Hassan doesn't know failure

Artist Taim Hassan In an exclusive interview with arabstoday, Taim Hassan discusses the current situation in Syria; wishing his country to be always strong and invincible, and calling for its stability, security and prosperity . Speaking about the TV drama "Abed Kerman;" which is currently showing this Ramadan, after postponing it last year, he said: "This year I didn't present any work and I turned down several Syrian and Egyptian offers. Also, I always prefer to have one work in a year and I don't like mixing many dramas in order to concentrate on that one role and its emotions. I believe that this time is great and more appropriate to show "Abed Kerman," especially that the filming took five months of constant hard work.” And on his selection for the lead role of the series, he said: "my friend Adil Almaghrebi, the interior designer, nominated me, and I have already worked with him in the TV drama "King Farouk" so I was surprised by his call telling me that there is a beautiful novel named "I was Diane's friend,” Adil asked me to read it and I found it very interesting, it is written by the author Major General Maher Abdelhamid. The things I like most about this novel are the beautiful and detailed descriptions, and the sense of irony in the writer's style. I didn't feel bored at any part of it.” He adds: "after that Adil told me that there is a project to turn the novel into a series by King Tut Company, and I agreed after reading it and the script which was written by Bashir Deek. I was lucky to work with him and I was glad to meet both of them in a joint project.” Talking about his role in this drama he said: "I play the role of a character called Abed Kerman who is a Palestinian young man who lives in a village near Haifa City; his father is dead and his mother is French, he has one brother who was killed in the massacre of Deir Yassine; however, Kerman was an Arab with an Israeli passport and he lived in Israel, fully integrated in its society, his childhood, his friendships and his activities were all very normal.”
He continues: “but after the 1967 War, he starts a relationship with the Egyptian Intelligence and begins to provide Egypt with important information and tips through an extensive network of close relations with all Israeli community groups who thought that he was one of them.” Talking about the way he deals with different dialects in his works, especially in his role as Abed Kerman, he said: "I have no problem whether the dialect is Egyptian or nomadic or Syrian or traditional Arabic, it's not an obstacle at all, and Abed, as all other characters, talks in an Egyptian dialect, because the production is in Egyptian and Egyptian dialect is easy to understand by all Arabs.” regarding the similarities between his real character and that of  Abed’s and Kerman’s, he said: "they meet at several points, including the love for work and devotion to it.” And on his opinion on the spy-themed drama since it is his first time presenting it, he said: "the experience of a spy drama is completely new for me and I enjoy this type of drama when I watch it, especially in some foreign films and some Arabic movies, and I would like to try this experience. No doubt that success of past works by director Nadir Jalal and writer Bashir, especially the series "War of Spies," which broadcasted last year in Ramadan, was a key and reassuring motive for me to do this, especially that they were a dramatic bilateral, achieving many successes together." And whether he fears comparison  with characters which are stuck in viewers’' minds, such as 'Jomaa Shawan' and 'Re’efat Hajjan' and other characters that were played by Adel Imam and Mahmoud Abdelaziz, Taim said: "I don't fear comparison". He hoped that the viewers would like his upcoming work and that it would remind them of the great Shawan and Raefat. Regarding whether the situation is Syria is the reason why he wouldn’t participate in any dramas this year, he told us that: "the situation is not the reason, and the evidence is that there are television works being filmed in Syria now, but I apologized for not finding any scripts and ideas that I like, and in my personal opinion, I prefer to limit my works to Abed Kerman.” Talking about the fact of his selection for TV drama “Tunisian Perm” he said: "I declined the offer not because of the script or any other reasons as it was rumored, but because I didn't want to present any other series at the same time as Abed Kerman.” Concerning the reasons for his love for embodying biography dramas, such as King Farouk and Nizar Qabbani, although everyone fears the characters and the comparisons, he said that the type of series doesn't determine his choice, whether it is an autobiography or historical or a comedy; but that the quality of work in the script and directing does. He added that it's not his fault if his biography dramas were extremely good. Moreover, regarding his selection to play the character of “Omar Ibn Alkhatab” with director Hatim Ali he said that he was indeed selected and was going to play the role but circumstances were not appropriate, but that the most important thing is that it was preferable to deal with an actor who appears in a drama for the first time because it is a serious role. We asked about the meaning of his name 'Taim', and he said that the confusion is in his name has been there since his childhood and even in school as everyone didn't pronounce it correctly except for his Arabic language teachers. “Taim” is an Arabic name which dates back to Quraish tribes, and it is rare, but people in Syria are familiar with it. As for whether his fans , during his travels, call him by his real name or the name of characters he plays he said that they often call him by his name or by the name of the character he plays at that time; but that at the moment fans call him Abed because of Abed kerman. Regarding the acceptance of his wife, actress Dima Bayaa, to phonecalls from his fans he said: "she has to accept it, and I also accept that she is a public figure, and this is one of the beautiful things in relationships between two people working in the same domain. We asked if he think his good looks played a role in achieving him stardom, he said: "I'm a graduate of the Higher Institution for Dramatic Arts, this is my job and this is my studies. The outside may help but the main thing is the work of the actor, and his attempt to enrich his culture, spirit and his roles. And I deal primarily with an acting career based on working on the role, not the hair straightening and outer look.” As for the reasons as to why production companies always like to work with him or with the actor Jamal Solaiman in historical works, he said: "it's normal to come by Syrian stars in Syrian dramas and Egyptian stars in Egyptian dramas, and in the end historical works are evaluated by their quality, such as Cordoba's Spring, Salaheddine Al Ayubi, Kings of sects and Haggard.” As for why his name has been related to historical works for a long time, he said: "I filmed social dramas, but it was the five historical works that I filmed at the beginning of my career that stuck in people’s minds. I tried to vary my choices, but historical dramas are an asset if they’re written by a great writer like Walid Said, and directed by a great director like Hatim Ali.” Discussing who is more important to him between director Hatim Ali and Najdat Anzor, he said: "my experience with Hatim Ali is bigger, and I’ve been invited to work with Anzor twice, but unfortunately circumstances was not appropriate at the time. Najdat Anzor is a bright director, and Hatim Ali is a big director and I love him professionally and personally.” And about the reasons that prevented him from establishing his own production company, like his colleague Jomana Morad, he explained that: "I lack a partner who can provide the financing, and a production company needs money, but I wouldn’t like to enter the field of production, and the artists' experiences in production leave embarrassment and negative effects, because it 's administration, and I prefer to stay how I am; invited to a role, and then accepting or refusing that role.” As for his opinion on adverts which make artists large amounts of he said: "I haven’t done any commercials because I didn't like the offers, and I prefer to present a high level of work. I filmed an announcement to the UN 3 years ago about the important of alerting young people on their time and managing it wisely. And I prefer this path and respect of course the artists who do commercials.” As for whether his participation in Egyptian dramas poses a threat to Egyptian actors Hassan assured us that "there is no risk, and this is an Arabic art, and we all have the same problems. Success follows talent not nationality. There is a Syrian drama I’m ashamed of; and many criticize me when I played the role of King Farouk; but when the drama succeeded they admitted my success and appreciate me and this is a positive thing.” As for the criteria he follows in choosing his roles, he said: "Quality and a change from previous works to avoid repetition; in order for the viewers not to get bored, and to feel that I don’t repeat myself in my roles.” Speaking of a role that he wanted to play but its script wasn’t right he point out that: "I wait for the writers’ offers to me and I choose what I want. Owners of production companies may create these dreams but I don't think about this.” As for the actress with whom he would make a golden duet with he said that he is happy to work with Sulaf Fawakherji as she is a talented and hardworking actress, and because they highly understand each other. As for whether he tasted failure before and felt frustration since he entered the acting world, he said: "oh God, I don't think that I failed till this moment and  I thank God, because any work I do receives good and bad criticism and I take criticism seriously to improve myself, because then I would know how to choose the right character; that's why all the characters I’ve played, were successful.”
Talking about refusing to perform bold scenes in his work; such us kissing, he said "I reject those scenes often in the scenario, but if it is necessary, it may be addressed in a technical, not ugly way.”
As for what draws his attention to a woman, he said: " I love a woman who is wise and beautiful and those two things my wife enjoys.” And on how he spend his spare time he said: "I spend my time with my family and sometimes I travel to Europe or to Arab countries.” He added: "I prefer to spend my time with my family to compensate them for my busy time during filming, which can often be quite long and I hardly see them, I also practice my hobby football, which I have loved since my childhood.”