Career
Jewish by ethnicity and a native of Kiev, Bystritskaya was chosen to play Axinia by Sholokhov himself over several distinguished candidates, notably Nonna Mordyukova. In the 1960s, Bystritskaya turned to theatre work in the Maly Theatre and her appearances on screen grew sporadic. On 11 March 2014, in a similar appeal, she expressed support for the 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea.