Latest news with #Rashida
Yahoo
30-03-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Thousands return to city park to celebrate Eid
Thousands of Muslims gathered in a Birmingham park to celebrate the Islamic festival of Eid. It was the first time in three years the event, in Small Heath Park on Sunday, had been held, following bad weather in 2023 and 2024. Eid al-Fitr is the celebration at the end of Ramadan, a month of fasting. Green Lane mosque, which organises the event, said this year there was even more of a community spirit than in previous years. The mosque's head of welfare, Sidrah Awan, said hundreds of people had also broken their fast at the mosque. She added: "That community spirit was throughout the whole of Ramadan and people were so happy to give back and help those that are harder to reach." One person attending the park, Aqsa Nasar, said: "When you see people coming together, it is such an unreal and beautiful feeling. "I think everyone must visit it, because we celebrate Eid twice a year." A family group, of Moroccan and Bangladeshi heritage, included Chaymae, who visited her sister Rashida in the Midlands. Chaymae said: "I've come all the way from London to meet our family, my sister that lives here [in Smethwick] and we actually come here every year, same park, same place, love it. "The atmosphere's amazing." In April last year, the mosque said it had made the "difficult decision" to not hold gatherings marking the end of Ramadan at the park and the Edgbaston cricket ground. Eid al-Fitr prayers took place at the mosque in Small Heath. On Sunday, Rashida said: "I was checking this morning to make sure it's still going ahead. I was like "it's fine, it's not raining, it's all good'". Akram Atmani joined the worship at the park and said there was "a great sense of community". He added: "A lot of people get together, which is amazing. It's really nice that they let us use the park." The mosque's head of PR Haniya Aadam said: "There's actually a line in the Quran that says 'when you look up to the sky, do you see my signs?' "So it's nice to pray outside just to feel that bit closer to God." West Midlands mayor Richard Parker described the event as fantastic and praised the mosque, the police and the council for organising it. Follow BBC Birmingham on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram. In pictures: Eid celebrations around the world 'In Bradford, families spend thousands on new clothes for Eid' Thousands expected at Eid al-Fitr festival Thousands enjoy Eid-al-Adha despite weather Eid prayers in park cancelled again due to weather
BBC News
30-03-2025
- Climate
- BBC News
Thousands return to Birmingham park to celebrate Eid
Thousands of Muslims gathered in a Birmingham park to celebrate the Islamic festival of Eid. It was the first time in three years the event, in Small Heath Park on Sunday, had been held, following bad weather in 2023 and al-Fitr is the celebration at the end of Ramadan, a month of Lane mosque, which organises the event, said this year there was even more of a community spirit than in previous years. The mosque's head of welfare, Sidrah Awan, said hundreds of people had also broken their fast at the added: "That community spirit was throughout the whole of Ramadan and people were so happy to give back and help those that are harder to reach." One person attending the park, Aqsa Nasar, said: "When you see people coming together, it is such an unreal and beautiful feeling."I think everyone must visit it, because we celebrate Eid twice a year."A family group, of Moroccan and Bangladeshi heritage, included Chaymae, who visited her sister Rashida in the said: "I've come all the way from London to meet our family, my sister that lives here [in Smethwick] and we actually come here every year, same park, same place, love it. "The atmosphere's amazing." In April last year, the mosque said it had made the "difficult decision" to not hold gatherings marking the end of Ramadan at the park and the Edgbaston cricket ground. Eid al-Fitr prayers took place at the mosque in Small Sunday, Rashida said: "I was checking this morning to make sure it's still going ahead. I was like "it's fine, it's not raining, it's all good'". Akram Atmani joined the worship at the park and said there was "a great sense of community".He added: "A lot of people get together, which is amazing. It's really nice that they let us use the park." The mosque's head of PR Haniya Aadam said: "There's actually a line in the Quran that says 'when you look up to the sky, do you see my signs?'"So it's nice to pray outside just to feel that bit closer to God."West Midlands mayor Richard Parker described the event as fantastic and praised the mosque, the police and the council for organising it. Follow BBC Birmingham on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
