MEMORIZERS OF THE HOLY QURAN AWARD CEREMONY, 1998
These are your daughters.
They'll illuminate your graves.
And you are candles that illuminate their path in this world.
Our fourth student
exceeded all expectations.
That student is Razan Mawruth, daughter of Mona Ras!
You shall have your own tree in Paradise.
MEMORIZERS
Rejoice, o' memorizer of the Quran,
the Holy Book,
a revelation from God.
Get ready for God's Paradise,
where you'll meet the Prophet and receive his intercession,
and that of the Holy Quran,
which you worked tirelessly to memorize.
Therefore, Paradise shall be yours, God willing.
May God illuminate…
She wrote everything on her desk.
She didn't memorize anything.
Wait a minute. Silence!
-I better tell them, right? -Tell them.
She wrote all the verses on her desk.
I'm really sorry to tell you this, but…
Is that true?
I'm sorry.
CRASHING EID
Hassan.
-This marriage will not happen, right? -Of course not.
That guy clearly has a hidden agenda.
What are you talking about, Hassan?
-Didn't you sleep on the plane? -No.
And is my baby girl fasting?
Yes. And you?
Of course, sweetie.
Listen, how about having Itfar with us today.
You can meet your sister, Fatima.
-Mom-- -Lamar--
-Okay, you go first. -No, you first.
Go ahead.
I'm going to Dad's today, okay?
Do me a favor.
No.
Yes.
I need you to sit with Grandma for a bit.
Lamar.
Dad?
-Dad? -Allah Akbar!
Why is he praying here?
If you think you'll convince him to let you marry that guy, you're mistaken.
What you did yesterday was beyond anything you've ever done before.
Allah Akbar.
My prayers stopped me from killing myself.
Mom, suicide is not a joke.
If you're really suicidal, you should see a psychiatrist.
So he'd put me on medication that would cause me to lose my mind,
and you'd manipulate your poor father.
Grandma, where did you go? What's the next step?
You're late.
Sweetheart, you can't interrupt a prayer. Come here.
It's okay. No one ever taught you about that.
Assalaamu’alaikum wa rahmatullah.
-Hassan! -Dad!
Allahumma…
Do it for me.
-What did you do? -A heart.
This is a heart?
It's a broken heart, torn into pieces.
You insert the needle here, and take it out here.
You take it from under and pull it out from the last spot.
-Hassan! -Grandma…
Not now. Sit here.
Mona, I know what you're going to say.
Everybody was flustered yesterday.
But we're supposed to… Let me finish.
We're supposed to think rationally.
Arguing does not solve problems. Let me handle this. Please.
I wanted to remind you to go to the market.
THE INFORMATION WAR
This is the story of an Arab who got duped when he married a Western lady.
Let me read you a passage.
"After they managed to recruit him through one of their operatives,
named Frances,
she gave birth to a deformed child."
"She returned to Germany and left him to take care of the child's expenses."
Germany and other Western countries
recruited many spies.
This is just one of them.
A British Pakistani who speaks Arabic…
and also happens to be a journalist,
and who has been to Indonesia, Kuwait, and even here…
Sameer is definitely a spy.
Dad, of course not!
He's not a spy.
I've known him for two years.
Okay, forget about that.
You know I'm mad at you, right?
We agreed you'd come back home for good, right?
What happened?
To be honest, I have two reasons.
What are they?
Reason number one,
Lamar's school.
She attends one of the best schools in the UK. I don't want to move her.
What they teach over there is the same as here. What's the matter with you?
Besides, there's no place like home.
Reason number two,
I just got a job at the university.
I study and research, and I have a great salary.
It's my dream job, Dad.
What about that guy you're marrying?
How can I check his background?
Didn't you tell me yesterday that you could read people?
-Yeah. -Well…
Why don't you read him?
Give him a chance.
Well… well…
You know what my biggest problem is?
-It's that I love you so much. -I love you too, Dad. I swear.
Okay, enough.
