Real Pavel Durov: the secrets of biography opened

The father of the founder of the Telegram: “We don’t communicate, haven’t seen my son a year and a half, I have no Internet”

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The founder of VK and Telegram Pavel Durov is a cult figure and a man of mystery. One of the most successful Russians — in the sense that he accomplished not with the help of oil and cutting public money. Symbol digital resistance. But how much do we know about this Film? We met up with someone who knows of Paul, beginning with his father and ending with my colleagues.

Photo: instagram@durov

Due to the history of unsuccessful attempts to block the messenger Telegram the founder and owner Pavel Durov has managed to become in Russia the figure is a truly mythical. Still. He was able to easily and gracefully to stand against the pressure of the whole state. He was able to make your messenger known and competitive not only in Russia but throughout the world.

But the most successful young Russian billionaire (fortune, according to Forbes, $1.7 billion) is not going to stop. In media there was news that the brothers Pavel and Nikolai Durov Telegram building the platform for Open Network (TON), which will become a kind of “Internet in Internet” — an add-on to the current Global network, but it will not be able to deny access or to hack it in the usual ways. This new virtual state step in “the matrix” and, apparently, the fulfillment of a cherished dream of Pavel Durov.

Virtual cemetery

Pavel Durov like to submit information about yourself in thesis, format maximalist statements. Thus he formed a mythical image of billionaire ascetic and a staunch bachelor. He was born in Leningrad, Valery Semenovich, doctor of Philology, head of the Department of classical Philology at St. Petersburg state University, where she currently teaches. The school Paul went to Turin, which was then at work was his father. In his native St. Petersburg studied from the experimental program in the academic gymnasium, from which he graduated with honors. After he entered the Department of Philology of St. Petersburg state University, specialty “English Philology and translation”. Your diploma Paul still didn’t take away from University, and most of his fellow students remember that “seen but not communicated,” “studied a single thread, but not personally acquainted”.

“I wait with hope and love,

Going to pour rain…

The exciting summer, with blood…”

“The sun is grey, grey, grey.

Warm my chickens,

So the chickens, well done,

Carried boiled eggs”.

Still well that the founder of Vkontakte left the versification, which was fond in student’s years. Although he called the poems “ironic” and, according to friends, treated them quite tenderly, even published in youth anthologies.

“He basically liked everything he does, says Maxim Kashevarov, a University friend of culture is also studied Philology, but a year behind. — I think this confidence is one of the main components of its success”.

Who was Pavel Durov before becoming Russian mark Zuckerberg?

Unlike his brother Nicholas, technical genius, Paul was more of a humanist — obviously, the heights brothers-Prodigy he didn’t reach, so the parents decided to offer him another path, in order not to condemn the younger son forever to fade in the shadow of older. They could not imagine that life would be very different.

However, the second son, too, was very capable, philological subjects were given Durova’s easy, he won the Olympics, received a scholarship and eventually went on to study Philology, which he graduated with honors.

It is the place and nature of his studies became a starting point for further progress. First, he opened the website durov.ru containing lecture notes, answers to tickets and other educational materials needed by the scholar. The success of this site gave her the idea of what he is going to do next. Then he opened a student forum of the University, and after that came up with the idea of creating a social network.

However, his first business project was a… beauty contest at the faculty. At its organization it had received from the Dean’s office as much as 100 thousand rubles, in addition drew sponsors from among well-known brands.

“Durov personally satisfied with the casting and were selected for participation in the competition, says Cook. — The girls struggled and tried to please him, but the actor was with them cold and haughty. He generally treated women skeptical whether this was boyish arrogance, whether the complexes are not clear.”

Really, about the personal life of culture is practically unknown. “Nicotine and alcohol is one of the most dangerous drugs. I banned the advertising of cigarettes and booze in Vkontakte. Love is a drug too. So I don’t fall in love,” said he in one of few interviews.

