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Join on Telegram Khan, 73, was one of Egypt’s most important filmmakers. Along with Daoud Abdel Sayed, Yousri Nasrallah and Atef Tayeb, he belonged to a generation of “neo-realists” that changed the face of Egyptian cinema, particularly during the 1980’s.
Among his most known and acclaimed films are El Harreef (The Street Player, 1984), Zawgat Ragol Mohem (The Wife of an Important Man, 1987) and Ahlam Hind wa Camilia (Dreams of Hind and Camilia, 1988). All of them were listed among the 100 Greatest Arab Films of All Time at the Dubai International Film Festival in 2013.
His movies were always character-driven stories that looked particularly at the oppression of Egyptian women, political struggles and social conflicts.
His latest work, “Before the Summer Crowds”, screened at the 12th Dubai International Film Festival in December 2015 and was released in 2016. A lot of controversy rose around the film due to some “audacious” scenes shot in a Bikini.
Born in Cairo in 1942 to an Egyptian mother and a Pakistani father, Khan grew up in Egypt before travelling to London in his early 20’s to study cinema at the London International Film School. He was granted Egyptian citizenship in 2014, after being rejected for many years.
