Russian poet and writer Dmitry Bykov has shaved off his famous moustache and published a photograph of his new look on Instagram after losing a Halloween bet with his son.
In his social media post, Bykov explained that he gave up his familiar look after making a wager with his son on the eve of Halloween. He promised to shave off his moustache if he lost, and he kept his word.
Bykov is a prominent Russian writer, poet, biographer and literary critic whose thick moustache had long been a signature part of his public image. Before leaving Russia, he built a wide following through his novels, literary biographies and cultural commentary.
The Halloween candy wager
Writing on his Instagram page, Bykov said the wager centred on how much candy his son would gather on Halloween. According to the poet, his son claimed that he would collect more than 100 sweets during the holiday, while Bykov bet that the total would be fewer than that.
Bykov recounted that once they counted the sweets together, the result brought a tear to their eyes because he had lost his moustache in the bet. Even so, the writer remarked that he thought he looked better without it, surprising his fans.
Halloween is widely celebrated across the United States with trick or treating, in which children dress in costumes and go from house to house in their neighbourhoods collecting sweets from residents over the course of the evening.
Move to the United States and Russian legal cases
Bykov now lives in the United States after leaving Russia amid criminal cases brought against him by Russian authorities. Those cases involved allegations of spreading false information about the Russian army and criticising the government's actions during the special military operation in Ukraine.
In August 2025, media outlets reported that the writer had disappeared from public view after relocating to the United States. Within Russia, the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation has placed Bykov on its official register of foreign agents.
That designation is used by Moscow for public figures and organisations accused of acting under foreign influence. Russia's federal financial monitoring agency, Rosfinmonitoring, has also added the writer to its list of terrorists and extremists, which restricts domestic banking access. Instagram is likewise banned in Russia, where authorities have designated its parent company, Meta, as an extremist organisation.
