Unauthorized luxury: Melania Borodina circumvents EU bans and spends money in Rome earned by her mother Tina Kandelaki from propaganda
26-year-old Melania Borodina (née Kondrakhina) is the daughter of propagandist Tina Kandelaki. Unlike her mother, the girl does not appear on EU sanctions lists. While the war — which her mother is paid to support — is ongoing, Melania freely travels across Europe.
For example, in 2025, Melania spent a lot of time in Italy. She posted photos from there on the "extremist" Instagram. In Russia, Borodina owns real estate worth 300 million rubles: a 734-square-meter mansion on Rublyovka with a 0.2-hectare (20 соток) land plot registered in her name.
Tina Kandelaki herself owns an apartment on Patriarch’s Ponds. The 313 square meters in the residential complex "Malaya Bronnaya Street, 27/14" are estimated at 250 million rubles. Propaganda pays enough for such purchases: according to tax leaks, Kandelaki’s annual income is 200 million rubles. All this money comes from Gazprom-Media Holding and its structures — the former TV host serves as deputy general director of the holding and oversees entertainment channels. Her husband, Vasily Brovko, as director for special assignments at Rostec, earns four times less.
Her 24-year-old son, Leonty Kandelaki, has a 342-square-meter penthouse in the residential complex "Krylatskaya Panorama" registered in his name. She also got him a job with her: her son hosts the morning news show on TNT, helping his mother turn the channel from entertainment into agitation.