When looking back at the past decade of television production in Egypt, few shows that fall outside of the Ramadan season have garnered as wide a viewership as progressive – albeit controversial – new series Sab3 Gar. The 48-episode, character-driven family drama just wrapped up its first season with a promised, slightly shorter second season set to air on CBC this year.
Created by Nadine Khan, Heba Yousry and Ayten Amin, the show follows the quotidian lives of several families residing in an apartment building in a middle-class neighbourhood in Cairo. Within the first few episodes, we meet most of the protagonists, all largely female. The story revolves around the family of two sisters, Lamia and Layla, respectively played by Dalal Abdel Aziz and Sherine, and their neighbours.
Both Lamia and Layla are matriarchs of sorts – in Lamia's case, her husband passed away years ago, leaving her to run the family in his absence. Layla keeps her household afloat with her work as a government employee, while her husband, Magdy, sweeps in and out of his family's life whenever he needs love, laughter or money.
All the characters in Sab3 Gar are dealing with their own personal conundrums. There is Hadeel Hassan as Mai, a young architect who divides most of her time between providing care for her ill mother and working in her own flat on the first floor of the building, where she struggles with a toxic romantic relationship with a neighbour.
Also on the first floor, the Major General is mourning the loss of his wife, and has been left in the care of Karima, played by Safaa Galal. Karima has a lot of baggage and bite, seeking refuge from her past as a sex worker. Then there is Layla's daughter, Hala, played by Rahma Hassan, who has the maturity and means to rear a child, but wants to do so without a husband.
Being a character-driven show, the series mostly plays out with little plot. Instead, the hyperrealist narrative, dialogue and aesthetic challenge much established Egyptian TV. In recent years, while other hit shows such as Hatha El-Massaa (This Evening) and Tahet El Saytara (Under Control), were also grounded in realism, they were much more aesthetically glossy than Sab3 Gar. Visually, the show is minimalist. For the most part, it works, despite some weird camera angles and the fact that some scenes and episodes drag on – it is hard to know if this is a result of directorial decisions or oversight. There is plenty of humour, in addition to the captivating and comedic performance of rising star Sarrah Abdelrahman as Heba.
________________
Read more:
Meet the Middle East social-media stars of My Fabulous M.E.
Arab viewers get taste of different cultures with translated TV shows in the UAE
Hit Indian soap opera Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon gets Arabic translation
________________
While the show's aesthetic might be minimal, the ideas presented are quite the opposite. Such representations of family dynamics and gender are rarely depicted on Egyptian TV or cinema; the women are not weak victims and the men are not heroes. On the contrary, most of the male roles are marginal, pitiful – though poignantly comedic – characters, while the women are strong, complex and highly capable. Thematically, the show tackles female issues that are rarely discussed so boldly in regional television. Topics range from marital crisis – including, in Mai's case, adultery – divorce and sibling dynamics, to subtly addressing women's roles in family and society. Meanwhile, Karima attempts to overcome her illicit past through the care she provides to the Major General, and thus we empathise with her. More often than not in Egyptian TV, women with one moral calamity are presented through a metaphorical black-and-white lens – if she is a sex worker, then she must also be a drug addict, a thief and so on. This is never the case with Sab3 Gar.
This approach has also garnered criticism and controversy: some viewers felt the show to be morally negligent, while inaccurately portraying women in Egypt. Angry voices on social media denied the existence of Egyptian women who curse or travel with male friends, accusing the show of westernising Egyptian women. But mainstream media coverage was much more positive, and with millions of viewers on TV and online, Sab3 Gar, remains one of the highest-viewed shows aired outside of Ramadan. Not bad for a show created largely by women, with a predominately female cast, and progressive, feminist ideas.
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Need to know
Unlike other mobile wallets and payment apps, a unique feature of eWallet is that there is no need to have a bank account, credit or debit card to do digital payments.
Customers only need a valid Emirates ID and a working UAE mobile number to register for eWallet account.
