THE acclaimed Syrian actor Jamal Sulaiman recently spoke about his experiences of acting in an acclaimed Egyptian drama series entitled “Hadaiqu Al-Shaytan” (The Devil’s Gardens), which recently appeared during Ramadan.
Sulaiman has been extremely successful in the Syrian television industry. Many television critics speculated that Hadaiqu Al-Shaytan would fail. However, Sulaiman has been able to prove himself and the series has proven to be a huge success across the Middle East.
In your opinion was your role in Hadaiqu Al-Shaytan a success?
My role has succeeded because much of my previous work, such as Saqr Quraish, Salahuddeen and many others, has been successful. But this role was altogether different because it is an Egyptian drama with a Syrian lead actor. People were keen and eager to know how a Syrian actor could play a role of an Egyptian. I have now been ranked second on the Egyptian list.
Is this success in the Egyptian drama going to see you leave the Syrian drama scene?
I have received many offers from Egypt but I don’t want to rush. I would rather preserve the high quality of my work. I am not going to leave Syrian drama.
Is this the best that you can give to the Egyptian drama?
The next series I am working on is much more difficult and challenging. I will try my best and will work toward ensuring it becomes a success. To tell you the truth I didn’t expect this drama to succeed in the way it has so far done.
Do you expect Egyptian writers will now write works that are exclusively written for you to perform in?
I don’t see any problem in that. In Syria there are some who write scripts geared up for a particular actor in mind. I myself have performed six works that were exclusively written for me. The problem only arises when the work ends up relying far too much on the one particular actor.
Why did many people in Egypt go against you, especially Ahmed Mahir? Why did they believe that such a role should go to an Egyptian actor and not a Syrian one?
I was shocked to hear about all the propaganda against me. Some have even ventured further and dramatized these criticisms, something that has worried my family who felt I was in danger while in Egypt. On the contrary I was very much respected and appreciated. In fact some outstanding Egyptian actors have supported me including Nur Al-Shareef, Adil Imam, Waheed Hamid, Amal Othman and Lamees Jabir.
As your series approached, a writer criticized your role and said that only Egyptian actors would be able to handle it, what do you think of this opinion? Do you believe that the series succeeded because a Syrian actor took the role?
I was a cause of its success. The group has distinguished actors and actresses, a brilliant writer and a smart director. I was the protagonist and therefore I had to succeed, failure in this case would indeed have been death. People were further attracted to the work because I am Syrian.
There were many other Syrian actors who joined Egyptian drama, such as Jumana Murad. However, none of them were as successful as you are and nor have they enjoyed the same fame. In your opinion what is the reason behind this?
I don’t know. Everyone gets what they work for. We should not blame the actors, these works are done in a group fashion and their success falls on the shoulders of everyone.
The main theme in the series was heavily criticized for relying on “the monster” while the work is presented to an audience of the 21st century. Why didn’t you address a more realistic issue?
(Laughing) The work was realistic indeed. “The monster” could be anything that we fear; it could be the stock market, banks, terrorism, Israel and even divorce. The protagonist Mandur Abu Al-Dahab wears fashionable dresses and lives a modern lifestyle, yet he is still outdated in his beliefs and traditions.
The fall of Mandur Abu Al-Dahab (who fell ill and then later died) was itself criticized. Some said that it was not quite convincing to the audience, what do you think of this?
The fall in our series deprived itself from the conventional endings in which the devil gets arrested or repents. The ending was far from those silly endings it is an ending that carries a message; it states cleverly that no matter how Abu Al-Dahab tries to flee from justice, nature will punish him.
Would you like to play the role of an Egyptian planter again? Or do you want to shift to another different Egyptian role?
I enjoyed the role very much. I am now more confident of myself and more conscious of my artistic qualifications. As I watched the series again, I want to go back and correct some errors. I am not going to appear as an Egyptian planter again, I will play different roles.
How difficult was it for you to cope with the environment there in Egypt, particularly in the plantation area?
I heard a lot about people who work in plantations in Egypt. These different stories made me think that I would meet people who have come from a different planet. When I met them, however, I found them very kind and caring. It is true that they dress up differently and eat differently but their life is simple and they are kind. I learnt their culture; they too were curious about my role in the series. It was hard work, but I enjoyed it. I also developed the Egyptian dialect and I used to spend time speaking with people there.
What was your wife’s (Rana Sulaiman) view to “The Gardens of the Devil,” did she feel envious when she watched the series?
She was a great supporter and motivator. However, after the completion of the work she expressed to me her previous fears about the role. But she is happy with my achievements.
Was your wife in Syria while you were working in Egypt?
She spent half the period with me in Egypt. Then she was going back and forth between Egypt and Syria.
You did not answer when I asked you if she feels jealous especially since you work with the most beautiful of Egyptian actresses.
Laughing, she says that she does not feel jealous and that she only gets worried. She met with the group and we have good relations with them all.
Did they use your name to promote the series?
We both benefited from each other. They have paid a million and half dollars to work out the series. Therefore, they will look only for an actor with a name that will help them work things out. The entire group was the reason behind the success.
What do you think of the Syrian drama during this season?
There were more that 40 Syrian series this season. This was a problem because in Syria we do not have sufficient actors and directors. Therefore, the quality of the work gets affected. What distinguishes Syrian drama is that we were concerned with the quality rather than the quantity, especially since we face many problems in order to sell or distribute the work we do. For this year 130 Arab series were competing to appear on just a few channels.
What do you think of this season’s Gulf drama?
It will have a bright future, especially since the majority of the channels belong to the Gulf counties. There are two kinds of Gulf series: Some are local and their success depends on the region itself, while there are some that can reach everywhere in the Arab countries. The competition will distinguish the good from the bad and in the end only the good will remain.