I'll see him once, but that's not a yes.
-Okay. -I'll just see him.
-Understood? -Yes.
-Just a meeting. -Nothing more.
-I'll just see him. -Okay.
-You understand? -Yes.
Okay, go now.
Thank you, Dad.
-Thank you. -Just go.
-Thank you. -Before I change my mind.
No! Bye.
SPY CHARACTERISTICS
Hey, Mona. Mona!
We can't both fight with her.
We need a plan. I have one.
Let them prove us wrong.
Fine.
-Meet the Pakistani. -Grandma.
-You can't call him "the Pakistani." -Why not? Isn't he a Pakistani?
True, he is a British Pakistani, but…
the way you say it is a bit offensive.
Speak Arabic, girl.
Okay, sit with him. I'll allow it. But on one condition.
That he magically becomes a Saudi?
Just like your mother.
After yesterday, let's give them time.
We don't have time.
Mom will understand. She had to move when she married Dad.
She won't be there anyway.
And my dad is really kind. He'll be easy.
Normally a thobe, but pants and a shirt will do.
You brought black pants and a white shirt, right? Wear those.
Peace be upon you.
And you too.
-Who are you? -Abdul Aziz, the driver.
-Are you Pakistani? -No. I'm British.
Yes, yes. Good for you.
-Abdul Aziz? -Yes.
-Is that your real name? Sure? -Of course. Yes.
Okay. Does the family treat you well?
-Yes. -Good.
Did they take your passport from you?
Sameer! Hurry up!
We can't keep Dad waiting.
Keep your answers short and straight to the point.
Let's do this.
Mr. Sameer,
each one of us has two questions.
I'll go first.
-Are you English or Pakistani? -Mama will go first.
Grandma.
I'm British, but my parents are from Pakistan.
They moved to the UK in the '70s, and they acquired citizenship.
The '70s.
If they revoke your citizenship, will you go to Pakistan?
He will report you to Human Rights, Grandma.
They would never revoke my citizenship.
Tell me, Sameer.
What kind of articles do you write as a journalist?
-Are you a real Muslim? -Mom! What kind of question is that?
That's the only question that's bothered you?
I'm Muslim.
I pray and fast, but I'm not too religious.
-Don't tell him what to say. -Yes, I'm religious.
Are you religious or not?
-We need to define "religious." -That's right.
Do you drink?
-Do you drink? -No!
-You drink? -Of course not! What's this?
I don't drink. I don't.
Show me your Instagram.
Hassan, give me your phone.
Once you're done here, Uncle Sofyan and I will pick up Baraa,
take him for a ride, then I'll go to Dad's.
Then take Uncle Sofyan and leave now.
Uncle Sofyan, shall we leave now?
Check it, Mother.
What? It's nothing.
He is at a bar but not drinking. Look, Dad.
Only his friends have drinks, not him.
-What? Are we supposed to stay home-- -All right, enough talking.
How many languages do you speak?
Urdu, Arabic, and English.
And German.
-German. -Yeah, just a bit of German. I'm rusty.
-Why didn't you bring your family here? -I wanted you guys to meet me first.
Do you drink every day?
I don't drink.
We said we don't.
-Make him swear. -Swear.
-I swear. -You swear to what?
I swear that I don't drink.
-That you don't drink what? -Sofyan, Sofyan!
-He was about to confess. -Confess to what?
Let us focus.
Who has your allegiance, Sameer?
Dad, Sameer isn't into politics. End of story.
Let me talk to the man. We can't go on like this.
Ask him something important. Like what his salary is.
I ask about what matters most.
What's your question, Uncle Hassan?
-How much is your salary? -That's very personal.
-What do you mean? -Answer.
Sameer,
if I'm proposing to someone,
and her family asks about my salary, I'd answer.
Forty thousand. Now, answer.
Answer.
…you left your family and moved to Jeddah with Uncle Hassan after getting married.
It must have been hard.
How nice. Who are you to give an opinion about my life?
It's not the same.
