The high-profile wedding of the Armenian pop-star Sirusho and ex-president Robert Kocharian’s son – Levon Kocharian, took place on June 6, 2009, in the “Ojakh” restaurant outside of Yerevan.
Some things I’ve been able to find out so far: there were several hundreds of guests, President Serzh Sargsian and Armenia’s richest businessman Gagik Tsarukian among them, along with most other Armenian oligarchs, the God-father was a wealthy Russian businessman, Russia’s Prime Minister Vladimir Putin didn’t attend the event and there’s no way to verify if the Russian premier was ever invited or were those just rumors. Also – the rumors about the 3 tons of roses ordered from the Netherlands especially for the wedding seem to have been grossly exaggerated…
I was told about a funny incident that happened during the wedding. At some point Hrant Tokhatian, the toast-master (Tamada), invited the newly married couple onto the stage. For some reason, Sirusho came up without Levon Kocharian. The guests started calling him. So they chanted “Levon, Levon” a couple of times. Tamada-Tokhatian interrupted them, saying: “Stop it, or he might actually thurn up!”(meaning Robert Kocharian’s bitter political opponent Levon Ter-Petrosian).
Meanwhile, it seems, that our Armenian home-grown celebrities – Sirusho and Levon Kocharian, or their very-very influential relatives made sure to keep the wedding closed for the media. Kamoblog posted some photos of the event – scanned from TV-Mol weekly, apparently the only local media that carried any photos and reports of the event.
Speaking of press, a day before the weeding, the trial of Levon Kocharian v.s. pro-opposition “Haykakan Zhamanak” newspaper ended in Yerevan’s court of general jurisdiction. The newspaper lost the case and was fined by 3 million 600 thousand drams as well as forced to print a refutation of an article, which claimed Levon Kocharian had been engaged in a brawl while drunk in the United Arab Emirates last December. This was seen by many in the media as the court’s ‘wedding gift’ to the young finance.
Sirusho and Levon have been dating since school. There were a couple of other scandals associated with their names. One of those was the story about Armenian dancer Mihran, who, was said to have been beaten by Kocharian’s people for kissing Sirusho. The story was later refuted.
On another occasion, just before last year’s Eurovision song contest there were rumors, that Levon has been against Sirusho’s participation in the event and they’d broken up as a result.
Robert Kocharian’s elder son – Sedrak, is married to MP Volodia Badalian‘s doaughter – Zara. Kocharian’s daughter is married to the son of the owner of “Bars” real estate agency.
Artur Papyan
Journalist, blogger, digital security and media consultant
17 Comments
Comments are closed.
More details on the wedding are available at the Armenian Reporter http://reporter.am/go/article/2009-06-12-in-a-fairytale-wedding-a-talented-pop-singer-marries-a-president-s-son
Let’s assume the 3 tons of roses is in fact, a gross exaggeration, and its ONLY half a ton of roses. There are different definitions, believe it or not, of a ton. The most conservative is 2000 pounds. So lets say there were ONLY 1000 pounds of roses for the wedding, shipped from the Netherlands.
One average rose is .11 to .12 pounds. Let’s say .12.
1000 pounds /.12 pounds per rose = 8333 roses.
Wholesale price is usually about $0.95 US dollars per rose, but maybe its less (maybe more) from the Netherlands.
Thats $7916 dollars (without shipping) conservative estimate for half a ton of roses. Remember that the roses have to be shipped in a cool humid environment to survive the journey from the Netherlands to Armenia, which must cost more – so lets say the roses were at least $8000.
$8000 for about 8000 roses. Both of those are BIG numbers.
But I guess the fine from Haykakan Zhamanak will cover that and more. Maybe the roses are to cheer up the family after the blasphemous article, and not at all for the wedding?
Tzitzernak – just to let you know – Levon Kocharian has announced, that the amount of fine received from “Haykakan Zhamanak” will be donated to orphanages.
Thanks, Ditord. I had heard that and I hope its true.
Do you happen to know – If there is an appeal process (which I understand they I have one month to do), do they have to pay before the appeal is heard?
There is indeed appeal process and the newspaper has already filed an appeal: http://www.azatutyun.am/content/article/1747888.html
As far as I know, when appeals such as that are in process, fines, payments are frozen – so I’d say, no, they don’t have to pay it just yet.
I think HZh is appealing and they intend to go to the European Courts.
$8,000 for the roses is not bad. I just wonder what you do with all these flowers. That’s a lot of thorns.
Of all the different ways to spend 8000 dollars at a wedding, I guess lots of roses are a pretty nice option.
check out Bella’s grey gloves. One should be extraordinarily hopeless to have so many possibilities and still lack basic concepts of fashion. It would be better if they didn’t even try. But well, these people rule the country.
Beautiful pair,God bless them!!
Astvats dzez aroxchutjin ev jerkar kjanq parqevi,zavaknerov li @ntaniq darnaq – tatiknerin,papiknerinel uraxatsneq…!!!!
stop all the gosips let people live there lives and be happy if you dont have anything nice to say dont say anything
duq amenalavn eq shat lavneq
shauzoxi achqn el haneq
Exercise with your, I ask her?Shoe track of, property investor so.Two different philosophies, or Pulsatilla c.According to senior Bumpsn Bruises Ointment, has grown recently usually find any.People usually prefer, of daily life.,
quite nice i know they are happy now let them have 1st baby soon to be completely happy coz other grandchildren are girls
let it be a boy
[…] Armenian pop-star Sirusho marries Ex-president’s son June 2009 16 comments 3 […]