Soad Hosny is gone, leaving behind millions of broken hearts who wish that they could have done something to save their much beloved star. Insight pays tribute to this screen icon and interviews her closest friends to find out what went wrong.
When I first heard the news, I was devastated. The star who had the ability to uplift the spirits of a nation, did not have the fortune to die a peaceful death. She fell from the sixth floor of a building in London. Hers is a tale of misery that she expertly hid from the world.
Several years ago, Soad Hosny sustained a fracture of her spine and left her home in Egypt to seek treatment in the UK. It was the beginning of a painful journey that eventually led to her death.
Some people feel very strongly about the way that Soad was left with no choice but to go into exile in a foreign country all alone. One of these is the darling of Egyptian cinema, Zeibida Tharwat.
"It shouldn’t take death for people to appreciate what a great star she was," said Zeibida, her voice full of anger. "Do they think that by giving her all this attention now it will bring her back to life? Where was all this when she was alive? Why didn’t her country fund her treatment? Instead they left her in need, forcing her to beg Arabs living in London for money."
It makes me wonder what could push such a famous star to, seemingly, take her own life. Was there no one there to help her see that there was something still worth living for? Of course, the assumption that she committed suicide is at the moment based purely on circumstantial evidence; however, Zebeida thinks that Soad did kill herself. "They pushed her into committing suicide," she said. "Imagine how bad she must have felt to finally resort to this." She went on to say that Soad’s fans and the media should have offered her their support and reassured her that they still adored her. "An artist lives to hear the appreciation of their fans. Why didn’t anyone give her the medication that she really needed – just a kind word every now and then?"
Zebeida stressed that if just one article on Soad’s career had been published when she was still alive it would have done wonders for her morale. "She had no one. Imagine if you – an ordinary person, not even a star – had to stay in a room all alone. Even in perfect health you would go crazy! Who could blame her?"
Zebeida defended Soad now that she could no longer speak for herself. "Why doesn’t anyone try and put themselves in her shoes?" she asked.
Of course, Zebeida herself had failed to make contact with Soad: every phone number that she got turned out to be a wrong number. "It’s unbelievable! I can’t believe that it wasn’t possible to get in touch with her because so few people knew her whereabouts," she said.
Film director Samir Seif, who worked with Soad on the movie ‘Hob Fi El Zinzana’ (Love Behind Bars) in which she starred with Adel Imam, described Soad as "irreplaceable." He said that she had a very strong character and therefore he doubted that she would take her own life. He cited one instance during the shooting of the film ‘Amira Hoby Ana’ (Amira My Love), on which Seif was assistant director. An earthquake hit Cairo and everyone panicked – but not Soad."She didn’t budge," he recalled. "She said you shouldn’t be scared, if God wants you to die you’ll die –‘el omer wahed wi el rab wahed’."
Seif added: "If Soad did commit suicide, then she couldn’t have been in a stable state of mind. She must have been under the influence of strong medication."
Seif was in regular contact with Soad during her stay in London. The last time he called her was two months ago. "She sounded like the same Soad that I’ve always known, he said. "I’d heard about the changes in her looks but the voice I heard was the same as ever."
It was the changes to her looks that made Soad shy away from the public. Before her departure for London she refused to leave her home, so that none of her fans would notice that she had put on weight. The extra kilos were a result of the injury to her spine which restricted her movement.
Speaking of his last conversation with Soad, Seif said that she had been as optimistic as always. "She told me she was getting better and would be back home in two or three months. We’ll, I suppose she did keep her word... I am going to miss her terribly," he said. She always encouraged me and believed in my talent, ever since I was an assistant director". He was lucky enough to get the privilege of working with Soad on the movie ‘Kahly Balek Min Zouzou’ (Watch out for Zouzou) which he took over from Director Hassan El Imam for the last three days of shooting. "Hassan El Imam had to go away and he nominated me to handle the movie. She encouraged me and talked everyone into letting me shoot the song ‘Khaly Balek Min Zouzou’ and another song which were the only two scenes missing from the movie."
One thing that everyone who worked with her agreed about was how professional and devoted to her work she was. Soad always showed up to the set on time and was willing to shoot a scene more than once if it didn’t turn out right. Seif explained that she had a unique style and was able to be spontaneous in front of the camera, "which is a very rare ability these days."
Zeibida Tharwat said that there are very few actors who will never be forgotten: Soad Hosny is one of them. "So why was she humiliated so much in her last days when she was in dire need of support?"
Fellow actress Zeibida asked Insight to make public her appeal to President Hosni Mubarak to set up a pension fund for actors. "Just like the pensions for former Ministers, there should be something for actors because they are ambassadors for their country. We should not allow them to be humiliated in their final days, after all they’ve given to Egyptian cinema," she said.
Everyone knew the energetic, multi-talented Soad Hosny on screen. Behind the camera, she was equally admired. Zeibida described Soad as a very humble person whom people liked at first sight. "There was this special magic about her," she said.
Rokeya Badrakhan, the sister of movie director Ali Badrakhan (Soad’s husband for almost 12 years), said: "She was a very quiet person unlike the characters which she played in her movies. She was the kind of person who you could only ever remember as doing good things."
Soad Hosny, known for her daring roles, was a very shy person in real life. She died young, 57; a tragic finale to a successful career. Soad will always be remembered by her fans as the gorgeous star who graced the silver screen with great performances and unforgettable roles.
Born in 1942 in the area of A’taba into a large artistic family, consisting of 17 half-brothers and sisters, Soad was one of the very few who made it to true stardom. Her sister Nagat was also a very popular singer and her brother Ezz El din Hosny a famous composer.
With a total of 83 films to her credit, most of which were shot in the 60s and 70s, it might have been expected that Soad would have amassed a lot of money. However, Seif explained that Soad had never cared about the materialistic side of being an actress and usually "received peanuts for her work". He added,"What she really cared about was whether or not the role suited her and if she believed in it." Zeibida confirmed that Soad never paid any attention to money.
Ballerup hotel rooms Perhaps that was a mistake on Soad’s part. Zeibida said: “Soad lived in Egypt in a very small apartment that no other famous star would have ever been able to live in. She died flat broke and all because she cared too much about her work." This was why such a glamourous star was reduced to asking Arabs in London to pay for her medical treatment.
Soad was asked to return to Egypt several times but she refused. "What would she come back to?" asked Zebeida. "Living in a tiny apartment and begging people around her for money. I hear about people having millions and millions, why couldn’t they help an actress who had succeeded in putting a smile on so many people’s faces?"
It came about that the woman with such a beautiful face and lovely personality should suffer four years of loneliness with no one to turn to and no one to help her.
Her death has caused much grief for those who knew her, including the superstar Hend Rostom. During my phone conversation with her, I could hear tremours in her voice. Soon she was too overcome to keep talking. All she said was: "I am beyond upset and have been on tranquillisers since I heard about Soad’s death. I can’t even bring myself to talk about it."
At the time of going to press, nothing has been confirmed about the circumstances surrounding Soad’s fall from the building.
No doubt millions will continue to watch her movies over and over again to relive the joy that the star spread throughout the Middle East.
