Bahiga Hafez (, 13 December 1908 – 4 August 1983) was an Egyptian screenwriter, composer, director, editor, producer and actress.

Personal life

Bahiga Hafez was born and raised in

Alexandria, Egypt Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...

to an aristocratic family with ties to monarchy. Hafez began studying music in

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

and later went on to study musical composition in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, studying piano at the conservatory. Hafez could speak French, Arabic, and other languages. Hafez was a Pacha heiress. After returning to Egypt, she lived in Cairo where she held

literary salon A salon is a gathering of people held by a host. These gatherings often consciously followed Horace's definition of the aims of poetry, "either to please or to educate" (Latin: ''aut delectare aut prodesse''). Salons in the tradition of the Fren ...

s. Also upon her return to Egypt, Hafez released an album entitled ''Bahiga'' that played on the radio broadcast of the time. In 1930, she starred in the film ''Zeinab'' (1930). This caused her family to disinherit her, since working in cinema was seen as shameful at the time, especially for someone of her social status.

Career

Hafez is often cited as being one of the pioneering women in Egyptian cinema. She started her career in film as an actress, starring in the silent film '' Zaynab'' (1930), directed by

Mohammed Karim Mohammed Karim (1896–1972) () was an Egyptian actor, film director, writer, and producer, and is considered one of the most prominent figures in Egyptian cinematic history. He is credited as the first Egyptian film actor. Biography Moha ...

, which she also composed the score for. Karim had been searching for a particularly feminine face for the title role, and after meeting Hafez at a party, offered her the role. The film itself was quite popular. Her involvement in this project sparked her interest in working in film. Hafez founded the company Fanar Films in 1932. With Fanar Films, Hafez co-directed the film ''al-Dahaya'' (1932), called ''The Victims'' in English, in which she also played a major role. She was also the costume designer, composer and editor for the film. She remade the film 3 years later with sound. Hafez's first solo directed film was ''Laila bint al-sahara'' (Laila the Desert Girl), 1937 (Alternative title: ''Laila bint al-Badawiyya''), but was not released until 1944 with a new title, ''Layla al-Badawiyya'' (Layla the Bedouin). Hafez worked as director, producer (with Fanar Films), co-screenwriter, composer, and lead actress. The film was to be premiered at the

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...

in 1938 but was banned from playing in Egypt due to its negative depictions of Persians, especially Persian royalty; it was to be released the same year in Egypt as the wedding of the Shah of Persia and the Princess Fawzia of Egypt. Unfortunately, the film wasn't very successful. After not working in film for quite some time, Hafez was asked by director Salah Abou Seif to star as one of the Princesses in his film '' el Qâhirah talâtîn'' (1966). This marked Hafez's return to cinema, but also her last appearance. Unfortunately, much of her work as a filmmaker has been lost and only the mentions of her work remains. A copy of her film ''al-Dahaya'' was found in 1995.

Filmography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hafez, Bahiga Egyptian directors Egyptian composers Women screenwriters Egyptian women composers Egyptian producers Egyptian actresses 1908 births 1983 deaths Egyptian women film directors Egyptian film directors Actresses from Alexandria 20th-century Egyptian screenwriters