Like it or not, we don’t know, but there is reason to believe that Durova was at least one serious relationship. According to some media reports, confirmed your information an extract from the register of the Registrar, Durov growing up two children from a former student of the history Department of the same University Daria Bondarenko. According to the staff of one of St. Petersburg publications, who published this information, it is completely reliable. To journalists the classified information provided to the staff of the Registrar’s office. It is worth noting that Agency workers broke the law, perhaps some of them did it for the reward, but cannot be ruled out that information about children was a simple “drain” in order to put pressure on Durov. Its publication is a strange way coincided with the increased interest in the founder of Vkontakte on the part of security personnel.

Pavel Durov (before plastic surgery) with presumed wife Darya Bondarenko (left).

He Durov existence of children flatly denies.

“They had an affair — that’s all I know, says Cook. — It was not until the last course, and then I’m with them personally. By someone else information about children I didn’t get it.”

As told “MK” one of the former employees of VK, a colleague at his new place of work once mentioned that he personally knows “his wife and children Pavel Durov”, and even sat with his little daughter. But to confirm these data we failed.

Perhaps Durov and not disingenuous about taboo love, because, still being in a relationship with Bondarenko (according to Kashevarova), on his birthday, which coincided with the anniversary of the founding of Facebook, he threw a Grand party and invited a few dozen of the girls from the escort agencies. And the author of the biographical book “Durov’s Code” Nikolai Kononov wrote that, according to the recollections of friends, one for educational purposes Paul is not talking with his girlfriend for two weeks. That’s just about Bondarenko was discussed or not, is unknown.

About the cynicism of the Durova, which is the dominant feature of his personality, and tells a different story.

Once he has attended to the problem pages of deceased users Vkontakte and even thought to create a virtual cemetery. In this context, he told colleagues the story that Durov himself seemed very funny: one of the users of Vkontakte parents of the dead girl was asked to remove the album where he posted it anyway. Instead, the man just drew in photoshop puddles of blood. Telling, retelling it, Durov was so much fun, and lamented that the Creator is a creepy collage may have banned.

“I would not say that he showed some pathological cruelty or coldness, it’s just one of the traits of his character, says Cook. — But who is he, in my opinion, really loves is brother. I have several times seen together, but his special relationship immediately evident”.

Watch the video on:
“Pavel Durov runs into a police officer. Report and record from the DVR”

02:32

Brother Cat

Who is this Nikolai Durov? According to one version, it is not adapted to the outer life of a computer genius who, despite his outstanding ability, could not succeed, on the other — the one who is the true Creator of Vkontakte and whose laurels appropriated Paul. Actually — neither one nor the other, or rather, in both these statements there is only truth.

The Durov brothers were born in a family of Petersburg intellectuals, the parents has never been worth. They sure are lucky with is two sons, Nicholas and Paul.

From an early age Nicholas was to demonstrate outstanding ability and characteristic of geniuses oddity. As they Mature, these qualities worsened — he makes few friends and is not popular with the girls.

Senior Durov — “non-public” face of the digital Empire.

According to eyewitnesses, once in one of his trips to warm countries, he ate a bowl of cereal with got there bugs. The surrounding was so dumbfounded from the sight, and I never even had to tell Nicholas about the presence of insects in his plate.

One of his few friends was the technical Director of Vkontakte, Anton Rosenberg. With him is only in the life of Nikolai Durov public scandal, and quite loud. Rosenberg has accused former friend that he molested his wife Natalia.

“I remembered his notebook with ideas and projects: in particular, there was a diagram of a nuclear reactor, which he wanted to build: with limiting rods cooling circuit and turbines to generate electricity,” recalls Rosenberg children’s Hobbies of the senior. And he talks about a rather specific sense of Nicholas.

“The forum of SPSU, he had the nickname K. O. T., which later became the nickname of the cat, eventually forcing the name. Moreover, nick actually considers himself a cat, calls his mother “a big cat”, loves to meow on the street and in restaurants and calls to the others,” notes Rosenberg.

According to him, as he neither asked about the cause of such a nickname, Nicholas was always evasive. “According to one version, was affected by the death of their cat, Morpheus (Morpheus), at least the questions in the ceiling “Where’s our Morpheusa?..” during the negotiations brought a stranger with him in extreme confusion,” says Rosenberg.

However, for eccentricities co-founder of Vkontakte all used, good public representation and serious negotiations mainly took on Paul.

