Thread: The Life of Badia Masabni: Parts 1 through 3 now on Shira.net

There's a new article on Shira.net - actually, it's going to be a series of articles, but so far I've posted only the first installment. It's about the life of Badia Masabni, from early childhood on into adulthood. It's Priscilla Adum's translation of a series that ran in an Egyptian newspaper in 2010. The series consisted of 14 parts, and this first installment on my web site contains parts 1 through 3. Stay tuned for more in the near future:

Badia Masabni, The Queen of Suffering and Of the Night, Parts 1-3

Thank you! What a wonderful resource. I had read or heard much of this before, but not in such detail. Can't wait to see the rest!

The articles portray Badia as the victim of what we'd recognize now as a mentally ill mother. Cultural differences aside, no emotionally balanced person would behave in the erratic, manipulative, and cruel way described there (but I suppose it's always possible events were enhanced to create a more dramatic story).

I read ahead through Part 5, and I am wishing Alexandrian was around, because I am having a hard time finding much information about al-Sit Tawheda, even in Arabic. There's quite a bit more about Mounira al- Mahdeya online, though. After the 4-6 page is officially "released," if anyone is interested, we can run a thread about Mounira.

Originally Posted by Tourbeau

I am wishing Alexandrian was around, because I am having a hard time finding much information about al-Sit Tawheda, even in Arabic. There's quite a bit more about Mounira al- Mahdeya online, though. After the 4-6 page is officially "released," if anyone is interested, we can run a thread about Mounira.

I hadn't heard of al-Sit Tawheda until I read this article.

Parts 4-6 are now online at http://www.shira.net/about/badiabio2.htm . Go forth and start the thread about Mounira al-Mahdeya!!

Based on the overwhelming demand... Mounira al-Mahdeya

It's so great that you are able to provide some translations on your site, Shira! I've got tons of old Egyptian magazine clips too that I'm working through, and know how hard it can be to translate the old colloquial Arabic to English so that it makes some sense ;p

Originally Posted by Tourbeau

The articles portray Badia as the victim of what we'd recognize now as a mentally ill mother. Cultural differences aside, no emotionally balanced person would behave in the erratic, manipulative, and cruel way described there (but I suppose it's always possible events were enhanced to create a more dramatic story).

I think the article is based closely on Badia's own biography and so was dictated by herself. While it's quite possible that her mother really was that cruel, it's also very possible that some of this was exaggerated for the purpose of garnering Badia some sympathy for her choice of career, as well as leaving some sort of legacy. It was totally not unusual for some magazines to write exaggerated or even untrue stories - kind of like today's star magazines.

In some of the Egyptian magazine articles I've read from the 1930s-late 50s there seems to be a concerted effort on the part of certain magazines to portray dancers in a sympathetic and positive light (i.e. literally calling Samia Gamal a good wife and mother at a time when she had not yet been married and had no children!!)

I don't know if money was passed on to the magazine editors for this favour or what exactly the reason for this was, but I do know that many movies of that era were funded by people trying to launder money they'd made illegally from the British occupation and the wars (hence why some of them seem to end so abruptly, are poorly edited and lack in substance), so I wouldn't be surprised if some of that money made it's way to the magazines to help promote their movies and the actresses and dancers in them!!

Originally Posted by Domina

It's so great that you are able to provide some translations on your site, Shira! I've got tons of old Egyptian magazine clips too that I'm working through, and know how hard it can be to translate the old colloquial Arabic to English so that it makes some sense.

The credit for doing the translations all goes to Priscilla. I'm so grateful to her for letting me post her translations on my site!

More are coming soon!

I enjoyed reading this very much! thank you for posting on your website Shira