Supervisor Elham AbolFateh
Editor in Chief Mohamed Wadie

Remembering Legendary Actress Fayrouz on Her Birth Anniv.


Wed 15 Mar 2023 | 01:30 PM
Ahmed Emam

Today marks the birth anniversary of an Armenian-Egyptian child actress Perouz Artin Kalfayan, fondly known as Fayrouz.

Born on 15 March 1943, Fayrouz made her debut career in Yasmine (1950) alongside renowned actor Anwar Wagdy, who was also the film's director and producer, and an artist who discovered the young star.

She had an older sister Nelly Kalfaian, who is also an actress, and two half-siblings – Nealy and Leblba are actresses also.

Throughout her career, she featured in over 10 films gaining the name 'the child prodigy,' yet quickly withdrew from the silver screen.

Wagdy, who helped raise her when she was young, played an important role in Fayrouz's life during which she appeared in big roles in several black and white 10 films presenting her multi-array talents as she was acting, singing and dancing. 

Fayrouz's breakthrough came with Dahab (1953), which was also directed and produced by Wagdy.

She ventured into comedic roles in films such as "Ismail Yassine Tarazaan",  "Ismail Yassine lil Beih", " Iyyami as Sa'eeda" and  "Bafakkar fi lli Naseeni".

After her marriage to the Egyptian comedian Badreddine Gamgoum in 1959, Fayrouz decided to quit cinema with her last movie Bafakkar fi lli Naseeni, by Hossam El Din Mostafa and Lotfy Nour Eldin.

Later, she became one of the unforgettable young film stars. Many of her songs in the films are still alive until now, and are remembered by Egyptian of different generations.

In 2001, Fayrouz was recognized by Cairo International Film Festival for her lifetime achievements.

Her health reportedly deteriorated and she reportedly suffered kidney and liver problems before passing away.

Fayrouz is survived by a son and a daughter.