With regard to the participation of Nicholas in the project that has made a millionaire of his brother, he really is for the technical component of Vkontakte. When Pavel Durov saw Facebook, he immediately called his brother, while studying in Germany, and said that you need to write software for his Russian counterpart. But the idea, as well as its further promotion, without a doubt, belongs to Paul.

“Sorry, Nikolai Durov was not nice and quiet genius-nerd. Now it seems to me that it is still influenced by money and fame, coupled with a lack of understanding of normal human feelings. Looking back, I reconsider the past, recall his indifference to colleagues, and cynical to people, and indifference to animals — even cats, it really does not matter, it is only a totem, a symbol,” writes about Nicholas in his revelatory text called the “cat gun” Anton Rosenberg.

Anton Rosenberg is the author of the scandalous article about Nikolai Durov.

However, given the circumstances of their quarrel, we can’t be sure of the objectivity of any of the parties. According to Rosenberg, Nicholas long had his eye on his then girlfriend, now wife and started to seduce her behind his back. And he left these attempts and after public disclosure of unflattering stories.

Childhood friends quarreled forever. And then Anton had to leave from Facebook, which is rightly called his child too. At first Paul tried to gently put pressure on Rosenberg, that he left the company at his own request, and then fired, allegedly for absenteeism.

The only public scandal involving Nikolai Durov happened because of love the wife of his friend — Katja Rosenberg.

“I was fired, not even paying debts on a salary, not to mention the award last year.” Disgruntled former employee went to court with a claim for illegal dismissal. But soon we got back: the company culture is also suing Rosenberg — “disclosure of trade secrets.” And its damage is estimated at 100 million rubles.

In the end, the lawsuit was withdrawn and the parties went to the world, the scandal was hushed up gradually. Rosenberg did not “resolve” the conflict and try to sue her for a big payout. And so what happened hit him, shaking his career and almost broke his family, so a former friend Cat decided not to risk the rest.

And it was from the window of the office of Rosenberg in the office of Vkontakte Durov, Jr. released the second part of five thousandth bills. At the bottom was a crowd of people were snatched each other money, even formed a small crush. The initiator of entertainment laughed and insisted, in total releasing the window 60 thousand rubles.

“My monthly salary was gone,” stated watching this programmer.

My father Durov no Internet

In “the house on Reed street”, described Anton Rosenberg in “cat culture” is the parents ‘ apartment, Paul and Nicholas. The usual panel desyatietazhki in the area of the final station in the North of St. Petersburg. Around new multi-storey “candles” development of the nineties with large internal courtyards on their background looks cozy and intimate. Flower beds, playgrounds, neighborhood football. In the front, where gathered the nucleus of a future Facebook, few people know “what a film like this”, and who knows, I’m sure he lives in Moscow because “there’s all the meetings are held”.

In this St. Petersburg apartment building lives the father of the brothers Durov.

Valery Semenovich Durov, the father of our hero, from the call refused: “you Know, to say something — only to hurt. What can I say? We don’t talk to him. I have even no Internet, I’m an old man. I haven’t seen him for a long time already… Probably a year and a half”.

The neighbors, as it turned out, didn’t even know that that old intellectual — father “that”. “Go, greet… And that he’s the son of a famous? If so, it is strange that dad, then he lives here”.

The “flat culture” — another popular bike among the former employees of the Leader. Most of them, of course, never been there. And this, of course, not the family nest, and not even about the apartment, Paul m, and the “commune” of the developers of the social network, allegedly located in the center of St. Petersburg, near the house of the singer. The apartment, in mixed sources, “elite”, ie the developers, filmed together.

However, not only the apartment, but even in the office of a social network to get now easy. The office of Vkontakte is in the famous house singer on Nevsky prospect, on the ground floor of which was a House of books. For a long time there was a spelled out and the Telegram office, but in January, after the scandal with Anton Rosenberg, the messenger slid from famous buildings, giving the premises Vkontakte. Now the dome of the singer, according to the administration of the building, not to get. At the entrance guests are greeted by the guard, even if you pretend that you’re “the interview”, the forgery was immediately detected on the phone. Directly upstairs from the office, input only the fingerprint. “In principle, the most effective way to get to the office to seduce someone from the staff who work there (and in the “Singer”, recall, is only a guide) — shares the opinion of a former employee of the social network. — We had a case where a man, obviously “sick” on the social network, to seduce the girl to work on her behalf”.

