Rabbi Shlomo Nisanov’s Full Kaykov TV Interview: A Soviet Report Card, a Father’s Lesson and a Daughter’s Memory

Kaykov TV has released its full conversation with Rabbi Shlomo Nisanov, the Queens rabbi and community leader whom the channel calls one of the best-known representatives of New York’s Bukharian Jewish community. The episode premiered on the channel’s YouTube page on Monday, Oct. 19, at noon Eastern, under the Russian title “Rabbi Shlomo Nisanov: Mamdani, Antisemitism, the Loss of a Daughter and Faith.”

Host Roman Kaykov recorded the conversation on Oct. 7, 2026, the third anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israel, according to the episode description. The interview runs more than 36 minutes and is in English. The channel’s description and chapter list are in Russian.

Three clips before the premiere

The channel released three short clips before the premiere: “I Didn’t Lose a Child.” on Oct. 16, “I Couldn’t Get the Highest Grade Because I Was Jewish.” on Oct. 18, and “From a 30 to a 95 — A Father’s Unforgettable Lesson!” on the morning of the premiere. Bukharian Jewish Post covered the first clip on Oct. 18.

A report card and a retest

The two newer clips come from the part of the interview about how parents shape a child’s pride and sense of worth. Rabbi Nisanov recalls being denied the highest grade at school in the Soviet Union because he was Jewish.

He then tells a story about his father from his school days in America. He brought home a test marked 30, and his father refused to sign it. The next day, he says, he asked his teacher for a retest, scored a 95 and brought it home, and this time his father proudly signed it.

The chapter list follows that story with segments on why parents must set an example and on the idea that “words can build a person or destroy him.”

Faith after loss

The most personal part of the conversation concerns the death of his daughter. The chapter list marks the moment with the line “I did not lose a child,” the same words used for the first clip. In the interview, Rabbi Nisanov describes how he and his wife chose to keep living after the loss and says he still counts her among his children.

Pride in being Bukharian

Other chapters ask why it matters to be proud of being a Bukharian Jew and what defines the community’s culture beyond “plov and samsa.” In the interview, Rabbi Nisanov says what sets the community apart is that it values its traditions, its origins and its children. He also speaks about marriage, naming flexibility and commitment as the two keys to a relationship.

The mayor and the pantry

The last third of the episode returns to Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s Sept. 28 visit to the Kehilat Sephardim food pantry in Kew Gardens Hills, which drew both praise and sharp criticism in the community. Rabbi Nisanov says in the interview that he knew Mamdani before he became mayor and that the mayor came to the pantry to hand out food. The chapter list includes a segment in which the rabbi’s mother addresses Mamdani directly, and another on a conversation Rabbi Nisanov held at the Jamaica Muslim Center after Oct. 7.

Near the end, Kaykov asks how he hopes to be remembered. The channel sums up his answer in a chapter title: “I want people to remember that we changed someone’s life.”

The episode title and chapter titles were translated from Russian by Bukharian Jewish Post. The interview itself is in English. Statements from the conversation are paraphrased rather than quoted.

Sources: Kaykov TV on YouTube: full interview with Rabbi Shlomo Nisanov (premiered Oct. 19, 2026; description and chapters in Russian); Kaykov TV: “From a 30 to a 95 — A Father’s Unforgettable Lesson!” (Oct. 19, 2026); Kaykov TV: “I Couldn’t Get the Highest Grade Because I Was Jewish.” (Oct. 18, 2026); Kaykov TV: “I Didn’t Lose a Child.” (Oct. 16, 2026); Bukharian Jewish Post (Oct. 18, 2026); Bukharian Jewish Post (Oct. 14, 2026).

Credit: Kaykov TV (@KaykovTV) on YouTube.