Buzz Feed
27-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Buzz Feed
Rashida Jones Revealed Why She Cried When She Found Out Amy Poehler Was Cast On 'Parks And Recreation,' And It's Probably Not For The Reason You Think
You guys, Ann's here! As in, Rashida Jones is on Amy Poehler 's Good Hang podcast, and my Parks and Recreation heart is very happy. While the show, which ran from 2009 to 2015, may be over, Rashida and Amy, who play Ann Perkins and Leslie Knope respectively, are still as close as ever. On Tuesday, Rashida sat down with Amy to talk about their friendship on and off screen. However, although they began working together on Parks and Rec in 2009, you might not know that the two have been seriously close for over twenty years. Speaking about how their offscreen chemistry translated so well, Amy said, 'They really did base the entire show off of the fact that Leslie and Ann were each other's number one,' to which Rashida said, 'Not that hard.' But despite the pair's longstanding friendship, Amy revealed that back when the show was still in the casting stages, things were a lot more rocky than you might expect. 'The beginnings of that show were… I'll say a little clumpy,' Amy said, as Rashida nodded in agreement, saying, 'Crunchy. It was crunchy.' If you need some context, Amy played the show's protagonist, chirpy government official Leslie Knope: deputy director of the Department of Parks and Recreation in the fictional town of Pawnee, Indiana. Rashida Jones, who you might also know as the daughter of the late music legend Quincy Jones, played Ann Perkins, 'friend and beautiful nurse,' in Leslie's words. And while to fans, Amy and Rashida were cast perfectly in their respective roles, it looks like there was some confusion during the start of the show. 'For the beginning we both were worried that we had taken each other's part,' Amy revealed. Rashida dove into the story, launching back to 2008 when she was 'on hold' for an untitled Michael Schur project, aka, the guy who created The Office, and later Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Michael and Rashida had become close in college, and were both friends with Amy, who was 'extremely pregnant' at the time. Rashida explained that Mike pitched the show to her in the early stages of development and that the 'boss' character (who would eventually become Leslie) was initially written to be a man. She then recalled that after she and Amy had arrived back from a holiday together, a day later Amy gently suggested that they go to lunch. Ominous much? 'Oh god, and I said, 'Let's talk about something,'' Amy remembered. 'You took me to lunch, and said, 'I'm so sorry but they offered me the part,'' Rashida explained. 'Both of us thinking it was the same part I was on hold for, being created by a friend of ours. And so I immediately started crying, and you held my hand, and you were so warm. You were like, 'I know, I'm sorry buddy.' But you held your space, and you also comforted me at the same time. Which was a very beautiful thing.' Rashida called the moment a 'gold standard of friendship' and praised how Amy took care of her without putting herself down. But thankfully, the misunderstanding didn't last long. 'I wonder what [Mike] Schur's version of this is…' Amy began before Rashida quickly interjected, saying, 'Let me tell you! Because I left him a message like, almost immediately, because I'm not shy.' Although Rashida was pretty stern with Mike about not being informed about losing out on the role, Mike quickly set the record straight. 'He was like, 'No, no, no, back up, we changed the boss. It's a woman, and Amy's playing the boss.' I was like, 'You — Oh my god!' I still wasn't cast, I still had to do a bunch of chemistry reads, but that became like this huge possibility of my life being… the best. From the worst to the best.' I think it's safe to say that Mike made the right call. Can you imagine a world where Ann was Leslie and Leslie was Ann? What are your thoughts? I'd love to hear them down below. Meanwhile, you can listen to Rashida's full appearance on Good Hang here.