The leader

“Pavel Durov — a figure odious. You know, it’s all loaded from either fans, or hate it. In the official workers chat rooms Vkontakte staff called him, or Paul, or the Leader. That’s it, with a capital”, — told “MK” a former employee of the social network created by Durov, on condition of anonymity during a personal meeting. Surprisingly, even former employees of the Leader is assured that their contacts and personal correspondence in social networks and Telegram can always see “who needs”.

“This is not unequivocal tyranny, he continues. — Because it was the communication with authorities, and in such formulations was the percentage of the enjoyment of “warlordism”. In the end, many this view is shared. And Durov — Durov that… Well, was always in their black robes. I’m not very pretty out of it to the public was made Holy, and caricature of the Holy.”

He was echoed by another former employee of the social network: “the corporate parties, for example, we had no alcohol and meat, only seafood. In this case, when Durov was a touch of elitism. The first parties were going only the elite — developers. And then was the office party “for all” in the Sheremetev Palace. Then came all the people who worked from home and not a house singer (there were only manual, all the others were on remote). And these incredibly delicious dishes are not especially climbed…”

Traditionally, corporate Vkontakte was two — 10 October (birthday of the project and Pavel Durov) and 24 December (the Leader thought New year is a relic of the bourgeois and was offered to celebrate the winter solstice). And always at a separate table sat a popular photographer Alexander Mavrin. The Mavrik-known erotic images, and corporate VC together with your models regally occupied a separate table. On the proposal of the correspondent “MK” to talk about those glorious times no Mavrin, nor his model of 2011-2012 did not respond.

“Why am I talking about “a caricature of the Holy,” continues our source. — We all remember the story of how in 2012, the day the city was thrown out the window of the house of singer airplanes from five thousandth bills. This is against the backdrop of his statements about austerity. At that time, the employee’s salary support, for example, was 20 thousand rubles, his act many people do not understand.

There was another story, when the social network EN masse closed group with pornography. Despite all technical improvements, the main work was manual: the entire mass array of communities split up to work different people. And since it was done all accelerated pace, often at night, apparently from lack of sleep someone covered group normal mild erotic. The administrator was offended, wrote on the wall in the social network post about this gross injustice.

And then — I don’t know what it was, maybe Paul himself liked to look through this group for leisure, to his comments came in person she said it was someone else’s fault. And then it all changes groups with pornography, you’ve just rolled back. Dozens of hours of labor just to nowhere, though there was not even a formal Executive order was only a comment in a public field. In principle any dispute between the employees ended instantly if pop up the argument “it’s not my idea, that the Leader said so.”

Keanu the actor or Paul Reeves? The founder of the Telegram has made a startling resemblance with his idol from the Matrix. Photo: a frame from the video.

As an act of “leaderism” is the story of the jackdaw verification Yury Khovansky in the social network. Blogger invited to the jury of the beauty contest, which was conducted at VK Live, and the tradition of alcohol at the event was not.

Editor in chief VK Live Alexey Efimenko has told “MK” that was going on. “The event was closed, and in the announcement we warned that alcohol will not be there to take it with you is prohibited. Someone offers said that friends Khovanskii poured him out a glass of wine. Later, when we were cleaning, there was the bottle of wine. I wrote about this on my wall (just as a fun fact, no intent to punish). In comments came from Paul.”

In open sources Paul, however, nowhere called. The press-Secretary of Vkontakte (at the time) George Lobushkin wrote that verification Khovansky was canceled and handed it to the girl that won the beauty contest second place. Moreover, Alexey Efimenko told about this situation: “Paul did not agree with the results of the contest and said that the first place was to get the girl who took second. Later on one of the events Paul came with a package full of new iPhone, one of which invited me to give this girl.”

