Remembering Egyptian Actress Zubaida Tharwat On Her Birthday

Ahmed Emam

Today marks the 81st birth anniversary of Zubaida Tharwat, the most beautiful actress to ever grace the Egyptian screen.

If somebody has the unique distinction of appearing in the most successful movies in the Arab world in the shortest period of time, it undoubtedly is Tharwat. A career spanning about twenty years saw her delivering splendid performances in about 40 movies.

Tharwat was one of the finest actresses that the Egyptian film industry could ever have. She was born in Alexandria in 1940 to a father who was an officer in the Egyptian Army and a mother of Circassian origin.

She made her movie debut as a teenage artist with Shadia, when she was 16, and got her first lead role at the age of 18 with the movie The young angel ( 1957).

She started her breakthrough in cinema, after winning a beauty contest in a teen magazine in 1956.

Meanwhile, a number of Egyptian renowned magazines labeled her as the best new face when she was yet to turn 16.

Tharwat shot to fame with her success in ‘A day of My Life’ and many remarkable films and stunning performances followed suit. Her performance in ‘Doha’ won her much praise from her fans and critics alike.

Moreover, Tharwat's participation in “A Man in our House” along with veterans Hassan Youssif, Omar El-Sheriff and Ahmed Ramzy, established the idea of a younger cinema that prevailed afterward.

She is also known for joint collaborations and associations with legendary Egyptian actors like the late remarkable actor Omar El Sherif, Abdel-Halim, and Yehia Shahin.

The gorgeous actress married five times and had four daughters with her second husband, a renowned Syrian producer Sobhy Farahat.

In the early 1980s, the iconic actress decided to quit showbiz altogether.

In 2016, she died at the age of 76 following a battle with cancer.