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Перевод на английскийClothes define who we are, says the Skam-star Iman Meskini (20). She feels most beautiful when she looks at herself in the mirror wearing the hijab.
- I was so shocked, says Iman Meskini.
It’s 24 hours until the very last episode of Skam will be broadcast on TV, a few hours until a friend will do her make-up before the big farewell party. It’s three days until she’s going on a month long vacation to her father’s home country, Tunisia, for the first time in several years. It’s a month until she will show up to her initial service in the military at Madla in Stavanger. At the moment, one of our biggest international celebrities right now is sitting on a bench at St.Hanshaugen in Oslo, telling us about when she understood how popular her character Sana had become.
- Like, I’ve looked up to Karpe Diem my whole life. I love their message, their lyrics, that they’ve managed to reach the top without singing about shake booty, that you can come that far with a message that isn’t about money and nice cars. When I realised that I had more followers than them on Instagram… That was insane.
The dimples that have charmed people far outside Norway’s borders are showing.
- It wasn’t until then I realised I was famous.
Recognised in Istanbul
Skam has become a Norwegian invention as important as the cheese slicer. The series has not only beat every record in Norway, it’s also the most watched series on the Swedish SVTs online player, ever. The norwegian teen drama is discussed in countries like Russia and China, soon Shame will be made for the American market, and young people from all over the world travel to Oslo to visit Hartvig Nissen School and use words like “hooke” and “serr”. And back home the TV-series is used in research, is a topic in the official high school exam, and the University of Oslo offers a Skam course. Nobody expected any of these things when writer Julie Andem jokingly told the young actors that “they should aim for world dominance”. Recently, when Iman was in Istanbul for vacation, she was recognised by people from France, Argentina, Portugal and Turkey. In a city of 13 million people, in a muslim country, people stopped her on the street and asked: “Are you Sana from Skam?”
- It was a bit like “wow”! It’s incredible how big it has become, says Iman. She doesn’t think it’s weird that the girl squad from the show has become close both as colleagues and friends.
- There is something unique about our bond, because we have shared the experience of something historic and new. Nobody else can understand that, and I think it will remain that way for a long time into the future.
200 girls wanted the role
In many ways, you could say that Iman Meskini has done for the TV-industry what Karpe Diem did for Norwegian hiphop. The 20-year old, who is born in Oslo and grew up in Kolbotn, is completely uncompromising when it comes to what she wants to do and what she doesn’t want to do. Much like her musical idols. She has been that way ever since NRKs casting agent showed up to Norwegian Centre against Racism’s youth organisation Agenda X, looking for someone to play a muslim girl in a new teen show. They asked for Iman, the high school student who had written a blog post about wearing a hijab and being a muslim girl in Norway. She was immediately critical of the request.
- Hello, I wear a hijab! I thought. It was hard to believe that NRK really would do a character who used one. I had no acting experience, apart from a few “end of the school year”-shows, like playing the rabbit in Hakkebakkeskogen and such. I never imagined becoming an actor, I didn’t even think it was a possibility, Iman says.
- Because I’d never seen girls in hijabs on TV before.
She went to the audition. There were 200 other girls there to try out for the part of Sana Bakkoush. Both girls with and without hijabs. Suddenly it became very important for Iman to get the role.
- When there finally was a role meant for a girl with a hijab, I thought it would have been a bummer if it went to someone who didn’t wear it. So I really went for it during the last audition. When they called me and said: “You’ve got the part if you want it”, it was a surreal feeling.
Tunisian father, Norwegian mother
We saw her pray, we saw her fast, we saw her discuss islam with her mother, her friends and the boy she was in love with. It has been said about the character of Sana Bakkoush that she has done more for Norwegian Muslims than Islamic Council Norway. When Iman Meskini met Erna Solberg during the Eid-celebrations at the end of june, the prime minister praised her for fronting a character that represents the diversity in Norwegian society, and for being a symbol for those who feel like they’re between two cultures. Being called a role model and a barrier breaker is something Iman is really proud of.
- It feels very big. It’s an honour. But I also feel a responsibility when people people start seeing me as a role model. I don’t want to ruin that, so I might become more conscious of what I do. At the same time, I’ve always been conscious of it, because I’ve worn the hijab, she says.
- I’ve thought that when I wear the hijab, people see that I’m muslim, and interpret everything I do from that.
Iman’s father is from Tunisia, and her mother is Norwegian and converted to Islam as a 20-year old. In 7th grade, at a lower secondary school of 500 students in Langhus, where there were few ethnic minorities and even fewer who wore the hijab, Iman made the choice to cover up.
- Even thoguh I didn’t see it around me, I was used to seeing my mother and my older sisters wearing a hijab. My mom is my role model, so it was very natural for me to do like her, says Iman, who says that “it was far from a fashion statement at that time”.