Al Bawaba
20-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Al Bawaba
MAD Solutions to send 19 shorts to Iraq International Film Festival for Youth Films
With an impressive selection of 19 short films from its extensive distribution slate, MAD Solutions is set to have a strong presence at the inaugural Iraq International Film Festival for Youth Films, taking place from February 19th to 22nd in Baghdad. This diverse lineup features dramas, thrillers, and social comedies that tell stories from across the Arab World, including three films from Egypt, five from Palestine, three from Jordan, three from Saudi Arabia, two from Lebanon, and one each from Sudan, Algeria, and Tunisia. Here are the 19 MAD shorts participating in the festival: ● Hend Sohail's A PROMISE TO THE SEA follows Zein, who, after irrationally deciding to steal his mother's corpse during the funeral preparations, recklessly drives far from his humble hometown and hits the highway, where he encounters a situation that will change his life forever. ● Luay Awwad's BORN A CELEBRITY follows Kamel, a 25-year-old Palestinian who feels confined in his small Palestinian town and close-knit community and embarks on a journey to discover his personal freedom and privacy. ● Yasser Faiz's BOUGAINVILLEA is set against the backdrop of Sudan's 2018 revolution and tells the poignant story of six women imprisoned during the revolution. ● Moatasem Taha's IN THE WAITING ROOM follows Hussein — a 30-year-old Palestinian Arab with Israeli citizenship — who escorts his freshly bereaved 70-year-old mother, Rashida, to her medical appointment in an Israeli hospital. As they wait for their turn, Rashida, who hasn't left her house in three months, tries to socialize with the other patients in her limited Hebrew. ● John Fareed Zaki's MADONNA revolves around the theft of an Italian painter's artifact, reigniting an old conflict between two Jesuit priests. When an investigation is launched, all suspicions fall on the monastery's chef. However, a confession is eventually made, and the real perpetrator is uncovered. ● Rami Al-Kassab's LOSS, which is based on true events, follows a group of migrants as they journey into Egypt on the back of a pickup truck. En route, in the middle of the desert, they suffer a significant and harrowing loss. ● Imene Ayadi's NYA is set during the Algerian Civil War and follows Anya, a carefree little girl who is blissfully unaware of the war tearing the country apart. Her one wish is that her father, a journalist on a mission, returns home in time for Mouloud celebrations. The troubles of reality seep into her life, however, causing her innocence to waver. ● Rehab Nazzal's VIBRATIONS FROM GAZA offers a glimpse into the lives of deaf children in the besieged and occupied Gaza Strip. Through the voices of children who have grown up under the relentless blockade and repeated Israeli aggression, it vividly conveys how they experience the bombings, destruction, and drone buzz overhead. ● Amani Jaafer's A LULLABY UNLIKE ANY OTHER follows Nour, a young Palestinian woman pursuing her studies in Sweden. She wanders the streets of Stockholm recalling distant memories; retracing her steps, she reminisces over the trauma inflicted by the occupation, the memories of her family, and a lullaby long since lost. ● Mohammad Gotta's WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN? follows a young artist in his twenties who abandons his family, refusing to submit to social constraints. Depressed, lonely, and stuck in his small derelict studio flat, he stumbles upon his elderly neighbor, a woman neglected by her family and in need of intimacy. Despite their differences, the two develop an unlikely connection through their shared experiences of hardship and love of music. ● Areeb Zuaiter's ONE LAST WISH revolves around Serine, whose coaching skills are deeply influenced by her grandmother, Salma, who holds a special place in her heart despite the physical distance. Upon receiving distressing news of Salma's illness, Serine embarks on a long journey to reunite with her. Upon arrival, she realizes that while understanding her grandmother's wishes is tough, accomplishing them proves even more daunting. ● Hussen Ibraheem's MANITY is set on a sunny day when Firas — an 11-year-old boy — accompanies his father Tayseer and his father's friend Rayan on a bird-hunting jaunt in the Lebanese mountainside. What