Dilara Aliyeva is one of Azerbaijan’s most beloved artists. She is an actress, TV host, Honored Artist of Azerbaijan, and the director of SOY Production. Her career spans theatre, television, cinema, and stand up, yet she sees them not as separate skills, but as different expressions of the same creative breath.

In this exclusive feature, Dilara speaks with rare honesty about the craft of comedy, the weight of drama, the emotional truth behind her performances, and the evolving relationship between artists and artificial intelligence. What follows is a beautifully layered portrait of a woman who has spent her life giving emotion a voice.

The Artist Who Breathes Her Craft

To understand Dilara Aliyeva is to understand an artist who does not separate life from creativity. Every performance is colored with her own lived reality. Her art is not a mask. It is her truth.

Her journey began on the theatre stage, grew through television hosting, and eventually expanded into iconic comedic roles, dramatic characters, and the creation of SOY Production. Over the years, she has become a symbol of depth, sincerity, and emotional intelligence within Azerbaijani culture.

Dilara shares that she never chased versatility. Instead, versatility found her. To her, stage and screen are simply different ways of carrying the same emotional energy. The excitement she felt as a young performer still returns every time she steps under the lights.

Comedy as Truth, Drama as Healing

Many know her for comedy, but her dramatic performances hold equally powerful emotional force. Dilara explains that comedy requires a specific type of intelligence, observation, and human understanding.

For her, humor is not frivolous. It is serious work disguised in lightness. While pain naturally brings tears, laughter requires an artist to transform sorrow into something healing. She believes that when comedy carries truth within it, it becomes a form of human connection.

Her dramatic roles, meanwhile, are raw and personal. She shares fragments of her own joys and wounds through every character she portrays. After certain dramatic scenes, she often needs silence just to return to herself. This emotional honesty is what audiences feel so deeply in her work.

A Legacy Born in Theatre

Dilara spent years performing at the Jafar Jabbarli Yerevan State Azerbaijani Drama Theatre, a place that shaped her identity both as an artist and as a woman. Theatre taught her discipline, courage, and respect for the audience.

For her, theatre is a living home. Even now, before each new performance, she asks herself if she feels like it is her first day. That feeling, she believes, is the secret to staying passionate, humble, and real.

Stand Up Without Filters

Her popular stand up show, Mintonasiya, became a cultural moment. The format gave her complete freedom. No scripts. No censorship. No boundaries. Just her, her thoughts, and the audience.

She used humor to talk about everyday absurdities and social truths. Every laugh carried a message. Every joke left an echo. Mintonasiya proved that comedy and reflection can coexist without losing beauty or impact.

The Power Behind SOY Production

Since 1998, SOY Production has been Dilara’s professional home and creative family. What began with the project Həftə Çal-Çağırı has grown into a powerhouse responsible for dozens of successful shows and content formats.

As a producer, she feels every production deeply. She does not simply appear on screen. She builds, shapes, and guides the story behind the scenes.

Human Art in the Age of Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence is entering film, music, and screenwriting. When asked if AI can ever replace artists, Dilara answers with confidence: it never will.

AI can generate text, produce visuals, and even mimic human behavior. But it cannot feel. It cannot transfer real emotion. It cannot give life to a moment.

Acting requires soul. Art requires breath. Dilara believes AI will assist creators but will never own the emotional truth that is unique to humans.

A Message for the Future of Azerbaijani Culture

Dilara feels that modern culture is losing patience and depth. Life is moving too fast. Art, however, does not grow quickly. It grows through meaning, intention, and time.

She wants young artists to pursue depth, not fame. Every image, every scene, and every line must carry a soul. Only then does art survive.

Her Message to the Audience

Dilara ends with a message that reflects her spirit:

Laugh not only for joy, but for life. Laughter protects the light within you. She exists on stage to share that light, hoping it reaches those who need it most.

Exclusive Interview with Dilara Aliyeva

• Dilara, you’ve worked in theatre, television, and film. What makes you so multifaceted?

Dilara Aliyeva:
I wouldn’t call it versatility — it’s more like one breath. For me, the stage, the camera, and live broadcast are simply different forms of the same energy. I’ve been a host for 30 years, yet the excitement I felt the first time I stepped on stage still lives in me. Maybe that feeling is what keeps me reborn every time.

• You’re beloved for your comedic roles, but your dramatic performances are equally powerful. Which is harder — making people laugh or cry?

D.A.:
Crying is easier because pain always exists inside us. But to make someone laugh, you need both intellect and observation. Comedy is the art of talking about pain through laughter. If you can hide sorrow behind humor, then you’re a true actor. For me, comedy is serious work — every joke carries a human story beneath it.

• Your dramatic roles feel very authentic. Do you bring your personal emotions to the stage?

D.A.:
Absolutely. An actor always gives a piece of themselves. My life, my losses, my joys — they all become part of my characters. Sometimes after performing a dramatic scene, I need a few quiet minutes to come back to myself. It’s not easy to step out of those emotions.

• Your stand up show “Mintonasiya” received a lot of attention. What draws you to that format?

D.A.:
Stand up, for me, means freedom. There’s no director, no strict script, no censorship. It’s just you and the audience. In Mintonasiya, I talked about the absurdities of everyday life with humor. Behind every laugh, there was a message I wanted people to think about.

• You performed for many years at the Jafar Jabbarli Yerevan State Azerbaijani Drama Theatre. What does theatre mean to you?

D.A.:
The theatre raised me. I spent years on that stage, gained friends, and felt the love of the audience. It shaped me as an artist and as a person. Even today, before every new performance, I ask myself, “Do I still feel like it’s my first day?”

• You are also the director of SOY Production. Do you think hosting and producing complement each other?

D.A.:
Yes, absolutely — both come with great responsibility. Since 1998, SOY Production has been both my work and my family. We started with “Həftə Çal-Çağırı”, but today we’ve brought dozens of projects to life. I don’t just present a show — I feel it.

• Artificial intelligence is becoming part of music, film, and even screenwriting. Do you think AI can ever replace artists?

D.A.:
No, never. Artificial intelligence can copy an image, but it can’t give it a soul. Acting isn’t a technique — it’s emotion. When you truly feel something, the audience feels it too. AI may create a perfect dialogue, but something is always missing — the human breath. I believe AI will support art, but it will never be able to own it.

• What do you think is missing in Azerbaijani culture today?

D.A.:
Patience and depth. Everything is moving too fast, but art doesn’t rush. We need to pause and ask ourselves — what are we doing, and why? Every frame, every line should carry a soul. I want young artists to aim not for fame, but for depth.

• Finally, what would you like to say to your audience?

D.A.:
Laugh — not just to have fun, but to live. Because laughter is the best way to protect the light within you. I exist on stage to share that light with others.

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