How did the Soviet Union evolve out of the multi-ethnic Russian Empire?

1. How did the Soviet Union evolve out of the multi-ethnic Russian Empire? What were the policies of indigenization and how did they change over time? How did Mikhail Gorbachev want to change the Soviet Union and how did resurgent nationalism lead to his downfall? In Leonid Gaidai’s comedy, how does the criminal gang of the Artist mock both the leaders and the ethnic diversity of the Soviet Union and its history? What message do you think these jokes are trying to send?