is supposed to be a calm hunting trip turns into an unforgettable experience. ● Nour Ben Salem and Julien Menanteau's PALESTINE ISLANDS follows a young Palestinian refugee girl who plans an elaborate ruse to make her blind grandfather believe the separation wall fell, giving him hope of returning to his homeland. ● Hayder Dawood's Saudi short THE LAST WINTER follows Mohsen, who returns to visit his friend Hayder four years after his initial journey to Sweden, while being filled with a deep longing for their shared homeland of Saudi Arabia. As they navigate through Hayder's final winter there, their friendship grows stronger, becoming a source of support and comfort amid a backdrop of longing and change. ● Hussein Hijazi's LEGACY takes place in a troubled country where politicians have drained people's savings; Rabih faces a crisis when his father needs urgent medical care. With time running out and money scarce, Rabih races against the odds to save his father's life. ● Ethar Baamer's IN BETWEEN follows a young woman struggling to find her true self. Overwhelmed by societal expectations that dictate how she should look and who she should be, the central character responds by separating into multiple versions of herself, trying on different identities. ● Arwa Salem's 1420 follows the story of Samia, who loses her vision and finds solace in music, and Salem, who embraces extremism. When their marriage encounters a significant obstacle, it ultimately impacts their daughter Worood. ● Annie Sakkab's THE POEM WE SANG delves into the history behind We Are a Proud Nation, a nearly lost anthem of Palestinian pride and resistance. ● Wisam Al-Jafari's BY THE SEA follows Nahid, who wants to celebrate her husband's birthday while he is on the run from Israeli soldiers; however, due to the COVID-19 lockdown, it is really difficult for Nahid to get all the ingredients needed to bake the birthday cake. Will Nahid be able to celebrate her husband's birthday with him in their secret hideout?
Euronews
14-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Euronews
Berlinale 2025 review: 'Kein Tier. So Wild.' ('No Beast. So Fierce.') - Shakespeare + gang wars
One English literature lecturer I had at university was fond of the phrase 'Don't shit on Shakespeare.' Beyond the immediate satisfaction of a cheeky alliteration, his catchphrase referred to the fact that anyone who thinks they can adapt the Bard's works to suit their purposes with relative ease is kidding themselves. Especially when it comes to cinema. All the world may be a stage, but it doesn't always have to be a film set - where Shakespeare has been a significant fixture since 1899's King John. Adaptations have ranged from dutiful period versions to modern retellings in unexpected genres. We've had countless faithful restagings (the inescapable Laurence Olivier 'prestige' takes), musicals (West Side Story, Kiss Me Kate), samurai films (Akira Kurosawa's Throne of Blood and Ran), sci-fi adventures (Forbidden Planet), teen comedies (She's The Man, Jawbreaker), cute animated lions (The Lion King) and creative hybrids (Baz Luhrmann's William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet). And quality has been mixed, to say the very least. For every Much Ado About Nothing or 10 Things I Hate About You, there are a dozen like Deliver Us From Eva, Romeo Must Die and Cymbeline. If you haven't heard of that last one, it's dirty cops versus biker gangs with Ethan Hawke and Ed Harris. Stay away. All to say that reworking the famous English playwright is a trickier endeavour than many a foolhardy director would like to think. Luckily, Burhan Qurbani is far from foolhardy and never one to shy away from a challenge. 'Bloody thou art, bloody will be thy end' After wowing audiences at the 70th Berlinale with his ambitious adaptation of Alfred Döblin's epic 1929 novel 'Berlin Alexanderplatz' – a modernist masterpiece and one of the most important works of the Weimer Republic – the Afghan-German director returns with a modern retelling of "Richard III". Much like Berlin Alexanderplatz, in which he recontextualised the classic text by making the lead character an undocumented refugee from Guinea-Bissau, Qurbani's Shakespeare iteration transposes the story to the modern-day Germany and gender-flips the central protagonists. No Beast. So Fierce. starts as a bloody gang war between the two noble Arab families of York and