I never left my family. I talk to my sister every day.
When a person gets married, they might move with their new family.
Even when my sister lived outside Jeddah, I visited every two weeks.
And she moved to Jeddah for me. Now, I get to see her every other day.
-Mom. -I talk to her every day.
Okay, Mom. That's enough.
Listen, Sameer.
How much is your salary?
Thirty thousand Saudi riyals per month.
-Thank you. -That's his salary.
With both my income and Razan's, we can live anywhere in the world.
-Nice! -I knew it. He wants money.
Nice!
Nice. You're after the money?
You want money. Nice.
Uncle Hassan?
Can I help you?
Yes, I was actually looking for you.
I wanted you to come with me.
-Where? -To the market.
The market?
Yes, the vegetable market, that is.
Now, yeah?
Yesterday, you unintentionally let him in.
And now, you're taking him to the market unintentionally?
Grandma, his name is Sameer.
-You're taking that drunk to the market? -That's because you took my phone.
Oh, that reminds me. Here, take a look.
Open this account because I can't see clearly.
Her name is Tahany.
Tahany.
-Tahany is pretty, Mom. -God bless.
-Is her skin fair? -You're both fasting, right?
-Let's visit her. -Let's see the real picture.
Yeah. We'll go.
Tell your sister to come with us.
No, leave me out of this. Please.
You keep asking me for favors, to find you a nice bride,
and you ask me to do this and that.
And when I ask you to do one thing,
you refuse to do it?
Couldn't you ask for anything else?
I don't want to deal with her, Mom. Leave me out of it.
Sorry.
Why are you gloomy? I'll give him a second chance.
He's taking Sameer to the market.
-Seriously? The market? -Yes.
Why the market?
Because I'm going there. Come on, weren't you leaving?
What do you want to wear? A red shumagh? A white ghutrah?
Dad, should I wear red or white?
-I'll iron both. -Yeah.
And you wear whichever you prefer.
Sounds good.
Sofyan, Lamar, I'll go with you.
Don't forget me.
Okay.
-Do you want me to talk to him? -No. Take your mother with you.
-Will you come with us? -No.
Help me, God.
Why are you restless?
It's nothing. Shouldn't you be in the kitchen?
No, I'm not cooking today. I'll iron my son's clothes.
Yeah. Go iron.
-Something about you bothers me. -You're all bothering me. Go.
-Something is fishy. -Go.
HASSAN: FAROUK
FAROUK FROM INTERNAL AFFAIRS: HEY
RUN A BACKGROUND CHECK ON THIS MAN FOR ME
When did you last see Baraa?
-Lamar, you play basketball, right? -Yeah.
PSYCHO: DON'T COME TO THE HOUSE TO PICK UP BARAA
COME TO AL-YASMEEN MALL
Hey, boy.
Thank you.
-Thanks. -You're welcome.
From Sri Lanka! Wholesale prices! Welcome!
You were frustrated back there and didn't get to ask your questions.
Sharp observation.
Uncle Hassan, you know? Believe me…
Ask me any question.
I love Razan, and I can't live without her.
-Do you know why Razan got divorced? -I do.
Razan married her cousin, and they had nothing in common.
Her mother and I knew that the marriage wouldn't last.
Razan and I have a lot in common.
What I'm saying is that Razan insisted on marrying him.
Just like she's insisting now on marrying you.
I know that Razan is like any other girl.
She wants to love and be loved.
But in most cases, it's just…
a spark.
But after a while, it dies out, and she regrets it.
But she never learns. That's her. Dissent, and you'll be known.
Razan was young then.
That's right.
But even if you love each other,
this love will fade away with time.
You'll start yearning for your homelands, your families, traditions…
-My family is like yours. -I haven't seen your family.
We saw you.
And, Sameer, no offense, but you're nothing like us.
You have no problem with your wife spending money on you.
And you came alone, as if you have no family.
Are you willing to meet my family? They'd be happy to meet you.
Shall we move on?
You have things under the name Dareen?
