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Depardieu bought the plot in the village of Beliye Stolby which also houses Gosfilmofond's vast archive, Borodachev told popular daily Komsomolskaya Pravda.
"When he saw our countryside -- birch trees and a pond with wild ducks and river rats swimming and where you can go fishing -- he decided to settle down here," Borodachev said.
"Gerard himself chose the plot. And he asked me to start building a large, beautiful house that has to be made of wood. We've already laid the groundwork and put up a guest house where Gerard will live temporarily."
The former Oscar nominee has also grown to love Russian cuisine, Borodachev added.
The tabloid described the village as a gated settlement with guard dogs and with a farm that provides food for residents.
The 64-year-old actor threatened to give up his French citizenship after Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault branded him "pathetic" for announcing plans to become a tax exile in Belgium to avoid paying a temporary 75 percent tax on incomes above one million euros ($1.3 million).
During his visit to Russia earlier this month, Depardieu was feted as a hero and also invited to build a house in Saransk, the capital of Mordovia, a region famous for its punishing climate and network of Soviet-era labour camps.
"So far this is just being discussed," Borodachev was quoted as saying. "If Depardieu expresses a desire to live there, he will be given a present of a house near Saransk next to a pond so that he could fish there."
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"When he saw our countryside -- birch trees and a pond with wild ducks and river rats swimming and where you can go fishing -- he decided to settle down here," Borodachev said.
"Gerard himself chose the plot. And he asked me to start building a large, beautiful house that has to be made of wood. We've already laid the groundwork and put up a guest house where Gerard will live temporarily."
The former Oscar nominee has also grown to love Russian cuisine, Borodachev added.
The tabloid described the village as a gated settlement with guard dogs and with a farm that provides food for residents.
The 64-year-old actor threatened to give up his French citizenship after Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault branded him "pathetic" for announcing plans to become a tax exile in Belgium to avoid paying a temporary 75 percent tax on incomes above one million euros ($1.3 million).
During his visit to Russia earlier this month, Depardieu was feted as a hero and also invited to build a house in Saransk, the capital of Mordovia, a region famous for its punishing climate and network of Soviet-era labour camps.
"So far this is just being discussed," Borodachev was quoted as saying. "If Depardieu expresses a desire to live there, he will be given a present of a house near Saransk next to a pond so that he could fish there."
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