After the Rain, on Thursday 1986

On a Thursday after a rain, three babies arrive in the kingdom: the Tsar Avdei Oleg Anofriev’s son, Varvara Valentina Talyzina’s son, and a foundling discovered among cabbages in the palace garden. All three are named Ivan, and the Tsar decrees they should be raised together, a decision that fates a tangled web of destiny. Yet shy of harmony, Varvara Valentina Talyzina schemes to swap her son with the Tsar’s in the royal crib, sending the real prince and the foundling to a labor camp.

Two decades pass, and the false prince, now backed by Varvara, climbs to power at court and begins plotting to seize the throne. The Tsar remains wary and withholds his approval, watching the court drama unfold. Meanwhile, Varvara’s grip tightens as she visits her brother Yegoriy Yuri Medvedev, who oversees the labor camp, pressing him to wipe out the two Ivans and clear the path for her favored successor. Overheard by the rightful heirs, the real prince and the foundling seize the chance and escape on a magical, wind-swept flying carpet, slipping away from perfidy and imprisonment.

Back at court, Varvara presses the Tsar to crown the false prince, shaping public sentiment and political fate. To stall the scheme, Avdei issues a cordial but cunning decree: the rightful inheritance rests on a perilous task—Ivan must rescue Princess Milolika Marina Zudina, who is held captive by Koschei the Immortal Oleg Tabakov. The challenge attracts a chorus of volunteers, including the elusive false prince and Yegoriy, who set out for Koschei’s lair, hoping to win Milolika’s freedom or bargain for her exchange by gambling with enchanted checkers.

Meanwhile, the real prince and the foundling brave their own perilous path. After a tense encounter with Baba Yaga Tatyana Pelttser, they rely on wit and courage to charm Koschei and locate Milolika. When Koschei captures them, he offers a chilling deal: spare the prince if the foundling retrieves the Firebird from a distant shah. The foundling’s empathy for the creature’s captivity grows into resolve, and the Firebird agrees to help after witnessing the suffering it endures.

As the foundling races back with the bird’s aid, the prince, with Milolika’s assistance, discovers Koschei’s death—hidden inside a crystal egg. The Firebird’s support becomes the turning force as the two Ivans converge on Koschei, who, in a twist of fate, destroys the egg himself, releasing a surge of magic that undoes the evil. Prisoners are freed and restored to their true forms, and the kingdom feels the weight of released justice.

The Tsar learns of Varvara’s deception and chooses mercy for the real prince, while Varvara is banished from the palace, her schemes laid bare. With the truth in the light, peace returns to the realm, and the young Ivans, the real heir and the foundling, stand ready to begin their futures with a restored balance at the heart of the kingdom.