Magic numbers

“Those who seek my life locks, Parking sports cars and a fleet of “Boeing” will be severely disappointed. I have no planes, cars, and houses. My world is a movement on foot and by metro, as well as sleep in a rented room the size of 18-20 m2. Those who would like to trade places with me, would also have to completely give up alcohol, meat, and expensive clothes,” — said once about himself Pavel Durov. And all anything, but the reality of it is irrelevant. Well, except that in addition to meat and alcohol — they Durov really does not use.

This phrase was said to journalists at the peak of his career and, according to the people Pavel Durov, then he was trying to be like Steve jobs and Mark Zuckerberg. But Durov’s material wasn’t alien. And, of course, he had every right to, but he chose his true life carefully hidden.

In fact, during the publication of the words about the subway and rented room Paul had his white “Maybach”, in which he buzzed the city, soon after that there was a private plane, perhaps, and not one, a castle in Italy, and more.

Only one Durova apartment in the residential complex “Fifth element”, located on the shore of the pond in the center of Primorsky Victory Park on Krestovsky island in St. Petersburg was worth at that time 500 million rubles. It is there, behind him came the riot police on 9 December 2011, when the VK was raided by the FSB.

In addition, over 500 thousand dollars for himself and brother he has acquired the citizenship of the Caribbean nation of St. Kitts and Nevis. Now he did and moved to Dubai, rented fancy office in a skyscraper, rides a white horse across the desert and goes to noisy parties.

Why on earth was to pretend to be Mark Zuckerberg, if you’re Pavel Durov, less successful and talented, but completely different? And here we are faced with an interesting twist.

“He always loved the number two, apparently in protest against an imposed stereotype that deuce is bad, because it means “unsatisfactory” in the record book, — said Maxim Kashevarov. — Tried to prove that the second room is not bad.”

And to be second from Pavel Durov worked perfectly. As the second son and the second a talented child in the family after his brother, he did the best abilities of both of them. Becoming the second after Zuckerberg, Durov could create your own unique product — first Facebook, then Telegram — and, apparently, this is only the beginning.

But there is something else in the film acts as the second. If you look at old pictures, we can see there is almost another person — protruding ears, light brown hair with early signs of alopecia, uneven teeth and small chin — that looked like Pavel Durov earlier. Now we see bright brunette with thick hair and a sculpted face.

We were asked to evaluate the changes in his appearance a plastic surgeon Gia, Kinija.

According to him, first the actor made a hair transplant. “This typically use hair from the nape, but, judging by the result, it has not done. The head of this man has grown very thick hair, and most likely, he used the infusion of donor hair. This procedure is not yet widespread, but its long and successfully in Germany. It can cost about 100 thousand dollars. He also did plastic ears and chin, but it’s pretty easy and inexpensive operation,” said Kinija. New hair Durov, obviously, paint on the eyes is colored contact lenses.

In addition, the surgeon questioned the validity of muscle relief Durov, suggesting that he could use a new type of liposuction, which constructed the ideal body shape. But the pictures say it Kenize not taken.

Why Pavel Durov not just corrected the defects in appearance, and has completely changed its character — from the blonde nerd turned into a dark-haired, handsome man? The answer lies in his student’s passion. Countless times he watched the movie “the Matrix” and identified with Neo, the main character played by Keanu Reeves. Well, apparently, Durova childhood dream come true — almost a copy of the Neo every day looking at him from the mirror.

Perhaps due to the drastic change in appearance he does not want to talk to my own father? We can only guess.

In the Wake of the locks Telegram in Russia, Pavel Durov became engaged, unusual for him, topic — politics. Under his auspices, arranged rallies, and he became involved in vnutriposelkovyh scandal. The leadership of the libertarian party, which he is a member, fell out with other opposition members, refusing to work together to fight for a free Internet. The position of the party supported. He also announced the creation of their own virtual political movement “Digital resistance”.

Either Durov continues to haunt the second room, he joined politics and wants to become the second Bulk, uniting young people, or is he doing all this to attract people to the generated TON. How things really are, we soon learn.

“You waiting for something big in 2018,” not so long ago promised us Pavel Durov. Really though what it will be the first?

See photo essay on the topic:

From nerd to handsome: the transformation of Pavel Durov, founder of Telegram

14 photos

Saint-Petersburg.