Syrian actor Abed Fahd is a popular face in Arab homes largely due to his portrayal of Al-Hajaj in the historical docu-drama about the ruler of Iraq.
But contrary to his role in this popular TV serial, Abed is a self-effacing and modest personality who holds strong views. An actor for 15 years, Abed has taken a variety of roles with moderate success.
But two milestones stand out in his career. He first came to prominence in the popular Syrian satirical comedy series Myraya, which poked fun at anything and everything while highlighting social issues. But he shot to fame in his role of Al-Jassas in the Al-Zeir Salem historical mythological series and from then on there was no looking back.
Apart from being a popular actor, Abed also has a high-profile wife in broadcaster Zeina Yazji. In this interview he comes across as a sensitive yet modern man who holds woman role in anybody’s life as a key to success and true love can conquer all difficulties.
Excerpts:
Q. You recently married the broadcaster Zeina Yazji. How would you describe this significant event in your life?
A. By any measures, God has blessed me. My wife has contributed a great deal to my success and has also participated in it — and I have contributed to her success as well. The presence of a successful woman in any man’s life is a claim to success. And we, in our marital life, rely on dialogue in all matters and we work continuously to be balanced in every thing. We are literally partners in everything and I thank God that our relationship is based on love and understanding. Furthermore each of us is accepting and understanding of the nature of the other’s job and this in itself goes a long way toward our success.
Q. God has blessed you with a daughter, Liyuna. How has she affected your life?
A. She is now 2 months old and she is the first fruit of our love. Zeina and I take great care of her and work on anything that brings us together with her. Zeina took some time off when she was born and then went back to work on Al-Arabiya. We are lucky to have enough time to spend with Liyuna at home. There is no way her arrival can have a negative effect on our jobs because she is more important than either of them.
Q. What is your view of women in general?
A. A woman is everything in a man’s life. A woman is the source of affection and compassion to which we turn to help us overcome difficulties. We can’t be indifferent to women because they surround us everywhere. A woman is the natural complement to a man; without her, life is not complete.
Q. In every man’s life, there is a love story. Do you remember your first love?
A. You may not believe me but my first love was Zeina, who is now my wife. And she is the woman who has remade my life for when love is true, life is true. Love is absolute loyalty, an open book of white pages. We have faced obstacles and difficulties to our love but we have been able — because our love is genuine and open — to triumph over the difficulties.
Q. Because you and Zina are both stars, you are always surrounded by rumors. Has this fact caused you trouble?
A. Definitely. We have had to deal with rumors based on lies and this was very disturbing at the beginning of our relationship. We had no choice but to fight them with all our might because each of us wanted to win the heart of the other.
Q. Do you believe in love at first sight? And did you love Zeina at first sight?
A. I didn’t expect to find such a person when I first had an appointment with her. I was asked to help her with her papers so that she could work on Syrian TV. Our appointment was to meet one morning and go to the TV station. It was a great surprise when I encountered a woman of great beauty and charm. When I was with her, I sensed that she was a quiet person who didn’t talk much. That made me admire her more. Several questions went through my mind: How can I get to know her? Could she ever love me? Can there be relationship in the future? The moment I met her was the beginning of my love for her that has now brought us into the state of marriage and parenthood.
Q. We know that your wife works at Al-Arabiya in Dubai and that you are committed to your acting career which takes you to different locations and countries. How does this affect your relationship?
A. It affects both of us since we love each other very strongly. We enjoy sharing a social life and talking about our jobs; these help us to grow even closer. I feel safe when Zeina is near. What brings us closer together is genuine love that overcomes all difficulties and the distances that may separate us.
Q. Are you ever jealous? And what about Zeina?
A. Jealousy is not a part of our lives because there is a joint agreement of absolute mutual trust.
Q. Your audience knows you as a comedian. Is your life at home a continuation of this comedy?
A. At home, we deal with things in as amusing and light a manner as possible. We are always in search of laughter. All complications can be resolved with understanding and the right words. Zeina is very serious but we complement one another in that she is serious and I am more light-hearted and easy-going. We like to take life smiling.
Q. Doesn’t her work in serious TV media, dealing with interviews and politics, affect your family life?
A. It’s true that Zeina’s work is more serious than mine but she likes to deal with serious matters. Through her interviews with well-known figures, she has gained a lot of information and cultural awareness. She always enjoys discussing the latest news and the links it has to her job. On the other hand, she always tries as much as possible to differentiate between her job and her home.
Q. Is Zeina good at housework, like cooking for example?
A. She is good at cooking some dishes but cooking was never a big interest for her. Lately, however, she has been giving it more importance.
Q. Can you remember the first love letter you ever wrote?
A. I’ve never written a love letter.
Q. What is your understanding of love?
A. Love is respect.
Q. Are you happy with the image of women presented in the media?
A. No I am not. Women are presented in the media as merely another product of our times and honestly, women are often treated unjustly and unfairly. I sympathize with women and appreciate that they are delicate human beings who need to be treated carefully and considerately.
Q. Which attracts you more — Western or Eastern beauty?
A. Eastern beauty of course attracts me more. It has all the features of what I consider beauty — of spirit, morality and loyalty. Also the Eastern woman, I find, sees her home as a place of love, affection and family relations.
Q. But you married Zeina even though her features are Western?
A. Yes, Zeina’s features are Western but her spirit is Eastern in essence for she is an Arab woman in every way.