Lancaster is brought to an end by the youngest York daughter Rashida (Kenda Hmeidan), a lawyer whose unconventional courtroom tactics brings peace at last. However, she realises that as a woman, she'll always be a pawn in a man's world. Her eldest brother Imad (Mehdi Nebbou) immediately takes control, condemning her to obedience. Worse, he and matriarch Qamar (Meriam Abbas) want to celebrate peace with the cries of a newborn and plot to have Rashida tied to a marital bed. Rashida scoffs at this plan. She doesn't intend to obey but to summon a storm that will lead to her freedom and supremacy. In order to do so, she'll have to scheme, seduce and order hits via her trusty enforcer Mishal (Hiam Abbass, brilliantly playing a merciless angel of death who threatens to grows a conscience). Whatever it takes to no longer be a sister and a daughter to those who rule Berlin's underworld but to be its undisputed queen. 'My conscience hath a thousand several tongues, And every tongue brings in a several tale' 'You know the blurb – I've just rewritten it a little,' says Rashida to her disapproving mother. There's a director's statement if ever there was one. Qurbani and his co-screenwriter Enis Maci have deftly merged classic and modern German dialogue with Arabic culture, language and contemporary echoes. Not content to do what Baz Luhrmann did with 'Romeo and Juliet', the director takes things further by opening avenues for meaning without ever force-feeding any clumsy commentary that would shackle the film to overtly socio-political interpretations. He never overplays his hand and trusts his audience to understand that the gender-swap can lead to meditation on cultural and contemporary attitudes towards immigration and women, and how the repeated 'freedom' Rashida exclaims prior to her first monologue has layers. Who can be free in a patriarchy? Who can be free when freedom is promised by a country plagued by societal double-standards and a troubled relationship to the concept of 'home'? Who can ever be free from their past? The excellent script is matched by a sense of style that gives this gangster thriller a dark and evocative visual oppressiveness. And just when you think you've settled into that grey world, an arresting third act twist in staging elevates this adaption to a new level. Cinematographer Yoshi Heimrath and production designer Jagna Dobesz rise to the challenge and bolster this bold shift from realism to something more experimental, abstract and symbolic. The stage comes to mirror not only the corrupting effects of unbridled power, with Rashida's scorched earth policies reflected by her surroundings, but also manifests the internal trauma that haunts her despite attaining her version of freedom. 'Since I cannot prove a lover, To entertain these fair well-spoken days, I am determined to prove a villain, And hate the idle pleasures of these days.' All this couldn't work without a central performance to match Qurbani's ambitions, and thankfully, he is blessed with Germany-based Syrian actress Kenda Hmeidan. From the moment she's on screen, Hmeidan conjures such an aura that it becomes impossible to avert your eyes. The way she gradually goes from scheming sister in the streets of Berlin to tyrannical monster in a wasteland is outstanding, as is the way she allows the traumatism of a survivor of war to peek through and lead Rashida's bomb-scarred psyche to create a new cycle of violence. By the time the character faces her younger self in a dreamlike state and utters the lines 'I am not your opposite, I am the open wound', Hmeidan allows us to see that Rashida's kingdom of rust and dust is the expression of a wounded soul expressing herself through cruelty. If Laurence Olivier's Richard was imperious and at times appropriately hysterical, Kenda Hmeidan's take makes Rashida smirkingly seductive, brutal and enticingly damaged. Had No Beast. So Fierce. been in Competition instead of the Specials section at this year's festival, there's no doubt Hmeidan would be the performer to beat for a bear. Qurbani's 'tyrannous and bloody act is done', fuelled from start to finish by this virtuosic performance. His confident and often bleakly playful adaptation never buckles under the cultural weight of the text or its previous adaptations. Which leads to the solace that no Shakespeare was shat on during No Beast. So Fierce. Audiences and English lecturers rejoice.
