Hussein Fahmy says diminishing standards – from storytelling to production – are affecting Egyptian television and drama.
Speaking at the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair, the veteran actor and Cairo International Film Festival president attributed the decline to what he describes as a “shortcut culture” within the industry, where trends and commercial appeal are prioritised over strong narratives and craftsmanship.
The result, he suggested, is an increasingly skewed portrayal of Egypt and its people on screen, along with a disregard for classical Arabic texts that have long served as a rich source of inspiration for Egyptian film and television.
“What we are lacking today, I believe, is seriousness,” he said. “I see a lot of shortcutting in writing and execution, and what this ultimately does is reduce the value of drama. This is played out in how we no longer treat heritage texts seriously and instead run after market demands with superficial works. True success comes when the work is good and has substance. Only then does it ultimately succeed.”
It was a pointed message that Fahmy, 85, directed not only at his colleagues, but at the audience as well, suggesting that it is they who ultimately control the standards of what is acceptable, not the other way around.
“No one controls public taste,” he added. “The audience does. The public has the right to change the channel, to stop watching, to not go to the cinema. I place a major responsibility on the audience. When the audience supports meaningful work, producers will follow. But when audiences chase commercial, shallow works, producers will replicate them.
“When the public accepts meaningless productions, they deny us the opportunity to offer them refined culture. The public must help us artists by choosing quality, supporting fine comedy, fine drama, and rejecting vulgarity.
“I am against the idea that you are 'forced' to listen to bad music. If you hear a bad song, don’t listen to it again. We all bear a social responsibility to uplift public taste.”
Fahmy’s reflections came as part of a wider discussion on the inspirations behind his near seven-decade career, particularly the ancient anthology One Thousand and One Nights, designated as the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair’s key text and dubbed “Book of the World” for this year’s event.
One of Fahmy’s most memorable roles was in the Egyptian television adaptation of Alf Leila wa Leila (One Thousand and One Nights), which aired during Ramadan in 1984. Starring as Shahrayar, the despot who spares Scheherazade’s life due to her ability to spin evocative tales, Fahmy was initially hesitant about the character.
“He is portrayed in the text as a vengeful king who killed someone every morning, and I told myself, 'I can't just play him like that,'” he said. “I concluded that the only way viewers would empathise with him – and not condemn him immediately from the onset – is if he secretly loved Scheherazade from the very beginning.”
Fahmy, who first heard stories from One Thousand and One Nights as a child on Egyptian public radio, said the lasting appeal of these tales lies in the freedom they give readers to imagine them in their own way.
“There are various characters in the book that we can all relate to, and they are so open to interpretation that they don't need a director’s vision imposed on them,” he said. “That’s why the work will always endure – and why I believe there will never be a definitive television or film version of it.
“It also goes to show you the power of books – how they allow you to shape your imagination in your own way. You live the story through your mind, not someone else’s vision.”
Screen adaptations like Alf Leila wa Leila, universal in their appeal across the Arab world, are what is currently missing from Egyptian film and television.
“Today, Arab cinema has become too localised,” he continued. “In the past, Egyptian films spoke to all Arabs – you could see yourself in them whether you were from Tunisia, Morocco, Syria or anywhere else. Today, Egyptian films have become so local that they no longer represent the wider Arab audience, and that is a major loss.
“Historical dramas used to be a way to bring people together, but now they face more difficulties. Political sensitivities and historical disagreements often block wider distribution. It has become more difficult to produce them – let alone more expensive. Hence, we are seeing different kinds of stories being produced today.”
The Abu Dhabi International Book Fair is running at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre until May 5
The years Ramadan fell in May
J%20Street%20Polling%20Results
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AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
RESULTS
5pm: Wathba Stallions Cup – Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (Turf) 2,200m
Winner: M'A Yaromoon, Jesus Rosales (jockey), Khalifa Al Neydai (trainer)
5.30pm: Khor Al Baghal – Conditions (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner: No Riesgo Al Maury, Antonio Fresu, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami
6pm: Khor Faridah – Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner: JAP Almahfuz, Royston Ffrench, Irfan Ellahi
6.30pm: Abu Dhabi Fillies Classic – Prestige (PA) Dh110,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: Mahmouda, Pat Cosgrave, Abdallah Al Hammadi
7pm: Abu Dhabi Colts Classic – Prestige (PA) Dh110,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: AS Jezan, George Buckell, Ahmed Al Mehairbi
7.30pm: Khor Laffam – Handicap (TB) Dh80,000 (T) 2,200m
Winner: Dolman, Antonio Fresu, Bhupath Seemar
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
More on Quran memorisation:
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
Specs
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The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
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Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
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Available: Now
More coverage from the Future Forum
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
Poacher
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ERichie%20Mehta%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Nimisha%20Sajayan%2C%20Roshan%20Mathew%2C%20Dibyendu%20Bhattacharya%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E3%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
'Texas Chainsaw Massacre'
Rating: 1 out of 4
Running time: 81 minutes
Director: David Blue Garcia
Starring: Sarah Yarkin, Elsie Fisher, Mark Burnham
hall of shame
SUNDERLAND 2002-03
No one has ended a Premier League season quite like Sunderland. They lost each of their final 15 games, taking no points after January. They ended up with 19 in total, sacking managers Peter Reid and Howard Wilkinson and losing 3-1 to Charlton when they scored three own goals in eight minutes.
SUNDERLAND 2005-06
Until Derby came along, Sunderland’s total of 15 points was the Premier League’s record low. They made it until May and their final home game before winning at the Stadium of Light while they lost a joint record 29 of their 38 league games.
HUDDERSFIELD 2018-19
Joined Derby as the only team to be relegated in March. No striker scored until January, while only two players got more assists than goalkeeper Jonas Lossl. The mid-season appointment Jan Siewert was to end his time as Huddersfield manager with a 5.3 per cent win rate.
ASTON VILLA 2015-16
Perhaps the most inexplicably bad season, considering they signed Idrissa Gueye and Adama Traore and still only got 17 points. Villa won their first league game, but none of the next 19. They ended an abominable campaign by taking one point from the last 39 available.
FULHAM 2018-19
Terrible in different ways. Fulham’s total of 26 points is not among the lowest ever but they contrived to get relegated after spending over £100 million (Dh457m) in the transfer market. Much of it went on defenders but they only kept two clean sheets in their first 33 games.
LA LIGA: Sporting Gijon, 13 points in 1997-98.
BUNDESLIGA: Tasmania Berlin, 10 points in 1965-66
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Jawan
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Try out the test yourself
Q1 Suppose you had $100 in a savings account and the interest rate was 2 per cent per year. After five years, how much do you think you would have in the account if you left the money to grow?
a) More than $102
b) Exactly $102
c) Less than $102
d) Do not know
e) Refuse to answer
Q2 Imagine that the interest rate on your savings account was 1 per cent per year and inflation was 2 per cent per year. After one year, how much would you be able to buy with the money in this account?
a) More than today
b) Exactly the same as today
c) Less than today
d) Do not know
e) Refuse to answer
Q4 Do you think that the following statement is true or false? “Buying a single company stock usually provides a safer return than a stock mutual fund.”
a) True
b) False
d) Do not know
e) Refuse to answer
The “Big Three” financial literacy questions were created by Professors Annamaria Lusardi of the George Washington School of Business and Olivia Mitchell, of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Answers: Q1 More than $102 (compound interest). Q2 Less than today (inflation). Q3 False (diversification).
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Results:
First Test: New Zealand 30 British & Irish Lions 15
Second Test: New Zealand 21 British & Irish Lions 24
Third Test: New Zealand 15 British & Irish Lions 15
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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