The famous Egyptian actor Amr Saad, winner of the National Film Festival’s Best Actor award for his role in Mawlana (The Preacher), offered his prize in its moral and financial capacity to the two sons of a victim of the most recent terror attack against Copts. The young mother Riham Milad, famous as Pussy, was among the seven martyred on 2 November 2018 by Daesh (Islamic State IS) terrorists. The Islamists opened fire on the Copts who had boarded three buses and embarked on their homeward journey following pilgrimage to the monastery of St Samuel the Confessor, west of Minya and 220km southwest Cairo. Milad is survived by her two boys Fady and Mina.
At the festival awards ceremony held at al-Hanager Theatre of the Cairo Opera House, Saad said, “Two boys were used to wake up every morning to go to school. Their mother would prepare sandwiches for them and fruit, give them a kiss and hug, and send them off. Now they have lost this; they get up and go to school all alone. They have no mother now. She was shot dead by terror fire.”
He went on to say that he could not shake off this tragic incident ever since he became aware of it. “I offer my prize, together with its financial award to Fady and Mina,” he said.
Mawlana was awarded Best Film prize at Luxor African Film Festival and Saad was awarded the Best Actor prize. Saad was also crowned Best Actor at Tetouan Film Festival.
++Mawlana++, adapted from a novel by renowned journalist Ibrahim Eissa, revolves around an influential religious preacher turned TV celebrity whose credibility is shaken when he gets close to politicians and security agencies.
The movie gained praise from audiences and critics despite the controversy surrounding it.
The film was directed by Magdy Ahmed Aly and produced by telecom tycoon Naguib Sawiris.
Watani International
26 November 2018