- I see myself a bit in Sana when it comes to being the only one wearing a hijab. But it has never been a problem for me, it has never kept me from making friends. You do get more visible, though. But I… Like, I love Islam. And I am very, very proud to be a muslim. So I wear the garment with pride. Clothes define who you are, and that is what it does with me. I feel like me when I look in the mirror wearing the hijab.
Didn’t own any black clothes
Iman has now worn the head scarf for seven years, and have long gotten used to adapt the hijab to her personal style. To find clothes that go well with Islam’s dress code can be hard for beginners, but Iman has a well tested routine for what she does when she enters a clothing store.
- My brain scans the entire store, and I pass shorts and mini skirts and other things I can’t wear. Then I automatically start analysing garments: Is this see through? It is long enough? Is it covering? What would I need to wear over or under it, to be able to use it? Then I go through the clothes I have at home, that could go with the new piece. And then I decide if it’s worth buying - or if it’s too much of a hassle.
She often buys her hijabs while on vacation abroad, where the selection is better and cheaper. The red hijab she’s wearing today, with a long, white coat, is from Istanbul.
- Before I started playing Sana, I didn’t own a single black piece of clothing! Iman says.
- It was very strange for me to start wearing all-black. We were recording three days in a row, where I only wore black, when Sana was very sad and down. The day after, I wore pink, I really needed that.
She also showed up wearing all pink at the TV Awards Gullruten last year, when the Skam-girls did their first public appearance.
- I was a bit like: “Hi, this is me!” Iman says.
- Was that important to you?
- Yes, it was really important then. I felt for a while that the role of Sana was really distanced from me, because she was so black and dark and sassy. I thought it was hard in the beginning, and I became very like: “Don’t call me Sana. I’m Iman.” There was a very distinct divide between us, and I almost became annoyed if anyone called me Sana.
She thinks for a while.
- When you act, you have to find sides to yourself that you maybe haven’t felt for a while. To bring out the dark side was a bit uncomfortable. I felt a lot of feelings that I hadn’t felt in a while, because I haven’t felt the need to bring out that side of me.
- But it is a side of you that existed?
- I think I’ve always had a dark side in me somewhere. But I’ve always tried to be very happy and positive, I feel that’s very me. So to not even be allowed to smile… That was very weird. I get very tired from playing Sana. It made me heavy mentally. But after a while, I felt that I could more come to terms with who I am, and who she is. And now people call med Sana more than ever.
Iman is smiling.
- But that people yell that now, doesn’t bother me at all. I know that they call out to Sana because it’s her they feel like they know and want to give a hug. And then it’s extra nice when people yell: “Oh, are you Iman Meskini!”
The military has been the goal
She was born in Oslo, but when Iman was around a year old, her whole family moved to Syria. First, they lived in the capital Damascus, later they moved out in the country, closer to the border with Lebanon, living at a small farm. Iman doesn’t remember a lot, but she remember some hens - and a rooster she strongly disliked, because it almost attacked her once. The family stayed in Syria for years.
- The reason we lived there, was because my parents thought it was a very nice country. They still talk about it, how beautiful it is, and how sad it is that Syria is destroyed today. It’s a shame that I don’t remember anything, but those years have actually influenced my language. I speak Arabic with a Syrian dialect.
In Syria, Iman went to preschool, she had a backpack and books and homework at the age of four. So when her family moved back to Norway, and she started going to kindergarten, four year old Iman was surprised. “What, everyone just sits around and plays!” she thought. And then she started reading by herself. She started school, began playing basketball, and after a while became good enough that she’s played for Høybråten in the top league for women. Since she graduated high school last year, she has studied Middle Eastern studies with Arabic at the University of Oslo, while also doing Skam. She hasn’t decided what she wants to be, so far she mostly studies “for the knowlegde”. And she likes a challenge. That is partly the reason why she’ll take a break from her studies next year, not to be an actress, but to be a soldier.
- The military has always been my goal, Iman says.
- Even before I heard about Skam. It’s something I’ve worked for. I don’t know if I’ll be the first in the military wearing a hijab, but if that’s the case, I am used to being the only one. I am really happy I got in. To be honest, I think it’s really cool that they accepted a girl with a hijab into the military.
- Why did you want to do it?
- I wanted to feel stronger. “You can get stronger by training in a fitness studio”, someone said to me. But I didn’t only mean physically, I think mentally too. You’ll challenge your psyche. I like doing things that are outside my comfort zone. That’s how you learn more about yourself.
Lifestyle and passion
After 1.1 million Norwegians had followed the last week of Skam, the series that many call “the best Norwegian drama series ever”, said it’s farewells with the words “Fear spreads, but fortunately love does too”. Iman Meskini is almost surprised by how positively the series has been received, also amongst muslims.
