Video of Ukrainian girl in bunker singing ‘Let it Go’ from Frozen goes viral

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A Ukrainian girl named Amelia has won plaudits online after a video of her singing Let it Go from the Disney hit Frozen while stuck in a bomb shelter in Kyiv went viral.

A woman who visited the bunker to help decorate it last week shared the video on Facebook after Amelia told her she wanted to sing “on a grand stage” and in front of an audience.

Marta Smekhova said Amelia was encouraged to sing by her family and those in the shelter in the capital.

The blue and yellow of a Ukrainian flag could be seen behind her as she performed the song, which was followed by applause.

Actress Idina Menzel - who played Elsa, the character who performs the song in the film Frozen - tweeted on Sunday night after seeing the emotional footage: “We see you. We really, really see you”. Amelia's rendition was in Ukrainian, rather than English.

She is among millions of Ukrainians who remain in the country amid Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, while more than 1.7 million people have fled the country.

Ms Smekhova said “Everyone put their business aside and listen to a song by this girl who was just beaming light,” said “Even men couldn’t hold back the tears”. She said the video was filmed and shared with the permission of the girl’s mother.

News stations across Europe and the US have since shared her footage, with Ms Smekhova adding: “Amelia, sweetheart, you are our Ukrainian star.”

The moment of peace for those inside the bomb shelter in Kyiv came despite the Russian bombardment of the capital and cities such as Odessa, Kharkiv and Mariupol at the weekend.

Kyiv’s subway alone was thought to be holding about 15,000 people last week.

The video of Amelia singing Let it Go has now been viewed almost five million times on Twitter, and nearly three million on Facebook.

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