White Sun of The Desert - Popular Quotes

Popular Quotes

Many popular sayings have entered the Russian language from the film. The first is by far the best known.

• The East is a delicate matter (Восток — дело тонкое); refers to any complicated or difficult matter, not necessarily "eastern" in nature.
• Are there questions? No, there aren't! (Вопросы есть? Вопросов нет!); refers to the commanding tone of an officer that will not hear objections to his command.
• Customs gives the green light ("Таможня дает добро!"); refers to any type of approval, especially reluctant approval.
• His grenades are of a wrong caliber ("Да гранаты у него не той системы"); refers to or to comment upon any kind of excuse, particularly a pathetic one. The line wasn't scripted, but improvised by the actor.
• Gyulchatai, show your sweet face ("Гюльчатай, открой личико"); a popular Russian saying for boys to say to girls.
• My heart bleeds for my country ("За державу обидно"); useful as defensive argument in disputes of any kind relation to the homeland.
• I'm replying to your letter, dear Katerina Matveyevna… ("Обратно пишу вам, любезная Катерина Матвеевна…"); used as a prelude to a letter humorously emphasizing its unusually high volume of detail or frequency of mail exchange.
• Mahmud, set the fire ("Махмуд, поджигай!"); used when embarking cheerfully on some difficult potentially dangerous mission.