[6] Karachentsov's parents separated, so when Yanina Evgenyevna would leave Moscow for work, Kolya studied and lived in a boarding school.

In school days, he spent all summer vacations in the recreation center of the All-Russian Theater Society in the village of Shylykovo, Kostroma Oblast.

In his childhood, Karachentsov was actively engaged in swimming and by the age of 13 he became the champion of the USSR's central sport school in diving.

[3] While studying in high school, Nikolai Karachentsov joined the "Active" group, created at the Central Children's Theater.

[8] Among Karachentsov's first performances were the plays staged by Efros: 104 Pages About Love, My Poor Marat, The Movie is Being Shot, Fear and Despair in the Third Empire and Farewell to Arms!.

The rock opera of the composer Alexey Rybnikov Stardom and Death of Joaquin Murieta (based on the poetic drama of Pablo Neruda), staged by Mark Zakharov in 1976, was also well received.

[10] The most famous theatrical work of Karachentsov is the role of Count Rezanov in the rock opera Juno and Avos, a play that became a calling card of Lenkom.

Karachentsov took vocal lessons from the famous musician Pavel Smeyan, who played in Juno and Avos the role of the Principal Writer.

Among the last theatrical roles of the actor were prince Alexander Menshikov in Balakirev the Buffoon and Domenico Soriano in The City of Millionaires.

Mark Zakharov did not use him in his screen works, with the exception of small roles in the television films of The Twelve Chairs (1976) and The House That Swift Built (1982).

[9][2] His popularity was enhanced by roles in such films as The Dog in the Manger, The Adventures of the Elektronic, The Trust That Went Bust, White Dew, A Man from the Boulevard des Capucines, A Bright Personality, Deja Vu and many others.

[2][14][15] In 1975 Karachentsov married Russian actress Lyudmila Porgina who gave birth to their son Andrey three years later.

[25] On 28 February 2005, Karachentsov was driving his car, a Volkswagen Passat, to Moscow, on his way to his mother-in-law's funeral when he lost control of his vehicle and crashed into a street light pole, suffering a traumatic brain injury.