-Okay, one moment. -Is she serious?
They're for Baraa.
Sofyan, if you allow this, she will always use you.
Yeah. I just want to see Baraa.
-Give it here. Don't meddle. -Yes, I will. You know why?
Because you're my only brother, and I care about you.
Okay.
We'll talk later.
Take this one. Stop it, Razan.
Pay for your son's items only.
Don't pay for her purse.
She wouldn't dare ask about it.
Well, okay. Fine.
Remove the purse.
Hi, welcome. How may I help you?
-I want a nice men's perfume. -A nice perfume for men?
-It's a gift, right? -Yeah.
What does this lucky guy like?
Right. Okay. What about his hobbies?
It seems you just met him, right?
No… He's my father.
All right.
I happen to have a special cologne for fathers. Give me a second.
You didn't have to ask him to come here. I could've given you a ride.
He said he was coming. I couldn't say no.
Sorry I'm late.
Here's your stuff.
Where's my son?
Where's the purse?
If you want to see Baraa, get me that purse.
Fine.
Dad is at the entrance. I'm going.
-Let me walk you there. -No need. I can go on my own.
Okay, bye.
Bye, sweetie. Have fun.
-He looks like you when you were little. -Really?
Hello! I've missed you, son! Your hair has grown. How are you?
Mom told me not to shake hands with anyone.
Do you want to go play?
Shall we?
-I'm your Aunt Razan. -The crazy one.
That's his mother, not me.
Come on. Let's go play.
Come here, buddy. I miss you so much.
I miss you so much.
Sofyan, I need your help.
Yeah.
-So that's why you came with me. -No.
-But I need you to talk to Mom. -I'm staying out of it.
Don't drag me into it. Okay?
As usual.
Listen, do whatever you can to please her.
I don't know how to please her.
She wants you to join us to check out a potential bride for me tonight.
A bride for you?
You just got a divorce, Sofyan. A new bride?
Really? Okay, my bad.
Fine, I'll come.
-I'll come. -Don't bother. Forget the Pakistani.
Lamar, this is your sister Fatima, "The Tomato," because of her big cheeks.
This is my wife Haneen. You remember her?
-Welcome. -My lovely daughter.
Are you playing with a flower? You want to play with Mom?
Yeah. I'll take her.
-We'll play with Lamar? -Bismillah.
-Come here. -We'll play with Lamar.
-Let's go. -Go to Mom.
Come here.
Ready?
I don't want to get out of the car.
Why, buddy?
-Mom will be angry. -With you? Why?
-I had great time with you today. -Oh, buddy…
I enjoyed our time even more.
Much more.
Look what I've got for you.
My dinosaur.
When are we going out again?
During Eid, I promise.
-You'll see Lamar too. -Okay.
That's my boy. Come on. Bismillah.
Come on. Here we go.
Razan?
Razan!
Where is that girl?
"We placed a barrier in front and behind, so they cannot see."
No, Sameer.
Why involve more people?
It will only complicate things. Let me handle it.
And here, take the plate from my hands.
If you try it, you'll listen to me.
Yeah, but no offense, honestly…
Well, it's almost the same name, it's fried, a Ramadan dish.
No, your filling has potatoes and peas, and your dough is thicker.
Anyway, Sameer.
Your father will not talk to my family yet. Deal?
Okay?
-Okay? -Yeah, okay.
-Thank you. Enjoy. Bye. -You're welcome.
Does he know it is impossible?
Honey, I literally told him, "This marriage is not going to happen."
Did you talk to your sister?
She said she's coming.
Really?
FAROUK FROM INTERNAL AFFAIRS
Peace be upon you.
His record is clean.
Thank God.
But who is this man?
He's just an employee at our company.
Hassan, you know you can't deny a foreigner their passport?
Yeah, sure. Of course.
If he reports you, it'd be a crime.
Of course.
Bye.
Dad, I got you a gift.
Oh, sweetheart. Let me see.
I love this cologne. How did you know?