- Really, it’s amazing how little Skam has been criticised. I almost expected more, since the series bring up some topics that are taboo. It wouldn’t have been strange if that had provoked some people, but they have taken it very well.
Of course, there have been some critical voices, she says. Some have said that it is wrong of her to be in a series that involves alcohol, partying and sex outside marriage - things that are Haram in Islam. That she, by acting in the series, show that she supports these things.
- I think that the series recreate the reality. This is how it is. I don’t drink, but live alongside my friends who do. And that is how it is for most muslims who have friends who aren’t, says Iman, who is happy that some of her best friends are non-muslims.
- I think it’s important to not just spend time with people who are similar to yourself, because if you did, you would never get your way of thinking challenged.
- What about when you sometime in the future will chose a life partner, do you have the same mindset as Sana when it comes to marrying a non-muslim boy?
Iman thinks a while before responding.
- Well, I don’t know what’s written for me in the future, she says.
- But right now, with the mindset I have now - which is constantly changing and evolving, of course - I would probably prefer someone who is muslim. Not just someone who says he is muslim, but someone who actually believes in God, and that there is something bigger than us. Because Islam is my lifestyle. Because Islam is a lifestyle. Islam explains how to behave yourself, how to live at home and outside of the home, it’s describes everything, in a way. And Islam is a very big interest for me, so it would be nice to share that interest with a life partner. I think it’s natural to want that.
Yet she is understanding that other muslims think differently on this. She can also understand that young muslims are losing their religious affiliation.
- It’s a bit taboo to be born in a muslim family and say that you don’t believe in Allah, but I don’t think it’s that strange when you grow up in a society where the majority don’t. I think it’s very understandable that you lose faith or have never felt that affiliation.
- Do you think that a lot of people feel a pressure to say that they believe?
- Yes, because who will find out if you don’t? That’s the thing about Islam, you can’t force anyone to believe in God. You can’t force anyone to fast, because they can drink water when they go to the bathroom. You can say you pray five times a day, but if you just go home and sit on your couch, nobody will see. Everything in Islam you really do for yourself. When you believe in God, you believe that he sees you, all the time. Therefore I would like a husband who really believes. Then we’ll automatically live the same lifestyle.
- Would your family find it difficult if you got together with a non-believer?
- No. My mom and I have a very similar mindset when it comes to that. There are a lot of parents who have a lot of opinions on who you should marry, not just muslims, but ethnic Norwegians too. When it comes to muslims, I think it becomes a bit of a double standard. If you’re muslim, you believe in fate. And fate isn’t something that lies in your hands, so you can’t deny anyone marriage with who they’re destined for. It might change for me too, and it probably would have been fine to marry a non-muslim boy. It would just make things a bit harder, and, like Sana’s mom says in the series, a bit more lonely.
Iman is smiling.
- Listen, now I’m talking without stop. When I start talking about Islam, I can keep going for ages. It’s my passion. To not be able to share that with a boyfriend, that sounds a bit sad.
- Have you had a lot of suitors lately, then?
- Hehe, I’ve received messages like: “Salam, are you keen on getting married?”. But I haven’t answered those. They should at least come up to me in person.
Doesn’t want to take off her hijab
Like when watching Skam, after talking to Iman Meskini, you’re left with a feeling that things will turn out well. She has a refreshingly positive attitude towards being a young muslim woman in Norway. She has known the feeling of not being Norwegian enough or nor Tunisian enough, she says, but she thinks you can “chose how big of a problem that should become”. She understands that it is hurtful when people ask where you’re from when you’ve maybe never been to the homeland of your parents, but she has herself settled on that “it’s a resource to be half Norwegian and half Tunisian”. And despite getting a taste of the acting life, she won’t say yes to just any new role.
- It depends on what kinds of offers I get.
- Would you take a role where you couldn’t wear a hijab?
- No, never. But it would be cool if we someday could come far enough that a girl in a hijab could get a role in a movie that is about something completely different than her wearing a hijab. But that she just does, and it’s natural that she does. That would be cool.
- How far away from that do you think we are?
- I think that Skam is a big step in the right direction.
Now Iman Meskini has five times the amount of Instagram followers compared to Karpe Diem. But when she talks about Chirag and Magdi, she still does it with the all consuming enthusiasm of a die hard fan. Of course she attended the concert in Oslo Spektrum last winter, but she didn’t expect to come by a concert she didn’t even know about, while visiting a friend in Fredrikstad. It almost became too much for her. Because there she was, suddenly, backstage, watching her idols from just a few meters away, about to break her fast with the three dates she had brought with her and some water, when she was suddenly waved onto the stage with her friend.
- Then… Then I started crying. I can’t say it was a dream come true, because I hadn’t even dreamt of it. That I happened to be in Fredrikstad that day, after almost staying at home because I was tired.
Iman shakes her head, smiling.
- I’ve never believed in fate as much as I did then.
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