ShareSqueezing through a dense crowd of pro-European protesters, Ana Kaulashvili took to the recent demonstrations in the Georgian capital like a duck to water. Less than 24 hours later, the 22-year-old would switch gears and pick up her knives and apron -- trading the fiery rallies for the stoves and set of the cooking television program MasterChef. “It has been my dream for five years,” the young contestant told AFP, standing on a Tbilisi plaza, wrapped in her Black Sea nation’s red-and-white flag. Kaulashvili has already breezed through several qualifying rounds of the reality TV show, and won the second episode of the current season.
The talented brunette would normally be spending all her time fine-tuning her recipes to prepare for the competition. But the government’s announcement last week to shelve talks on joining the European Union upended her plans, and Kaulashvili had to rethink her priorities. “My future depends on what Georgia will do right now,” she said, adding that her country was at a crossroads -- with the alluring promise of European membership to the west, and to the north, Russia’s growing influence.
Tbilisi has been rocked by days of turmoil, with opposition critics accusing the governing Georgian Dream party of having steered the former Soviet republic away from the EU and closer to Russia, an accusation it has denied. “We don’t have time to have happy time or make something that we love, or chill or have fun,” said the young cook-turned-activist. “We are now in revolution mode”.
‘Proud’
A psychologist by training, Kaulashvili has lately spent less time at home than she has outside protesting. Her protester essentials were hanging by the door of her apartment -- a Georgian and an EU flag, and a gas mask to brave the teargas used by police to break up the demonstrations. Kaulashvili has made a name for herself in opposition circles. A photo of her standing on a barricade in front of police forces, her arms brandishing the Georgian flag, has even gone viral on social media. Her boyfriend Dato Abzianidze, 29, came across the image online and shared it while Kaulashvili was still asleep. “I approached her to kiss her because I was proud,” said the digital marketer.
Cooking and politics
Whatever time she has left, she spends it cooking. MasterChef has stopped airing during the protests, which erupted last Thursday after the government said it would halt EU accession talks. But filming has continued. That day, in her kitchen, Kaulashvili took on a challenge of size: practicing her skills folding khinkali -- juicy, meat-filled dumplings. “It’s the national dish and also my favorite food,” she smiled while mincing onions.
She has previously shared her secrets on TikTok, where her videos have garnered more than 40,000 followers. But the focus of her account has since shifted from cuisine to politics, with ice cream recipes posted side by side with protest calls. “I was thinking that I have some people who are listening to me, so I can say something, and people will understand, and my voice will spread,” she said. Among these listeners is her mother, who has gone from supporting Georgian Dream to joining the protests, standing by her daughter’s side.
‘Job is to stand here’
The evening she joined the protests, Kaulashvili had planned to stay home and rest. But her night took an unexpected turn, and soon she found herself somewhere ironic: among a crowd of a hundred people protesting outside the headquarters of Georgia’s public broadcaster, which airs MasterChef. The pro-European opposition accuses the national organization of being biased towards the government and under its control.
Defiant, she realized the situation was ludicrous -- and knew she was taking a risk. But her cause comes first, she said. “It does not matter to me,” she said. “They can tell me to go out of the show.” “My first job is to stand here, and all the rest comes after that.” — AFP
