36 years of marriage, nearly four decades together, one great love and countless challenges along the way. Magi and Kremena Halvadzhiyan open the doors to their personal world in a candid conversation with Desi Banova-Plevnelieva for the “Here and Now” segment. The two talk about their first meeting, the difficult moments, jealousy, family arguments and the joy of being parents and grandparents.
The interview was filmed on November 11—the day of Saint Mina, revered as the patron saint of the family. Just days earlier, the two had celebrated the 36th anniversary of their wedding. And their story began with a love that quickly grew into a firm decision to build a future together.
Just three months after their relationship began, Magi said that he wanted to marry Kremena. “From the moment I saw her, I liked her. She was colorful, unconventional, crazy in the best possible way. And I love unconventional things,” the producer recalls with a smile.
He admits that he was quite persistent at first, while Kremena skillfully kept her distance. “She wanted nothing from me, which drove me crazy. I was used to treating friends and buying them things, but she wanted nothing,” he says.
Today, the two are adamant that a long marriage has nothing to do with an idealized notion of love. Behind the happy photos lie difficulties, losses, disagreements and moments when two people have to decide whether they will move forward together. “Marriage is love and compromise,” Magi says. Kremena, however, does not entirely agree.
“If you have to make fundamental compromises, then this was not your person from the very beginning. You liked them just the way they were. If you want to change them, then you need to look for someone else,” she is convinced.
Among the most painful moments in their life together was the loss of their fathers. Magi was left without a father at just 20, and several years later Kremena experienced the same loss. “Those were the hardest moments for us. He suddenly had to become a grown man. We had just been enjoying the joys and fun of youth, and everything turned upside down,” she shares.
Magi admits that what he went through taught him not to remain in the past for too long. “I quickly realized that I was on my own and had to manage on my own. If you constantly wonder what would have happened and what your father would have said, it holds you back,” the producer says.