"It was the day we were reborn": the story of a couple applying to the All-Russian Wedding Festival

More than 170 couples from across Russia have already submitted applications to take part in the second All-Russian wedding festival "Russia. Uniting Hearts." The festival will take place at the National Centre RUSSIA from July 8 to 10, 2025. Among the applicants are Artyom Zulkarnayev and Yelizaveta Rudycheva from the city of Kaluga.

Artyom, a civil engineer, and Yelizaveta, a lawyer, met during a christening ceremony where both became godparents, Yelizaveta Rudycheva shared.

"Sometimes fate weaves together in the most astonishing ways, and love arrives when you least expect it. It all began when my aunt and her husband had a baby daughter. They started looking for godparents, and my aunt asked me to become the godmother. Her husband, in turn, invited his best friend — someone he had trusted and been close to for many years. We met for the first time on the day we became godparents. You could say that on that day, we were both reborn — not for ourselves, but for each other," Yelizaveta said.

The new friends became a couple and, as the bride-to-be shared, have been each other’s support and strength for the past three years.

"Glances, smiles, a flutter of excitement — it was like in a movie, when you just know the person in front of you is someone special. At first, we simply talked. A lot, for hours, effortlessly. As if we had known each other our entire lives. A month later, we were a couple. Not long after that, we moved in together. Since then, three years have passed — years full of warm evenings, shared dreams and little joys," Yelizaveta said.

A participant of the second All-Russian Wedding Festival "Russia. Uniting Hearts," Yelizaveta enjoys knitting and loves to travel.

"I try to discover new cities and places, and I always bring back tea — I already have an entire collection! Every kind of tea to me is a memory, the aroma of a story, and a little piece of the place I visited," she noted.

Artyom Zulkarnayev sees his profession as a calling and regards his work as a way of shaping space.

"I work in the field of design and construction of buildings and structures. It’s more than just a job — it’s a way of creating and improving the world around us. I believe a true engineer is someone who can see the future and bring it to life. Construction is a profession where dreams are born from concrete and steel, and I am proud to be part of this great craft," the groom-to-be emphasised.

Artyom’s life motto is: "By building homes, we build the future. By preserving warmth within walls, we preserve warmth in hearts." In his spare time, he also enjoys travelling. The couple has already visited many cities across Russia.

Ahead of Artyom and Yelizaveta lies a new chapter in their life together.

"What brought us together was the desire to be there for someone at an important moment in their life — and what united us was a love that grows stronger every day. Now we’re starting a new chapter. And just like three years ago, we stand side by side again, filled with excitement and happiness. Only now, we’re not just godparents, but husband and wife to be," Yelizaveta shared.

Applications with photographs can be submitted via the official website of the National Centre RUSSIA, the public services portal Gosuslugi, or by sending the documents via email to the Moscow Civil Registry Office (zags@mos.ru). Participants will be selected on a competitive basis by a joint commission of the Moscow Civil Registry Office and the National Centre RUSSIA.