Boris Lisanevich
Encyclopedia
Boris Nikolayevich Lisanevich, a.k.a. Boris Lissanevitch, , (October 4, 1905, Odessa
—October 20, 1985, Kathmandu, Nepal
) was a Russian
emigre
to Nepal
, a ballet dancer, and a hotelier
and restaurateur
. He helped pave the way for tourism in Nepal, when he opened the country's first hotel
, the Royal Hotel, and later when he created the Yak & Yeti Hotel and Restaurant.
and his portrait was placed in the Military Gallery of the Winter Palace
.
At age 9, Boris entered the Odessa
Cadet Academy. In 1924 he moved to France
. In Monte-Carlo he married a ballet dancer named Kira Shcherbacheva (Kira Ivanovsky). This would eventually lead to him dancing with Diaghilev's Ballets Russes
until 1929. Then Boris left for South America
and continued dancing, including in London
, Milan
.
However because his work visa
expired in the UK and he only had a League of Nations Refugee Passport
. In the 1930s he got work in Bombay and traveled in Ceylon, Indochina
, Malaya
, Shanghai
and then went back to India
and stayed in Calcutta, where, with the help of his friends, he founded the "Club 300". Lisanevich was the person who introduced the famous dish, Chicken a la Kiev to Calcutta as a menu item in "Club 300". The club was opened in 1936 and running it until 1946 and then left for New York City
and then came back to India. Lisanevich has made friends with Prince Emmanuel Golitsyn and met the future Nepalese
king Tribhuvan in 1944 in the Club 300 the king was in Calcutta for a medical treatment and became friends with Boris. Lisanevich launched the secret meetings of Tribhuvan with Indian prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru
and participated in restoring Tribhuvan to power. In 1949 Lisanevich married a Danish
woman whom he had met in Bombay and in 1953 they married in Copenhagen
. In 1951 the king deposed the Rana family from power and invited Boris to Nepal as tourist. Then he got a job in Nepal where he managed the tourism
and as a consultant to the government. The local Soviet embassy asked Lisanevich to organize a meeting for Valentina Tereshkova
there.
s were difficult to obtain in Nepal. In an attempt to reform this process, Lisanevich convinced a group of 20 tourists from Kolkata
, mostly women, to come to Nepal in 1955 and then proceeded to have a hot discussion with king Mahendra
about granting them a 15-day visa. Finally the king relented, the guests arrived and Boris held the country’s first handicraft exhibition..
Later Lisanevich opened the country's first hotel, The Royal Hotel, in a converted Rana Palace, and then went on to open the famous Yak & Yeti Restaurant, which he later expanded into what is now the Yak & Yeti Hotel.
Lisanevich was buried on the cemetery
of the British
embassy in Katmandu.
Boris interview in Kathmandu 1961 with video montage
Odessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
—October 20, 1985, Kathmandu, Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
) was a Russian
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
emigre
Emigre
Emigre, also known as Emigre Graphics, is a digital type foundry, publisher and distributor of graphic design centered information based in Berkeley, California, that was founded in 1984 by husband-and-wife team Rudy VanderLans and Zuzana Licko. The type foundry also published Emigre magazine...
to Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
, a ballet dancer, and a hotelier
Hotel manager
A hotel manager or hotelier is a person who holds a management occupation within a hotel, motel, or resort establishment. Management titles and duties vary by company. In some hotels the title hotel manager or hotelier may solely be referred to the General Manager of the hotel...
and restaurateur
Restaurateur
A restaurateur is a person who opens and runs restaurants professionally. Although over time the term has come to describe any person who owns a restaurant, traditionally it refers to a highly skilled professional who is proficient in all aspects of the restaurant business.-Etymology:The word...
. He helped pave the way for tourism in Nepal, when he opened the country's first hotel
Hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
, the Royal Hotel, and later when he created the Yak & Yeti Hotel and Restaurant.
Early life and ballet career
Lisanevich was the youngest of three brothers. His great-grandfather Grigory Ivanovich Lisanevich battled in BorodinoBattle of Borodino
The Battle of Borodino , fought on September 7, 1812, was the largest and bloodiest single-day action of the French invasion of Russia and all Napoleonic Wars, involving more than 250,000 troops and resulting in at least 70,000 casualties...
and his portrait was placed in the Military Gallery of the Winter Palace
Winter Palace
The Winter Palace in Saint Petersburg, Russia, was, from 1732 to 1917, the official residence of the Russian monarchs. Situated between the Palace Embankment and the Palace Square, adjacent to the site of Peter the Great's original Winter Palace, the present and fourth Winter Palace was built and...
.