Lamar? Give it to him, please.
Here.
Hold it from the top.
She didn't teach you how to drink coffee.
I like my coffee sweet too.
Mom.
Please, don't do that nose-rubbing sign. It was embarrassing last time.
Okay, but if you like her, give me a sign, and I'll give you her necklace.
How about I cough?
Cough, touch your head, or touch your neck.
Just give me any sign.
-But what if it's a real cough? -Sofyan.
Is something bothering you, Your Highness?
Are we in the 11th century? Just use WhatsApp.
"The 11th century."
She's here.
You shouldn't have, dear.
-Wow. God bless you. -Thank you.
Your mother says you divorced recently.
My son too. He also divorced recently.
What's with today's generation? Have they no patience?
-You're right. -They have awareness.
Where's our bride-to-be?
I'll go get Tahany in a minute.
Let's sit in the other room, so that they can have some privacy.
Sure, dear. Of course.
Please.
-Let's leave them to it. -Let's go.
-Mom, hold this. -Come in.
Who are you?
Ahmad.
They left to give us some privacy.
Since your brother is here to see Tahany,
we might as well sit and talk a little.
You didn't know?
-Your mother didn't tell you? -Yes, she did.
-So, you're the suitor? -Hopefully, yes.
Forget about my ex-wife. What do you do?
Was your divorce peaceful, or did you go to court?
-Actually, we went to court. -Did you get custody?
No. When asked, my son chose his mother.
-Ahmad, let's get straight to the point. -Great.
First of all, my career and my job are my first priority.
I'm a doctor, and I spend long hours at the hospital.
I want someone just as busy.
She wanted to have everything.
Everything.
She even wanted the furniture.
You did not want to give the furniture to the mother of your child?
That furniture is mine.
You're taking your old furniture to your new house?
I need furniture to remarry.
I'm very independent.
I have never depended on a man and never will.
-I love strong girls. -But I'm not a girl.
-I'm a woman. -I apologize.
You're right.
-I never ask for permission. -I don't live someone else's life.
I have a daughter.
I know. They told me.
You kept the furniture to annoy her.
No, there something you don't understand.
The furniture is mine.
And you're using it to annoy her.
I go out like this. I would never wear an abaya.
It's your right.
I'm engaged.
-I… -Could you pour me some coffee?
Well, this is a real problem.
Yeah.
Lamar, sweetie. I'm going to pray at the mosque.
When is your uncle coming?
He's on his way.
Lamar?
Your earrings are lovely.
Thank you.
But because they are lovely, and very attractive,
you must cover them.
LAMAR: UNCLE SOFYAN, COME PICK ME UP RIGHT NOW!!!
Lamar?
Tomorrow's Iftar is at Grandma Hayatt's. Would you like to come?
Also, it's Lina's birthday, daughter of your Aunt Joud.
Sameer.
-Peace be upon you. -And you too.
Will you meet my dad?
Of course. Come in, please.
I forgot something, just--
I'll be right back.
Peace be upon you, Dad.
-Peace be upon you. -Peace and blessings be upon you.
Is this unintentional too?
I'll never meet a potential bride with you two again.
You embarrassed me.
My father-in-law.
What are they doing here?
He said he's never been to Mecca.
Their faith is not genuine.
Roxana, I was right.
-What? -Uncle Ghulam. Sameer.
Dad…
-He says she's from a different culture. -True.
Hassan, tell him we don't approve of this marriage.
-Tell him, Hassan. -Okay.
What?
He says Razan is dominant.
-No, she is. True. -He's right.
Tell him that she'll make him her slave, right at her command.
Enough.
-What is he saying? -Sofyan, don't.
-What did he say? -No, Sofyan.
-Should I tell her? -He said your daughter proposed to him.
She's my daughter now?
What is he saying?
"Why would you marry someone whose people think less of you,
when you're a catch here in the UK?"
So, now we're not good enough.
A huge embarrassment.
Look who's talking. The queen of embarrassment herself!