Egyptian actress Elham Shahin expressed her happiness at being chosen as the president of the second session of the "Cairo Days for Arab Drama," scheduled to take place at the main theater of the Egyptian Opera House on Sunday, September 19. In exclusive statements to "Sky News Arabia," she noted that this is not the first time she has been selected for such a role, having previously served as the honorary president of the Aswan Women's Cinema Festival during its first edition, describing the experience as "pleasant" in her artistic journey.
When asked about the work she considers her breakthrough in acting, she confirmed that it was the film "El Helwa Fatma," as she starred alongside major cinema stars: Adel Imam, the late scriptwriter Wahid Hamed, and the late director Samir Seif; furthermore, it marked her first leading role.
Elham Shahin indicated that there are some artistic works she regretted taking on early in her career, explaining that she "was seeking to gain visibility." She continued: "At first, I thought about visibility; but after several years, I began to wonder: why do I present more than seven works a year without caring about the role? Why not be satisfied with five or four valuable works only?"
She emphasized that currently she "is not satisfied with anything; she is always seeking something new beyond repeating herself" and indicated that she has already performed most roles currently being offered to her, describing the selection as "difficult."
Regarding her satisfaction with her artistic output, she affirmed her complete satisfaction at 100 percent, stressing that her art has not affected her personal life whatsoever.
On the reason for her absence from the Ramadan competition, she said: "I am not concerned about the timing; what matters to me is the quality of the work and the audience's opinion." She added, "I have not yet signed any contracts for series in the upcoming Ramadan 2022."
The Egyptian artist praised the resurgence of Egyptian cinema and the competition among major stars like Ahmed Ezz, Karim Abdel Aziz, Mohamed Henedy, and others, mentioning that she has only seen the film "El Ins wa El Nemes" among the films currently showing in Egyptian cinemas.
Regarding her relationship with social media, she explained that she does not even know how to access social networking sites, stating that she has assigned individuals to manage her personal accounts solely to promote her artistic works. Shahin criticized those who use social media to share their private lives, emphasizing that the importance of social media for artists is to inform the public about their works, as people currently rely on it more than newspapers and magazines.
