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Editor in Chief Mohamed Wadie

See Reviews Nadia Lutfi's Autobiography "Esmi Paula" on Death Anniversary


Fri 05 Feb 2021 | 05:14 AM
Rana Atef

Thursday marked the first death anniversary of the iconic Nadia Lutfi who left behind dozens of unforgettable gems of art. Hundreds of Lutfi's stories were introduced to the audience for the first time through her autobiography entitled "Esmi Paula" and edited by Ayman El-Hakim.

The book mainly consisted of four main parts, each part reflected a side of her life.

Through the first part, "Me and Cinema," Lutfi beautifully narrated untold stories that occurred behind the screen, and during the shooting.

The employed discourse was vividly scripted, and it reflected the mixed feelings of pleasure and pain, and the passion of being an actress.

The actress touched upon figures of the golden age of cinema manners, mentioning names, incidents that are somehow unknown to the rising generations who are more engaged to Western culture.

The next part was "Me and Intellectuals." Through this part, Lutfi highlighted her relationship with her age's intellectuals and authors such as Dr. Mostafa Mahmoud, Anis Mansour, and Youssef Idris.

However, her chapter about "Enayat El Zayyat" can attract the reader more due to the sense of solidarity Lutfi showed.

El Zayyat was a promising writer who committed suicide before her only novel came to the light. She was Lutfi's closest friend and her death was a real shock to Lutfi.

In the same context, trending author Mostafa Mounir advised readers who plan to read "Esmi Paula" to approach Eman Mirsal's "Fi Athar Enayat El Zayyat" first.

Mirsal wrote down in her book Lutfi's stories about El Zayyat and reviewed various minor details through her search for what is left from El Zayyat's memories.

So, Mirsal's book can be approached as part of Lutfi's biography, mirroring her real feelings to her closest short-lived friend.

On the other hand, Lutfi's stories about her relationship with politicians which were expressed in the following chapter were more breathtaking.

Lutfi was stereotyped for the rising generations as a beautiful lady that shone in black and white movies, so they may have a poor background about her political contributions.

She volunteered at Al Kasr Al Aini hospital to help the injured soldiers during the 1973 War, besides, she traveled to Lebanon during the Israeli occupation to support the movements of resistance.

Also, she expressed her memories about war, victory, revolutions, and her talks with Yasser Arafat, and President Sisi.

Finally, Lutfi revealed various aspects of her personal life, and feelings through the last part of the book entitled, "Me and Life."

It can be considered as a summary for the whole book as Lutfi introduced to the reader her life's morals, her rules, and the results of her decisions.

At the end of the book, there were several attachments for those who want to know more about Lutfi's last days and her final notes.

These attachments were written by El-Hakim as Lutfi cared for exchanging her thoughts in pieces of paper and delivering them to him.

In general, the book is a treasure and is enjoyable. It opens new horizons to the readers, and introduce them to new worlds of magic, passion, and desire.