A fierce attack that raged on social media, in particular, against the famous Egyptian artist Bayoumi Fouad due to the play (Artificial Marriage) presented within the (Riyadh Season) entertainment program.
Bayoumi Fouad committed to what was agreed upon with the Saudi Entertainment Authority by presenting his play, which is a very busy program, and varies between sports (a world boxing final), theater, music, arts, various games, and shopping, a program that is considered the largest in this season since its launch in 2019 until this season.
One of the cast members in the play, the artist Muhammad Salam, withdrew from the show in the last moments – until here and it is normal, it is his right – but Salam came out with a video saying that he could not “laugh and dance” while Gaza is like this, and that the season was supposed to be suspended, according to his opinion. .
The artist Bayoumi Fouad, after he saved his show with a replacement actor, the artist Mohamed Anwar, went out to the Saudi audience to thank him warmly, and blamed his colleague Salam, for considering art merely a piece of laughter – even though laughter is a beautiful thing unless it includes human abuse, in my opinion – and said that art is valuable. Raqia…etc. Bayoumi’s words.
Bad tongues were launched against Bayoumi Fouad, and voices of satire and insult were mixed, between someone angry at Bayoumi because of his criticism of his colleague, who is “outside the country,” as an Egyptian broadcaster said, because that “underestimates us,” and attacking Bayoumi because his films are “many” and “bad.” This is the description of one of them, an obscure actor!
The two funniest comments in this outburst are those of an unknown actress in which she said: “You are looking for all the roles on the market, and you are not up to it or giving an opportunity to your colleagues.”
Frankly, I don’t know: Is this anger for the sake of Gaza or for the many roles in my day?!
The other, an Egyptian fashion designer and artist, announced in the style of famous preachers in her loud voice: “I am innocent of tampering.”
Aside from these personal items and strange expressions in the attack on the artist Bayoumi Fouad, there are those who attacked and mobilized the crowds for ideological political reasons, which comes as part of a major wave attacking Saudi Arabia because of its major development project, and the entertainment program is one of the features of this project. Since the launch of the new Saudi vision, it has become a tangible reality and not theoretical talk, and this launch arouses the wrath of opponents, especially the followers of the fundamentalist Iranian project and the followers of the Brotherhood project, both of whom fight any Arab advancement away from their ideas and line.
They do not want this new Saudi start to run its course. The current Gaza war is nothing more than a pretext for blackmail, emotional disturbance, and irritation of the common people, semi-common people, and people with good intentions.
The entertainment program has provided, according to some reports, investment opportunities for more than 1,255 companies and more than 150,000 direct and indirect job opportunities… and much more within the framework of maximizing the Saudi non-oil economy.
“Spontaneous” feelings with innocent people in Gaza are noble and elegant, but the clowning that occurs on social media is something that should not be subjected to, let alone included, without feeling, in hostile political plans that take advantage of good feelings.
“The homeland is not a funeral pavilion,” as Egyptian critic Tarek El-Shenawy said in his article here, commenting on this reckless attack on the artist Bayoumi Fouad. By the way, there are seasons in Egypt currently, such as “Theater Forum,” “Jazz,” and a busy program for the Egyptian Opera House…
Finally, sincere feelings are respected, but the “ride the trend” approach, as the Egyptian expression says, is not respected.