At age 9, Boris entered the Odessa
Odessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
Cadet Academy. In 1924 he moved to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. In Monte-Carlo he married a ballet dancer named Kira Shcherbacheva (Kira Ivanovsky). This would eventually lead to him dancing with Diaghilev's Ballets Russes
Ballets Russes
The Ballets Russes was an itinerant ballet company from Russia which performed between 1909 and 1929 in many countries. Directed by Sergei Diaghilev, it is regarded as the greatest ballet company of the 20th century. Many of its dancers originated from the Imperial Ballet of Saint Petersburg...
until 1929. Then Boris left for South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
and continued dancing, including in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
.
However because his work visa
Visa (document)
A visa is a document showing that a person is authorized to enter the territory for which it was issued, subject to permission of an immigration official at the time of actual entry. The authorization may be a document, but more commonly it is a stamp endorsed in the applicant's passport...
expired in the UK and he only had a League of Nations Refugee Passport
Nansen passport
Nansen passports were internationally recognized identity cards first issued by the League of Nations to stateless refugees.-Origins:Designed in 1921 by Fridtjof Nansen, in 1942 they were honored by governments in 52 countries and were the first refugee travel documents...
. In the 1930s he got work in Bombay and traveled in Ceylon, Indochina
Indochina
The Indochinese peninsula, is a region in Southeast Asia. It lies roughly southwest of China, and east of India. The name has its origins in the French, Indochine, as a combination of the names of "China" and "India", and was adopted when French colonizers in Vietnam began expanding their territory...
, Malaya
British Malaya
British Malaya loosely described a set of states on the Malay Peninsula and the Island of Singapore that were brought under British control between the 18th and the 20th centuries...
, Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
and then went back to India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and stayed in Calcutta, where, with the help of his friends, he founded the "Club 300". Lisanevich was the person who introduced the famous dish, Chicken a la Kiev to Calcutta as a menu item in "Club 300". The club was opened in 1936 and running it until 1946 and then left for New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and then came back to India. Lisanevich has made friends with Prince Emmanuel Golitsyn and met the future Nepalese
Nepali people
Nepali people can refer to:*People of Nepal*Ethnic Nepalis of Indian citizenry residing in Gorkhaland area of West Bengal, Sikkim, Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram and other parts of India.* Indian Gorkhas*Lhotshampas of Bhutan.*Nepali diaspora the world over....
king Tribhuvan in 1944 in the Club 300 the king was in Calcutta for a medical treatment and became friends with Boris. Lisanevich launched the secret meetings of Tribhuvan with Indian prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru , often referred to with the epithet of Panditji, was an Indian statesman who became the first Prime Minister of independent India and became noted for his “neutralist” policies in foreign affairs. He was also one of the principal leaders of India’s independence movement in the...
and participated in restoring Tribhuvan to power. In 1949 Lisanevich married a Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
woman whom he had met in Bombay and in 1953 they married in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
. In 1951 the king deposed the Rana family from power and invited Boris to Nepal as tourist. Then he got a job in Nepal where he managed the tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
and as a consultant to the government. The local Soviet embassy asked Lisanevich to organize a meeting for Valentina Tereshkova
Valentina Tereshkova
Valentina Vladimirovna Tereshkova is a retired Soviet cosmonaut, and was the first woman in space. She was selected out of more than four hundred applicants, and then out of five finalists, to pilot Vostok 6 on the 16 June, 1963, becoming both the first woman and the first civilian to fly in...
there.
Nepal
At the time, VisaVisa (document)
A visa is a document showing that a person is authorized to enter the territory for which it was issued, subject to permission of an immigration official at the time of actual entry. The authorization may be a document, but more commonly it is a stamp endorsed in the applicant's passport...
s were difficult to obtain in Nepal. In an attempt to reform this process, Lisanevich convinced a group of 20 tourists from Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
, mostly women, to come to Nepal in 1955 and then proceeded to have a hot discussion with king Mahendra
Mahendra of Nepal
Possibly no heir for the time period of 1911 through 1920. Previous Crown Prince: Tribhuvan Bir Bikram Shah, from 1906 to 1911....
about granting them a 15-day visa. Finally the king relented, the guests arrived and Boris held the country’s first handicraft exhibition..
Later Lisanevich opened the country's first hotel, The Royal Hotel, in a converted Rana Palace, and then went on to open the famous Yak & Yeti Restaurant, which he later expanded into what is now the Yak & Yeti Hotel.
Lisanevich was buried on the cemetery
Cemetery
A cemetery is a place in which dead bodies and cremated remains are buried. The term "cemetery" implies that the land is specifically designated as a burying ground. Cemeteries in the Western world are where the final ceremonies of death are observed...
of the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
embassy in Katmandu.
Other Links
Boris interview in Kathmandu 1961 with video montage