'HIJRAH%3A%20IN%20THE%20FOOTSTEPS%20OF%20THE%20PROPHET'
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEdited%20by%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Idries%20Trevathan%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPages%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20240%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Hirmer%20Publishers%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EAvailable%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Now%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
What went into the film
25 visual effects (VFX) studios
2,150 VFX shots in a film with 2,500 shots
1,000 VFX artists
3,000 technicians
10 Concept artists, 25 3D designers
New sound technology, named 4D SRL
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
The schedule
December 5 - 23: Shooting competition, Al Dhafra Shooting Club
December 9 - 24: Handicrafts competition, from 4pm until 10pm, Heritage Souq
December 11 - 20: Dates competition, from 4pm
December 12 - 20: Sour milk competition
December 13: Falcon beauty competition
December 14 and 20: Saluki races
December 15: Arabian horse races, from 4pm
December 16 - 19: Falconry competition
December 18: Camel milk competition, from 7.30 - 9.30 am
December 20 and 21: Sheep beauty competition, from 10am
December 22: The best herd of 30 camels
more from Janine di Giovanni
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Friday Hertha Berlin v Union Berlin (11.30pm)
Saturday Freiburg v Borussia Monchengladbach, Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Dortmund, Cologne v Wolfsburg, Arminia Bielefeld v Mainz (6.30pm) Bayern Munich v RB Leipzig (9.30pm)
Sunday Werder Bremen v Stuttgart (6.30pm), Schalke v Bayer Leverkusen (9pm)
Monday Hoffenheim v Augsburg (11.30pm)
Globalization and its Discontents Revisited
Joseph E. Stiglitz
W. W. Norton & Company
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Revibe%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202022%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Hamza%20Iraqui%20and%20Abdessamad%20Ben%20Zakour%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20UAE%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Refurbished%20electronics%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunds%20raised%20so%20far%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%2410m%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFlat6Labs%2C%20Resonance%20and%20various%20others%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
ICC men's cricketer of the year
2004 - Rahul Dravid (IND) ; 2005 - Jacques Kallis (SA) and Andrew Flintoff (ENG); 2006 - Ricky Ponting (AUS); 2007 - Ricky Ponting; 2008 - Shivnarine Chanderpaul (WI); 2009 - Mitchell Johnson (AUS); 2010 - Sachin Tendulkar (IND); 2011 - Jonathan Trott (ENG); 2012 - Kumar Sangakkara (SL); 2013 - Michael Clarke (AUS); 2014 - Mitchell Johnson; 2015 - Steve Smith (AUS); 2016 - Ravichandran Ashwin (IND); 2017 - Virat Kohli (IND); 2018 - Virat Kohli; 2019 - Ben Stokes (ENG); 2021 - Shaheen Afridi
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Landfill in numbers
• Landfill gas is composed of 50 per cent methane
• Methane is 28 times more harmful than Co2 in terms of global warming
• 11 million total tonnes of waste are being generated annually in Abu Dhabi
• 18,000 tonnes per year of hazardous and medical waste is produced in Abu Dhabi emirate per year
• 20,000 litres of cooking oil produced in Abu Dhabi’s cafeterias and restaurants every day is thrown away
• 50 per cent of Abu Dhabi’s waste is from construction and demolition
Adele: The Stories Behind The Songs
Caroline Sullivan
Carlton Books
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Company%20profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Belong%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Michael%20Askew%20and%20Matthew%20Gaziano%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Technology%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETotal%20funding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%243.5%20million%20from%20crowd%20funding%20and%20angel%20investors%3Cstrong%3E%3Cbr%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2012%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The bio
Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Favourite travel destination: Maldives and south of France
Favourite pastime: Family and friends, meditation, discovering new cuisines
Favourite Movie: Joker (2019). I didn’t like it while I was watching it but then afterwards I loved it. I loved the psychology behind it.
Favourite Author: My father for sure
Favourite Artist: Damien Hurst
The Rub of Time: Bellow, Nabokov, Hitchens, Travolta, Trump and Other Pieces 1986-2016
Martin Amis,
Jonathan Cape
