukrainian drone/missiles or Russian air defense. The attack was reported to have been on a concrete plant.

Belgorod, Russian territory. Strong explosions and fires after Ukrainian shelling of military targets. #UkraineRussianWar pic.twitter.com/icTBNgfrzI — TOGA (@TOGAjano21) February 7, 2024

2/3 Authorities in #Belgorod say two people have been injured and an industrial plant and apartments were damaged, presumably by debris if everything was shot down. Here something lands right next to a lorry outside a factory in #Kreyda , in the east of the city pic.twitter.com/Ag7ApmGU85 — Tim White (@TWMCLtd) February 7, 2024

This video  was made by a badly wounded Ukrainian soldier. It is a farewell message, thinking he was going to die. It is quite gripping. Fortunately, he is reported to have survived but there are no other details such as where or when it happened.

WARNING: I am not embedding it because his face is bloody in the video.

Good deal for Ecuador and a good deal for Ukraine.

Ecuadorian Sa-8s will be replaced by US-supplied systems. Source- https://t.co/Xti3Q7zSFx pic.twitter.com/50p6HfH89G — OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) February 7, 2024

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz worries that giving Ukraine Taurus cruise missiles would escalate the war. So why aren’t North Korean missiles considered an escalation?

Serhii Bolvinov, Chief Police Investigator of Kharkiv Oblast, said two of the five missiles Russia launched at Kharkiv today were North Korean Hwasong-11Ga (KN-23) ballistic missiles. https://t.co/XWaNJ1z2YA https://t.co/3cZtX3Qcoa pic.twitter.com/JtbOhURmwI — Rob Lee (@RALee85) February 7, 2024

Russia treats Tucker Carlson like he’s Taylor Swift.

Former American Fox News Channel host Tucker Carlson has become a key figure for the Russian media in recent days and the real event of the day in Russia. During the week, Russian state media mentioned Carlson more than 2,000 times. This frequency increased 14 times in the last… https://t.co/f3qGjhhMro pic.twitter.com/9IX0KxElio — Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) February 7, 2024

Carlson began to be reported as early as the moment he boarded the plane in Istanbul. The Russian press (pro-state press, which is important) is documenting his every move: watching where his car drives (like RIA Novosti), how he watched the ballet Spartacus at Bolshoi Theatre (and even tried to lift a ballerina there) and being commented on by Dmitry Peskov, being called to shows - both political and entertainment channels (like TNT), being ready to accept him into the Union of Journalists of the Russian Federation (as stated by its chairman), opinion leaders in the Russian Federation enthusiastically reposting one after another that Tucker will interview Putin.

There are a number of reports (based on a Newsweek story) that the EU is considering sanctions against Tucker. Some claim this is an outrage against press freedom. I might agree with that if Tucker were actually a journalist. Wasn’t one of Fox’s legal defenses that Tucker is really just an entertainer ?

To be fair, it is hard for these two to make much sense with their heads jammed up Putin’s ass. 

To be fair, it’s hard for them to talk while giving a blowjob at the same time — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 7, 2024

Maybe Elon is still upset over this fire in January:

❗️Tesla dealership in #Kyiv and fuel tanks on fire. @elonmusk how are you? 🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬 pic.twitter.com/tCMg47gKFJ — Aurora Borealis 🤫 (@aborealis940) January 2, 2024

What kind of training do they need to be cannon fodder?

Syrian mercenaries getting Russian passports and VISAs after undergoing military training by Wagner and Russian Army instructors in Aleppo. Currently, about 1,000 Syrians have been/are undergoing training. Upon arrival in the Russian Federation, they will be mobilized to the… pic.twitter.com/iNm4EWqk9m — OSINT (Uri) 🇺🇸 🇨🇦 🇬🇧 🇺🇦 🇮🇱 (@UKikaski) February 7, 2024

Austria isn’t acting much better than Hungary or Slovakia.

An Austrian court has rejected Kyiv's extradition request for the former head of the National Bank of Ukraine, Kyrylo Shevchenko - Der Standard Shevchenko reportedly claimed political persecution by the Office of the President and requested political asylum in Austria. pic.twitter.com/v2qg9KRdSW — NEXTA (@nexta_tv) February 7, 2024

Mike Johnson should have to spend some quality time in a bomb shelter like this EU diplomat while missiles from his beloved Mother Russia land above ground. Then he should have to talk to the families of those who were killed and explain why he consistently votes not to help Ukraine.

Starting my morning in the shelter as air alarms are sounding across Kyiv. This is the daily reality of the brave Ukrainian people, since Russia launched its illegal aggression. pic.twitter.com/Q7tZL5evkd — Josep Borrell Fontelles (@JosepBorrellF) February 7, 2024

A good Russian for sure.

A traumatologist from Moscow left Russia after the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Now Andrey Volna treats the Ukrainian military, performing several surgeries a day. "I did everything I could for Russia, but Russia chose the fascist path," Andrey Volna says. "We… pic.twitter.com/E4I5tfN6fa — Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) February 6, 2024

A 12-year sentence isn’t nearly enough. She should be charged with murder and treason.

Oksana Maryschenko from Donetsk region began to cooperate with the russians even before the beginning of the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation. It was with her informations that on January 6, Rashists launched a rocket attack on houses in the Pokrovsky district. Then… pic.twitter.com/QLAxlWm6xx — Oriannalyla 🇺🇦 (@Lyla_lilas) February 7, 2024

Another victim of the attack on Kyiv.

A resident of Kyiv says goodbye to his dog, killed by Russia pic.twitter.com/KuO2YpTHEl — Oriannalyla 🇺🇦 (@Lyla_lilas) February 7, 2024

This is a shear delight.*

*yes, I meant to do that.

🐑 After a farm in Donetsk region was shelled, Prima miraculously survived, but got trapped in a large pit. She was very weak when she was found by the military man Maxym. He took the animal to the base and took care of her, and a week later, Prima gave birth to a lamb 💕 We… pic.twitter.com/o4d8Z4UOQC — UAnimals.ENG 🇺🇦 (@UAnimalsENG) February 7, 2024