On this week’s bonus episode, Fatenn Mostafa Kanafani tells me about her work in documenting, codifying, and cataloging her research in art. She’s contributed a chapter in Daughters of the Nile, authored Modern Art in Egypt, and is now working on a third book.

This episode is brought to you by ⁠EFG Hermes One⁠, your one app for investing in more than 35 stock markets worldwide.

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Fatenn Mostafa Kanafani has led a life full of twists and turns. Her career trajectory has seen her go from being a successful marketer with Procter & Gamble to being instrumental in the success of the relaunch of Ahram Beverages, leading to its eventual sale to Heineken in 2002.

Fatenn then turned her attention to modern Egyptian art and launched Art Talks, a gallery as well as a forum for discussion on all aspects of art. She is now working on a third book in a trilogy looking at Egyptian modern art and artists. She talks to me in great detail about the threads connecting art, politics, and her identity in shaping who she is today.

This episode is brought to you by EFG Hermes One, your one app for investing in more than 35 stock markets worldwide. Download EFG Hermes One on the App Store or Google Play Store and start investing today!

On a bonus episode out next week, I talk to Fatenn about her work in documenting, codifying, and cataloging her research in art. She's contributed a chapter in the book Daughters of the Nile, authored Modern Art in Egypt, and is now working on a third book. You can find out all about this on the bonus episode, so stay tuned.

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On today’s episode, I’m reconnecting with pioneering Arab designer, Nadine Kanso, founder of jewellery brand BilArabi. Nadine tells me what’s been happening since our last conversation two years ago, including her partnership with Berluti, and staying authentic in an influencer-dominated world online.

This episode is part of our special series, What I Did Next Encore, where I check-in with some of your favourite alumni guests. We’ll continue this series each month with more of the show’s alumni, so stay tuned. And if you haven’t already done so, you can also listen to my Encore conversations with Omar Samra, Nada Debs and Ahmed Alfi.

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We’re continuing my conversation with award-winning ad director and filmmaker Omar Hilal. This week, he tells me about three key projects: the hilarious Aqua Mangos ad, the ground-breaking Royal Jordanian Ad and a sneak-peek into his upcoming film.

You can listen to my full episode with Omar Hilal where he tells me about his life’s pivots, starting out as a photojournalist to award-winning ad director to filmmaker: https://listen.amaeya.fm/widn-omar-hilal

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I’m delighted to be joined by award-winning ad director & filmmaker Omar Hilal as this month’s guest. Omar is one of those people who discovered that he wanted to become a director very early in life. He started out as a photo-journalist and went on to become an accomplished ad director, with stand-out ads such as the Aqua Mangos ad for Nestle and the ground-breaking Royal Jordanian Ad in his portfolio. The ads he’s worked on have won more than 50 awards, including 5 Grand Prix.

In 2023, he switched gears to release his directorial debut, Voy! Voy! Voy!, which went on to win 16 awards globally and was Egypt’s official selection to the Oscars.

Listen in as he tells me about his life’s twists and turns from ad-man to film director and everything in between.

This episode is brought to you by EFG Holding, a financial institution with a universal bank in Egypt and the leading investment bank in the Middle East and North Africa.

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This week, I’m joined by Rawya Mansour, Chairwoman of RAMSCO Egypt and Oasis Technologies Monaco, for a special episode as part of our collaboration with The Narrative Summit 2025.

Rawya is a pioneer of sustainable development and regenerative agriculture, including shifting away from chemical polymer fertilisers towards green charcoal. We’ll get into the pivotal moments that led her on this journey as well as her involvement with The Narrative Summit.

The theme for the 2025 edition of The Narrative Summit is Egypt reset – to redefine Egypt’s global standing by showcasing its economic resilience, investment potential and cultural dynamism. The summit will focus on three key pillars—Financial accessibility, Tourism and hospitality, and the sports ecosystem. The Narrative summit will take place from April 7 to 9 against the breathtaking backdrop of Somabay on the Red Sea coast.

You can follow me on Instagram for coverage from the event, and I’ll also be moderating a panel on the 8th of April.

I’ll be back with a new guest next week, see you then!

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I’m excited to share a special episode from the podcast, Gems of Arabia about Arab Representation in Media. The episode, hosted by WIDN alum Hatem Al Akeel, was recorded a few weeks ago at the CNN Academy in Abu Dhabi in front of a live audience of the Academy’s latest cohort of budding journalists.

We were joined by another WIDN alum Becky Anderson, Managed Editor of CNN Abu Dhabi and Arab News’ Editor-in-Chief Faisal Abbas.

This was a great conversation about breaking stereotypes, how Arab voices are represented, and the importance of re-shaping and owning our narrative on the world stage. I hope you find the conversation as insightful as I did.

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We’re continuing my conversation with interior architect Nouf Al Moneef, Director of the Noor Riyadh festival. On today’s episode, Nouf tells me about the evolution of Noor Riyadh, why they chose light as a theme in addition to art, as well as about her own design aesthetic.

You can find the first part of my conversation with Nouf in your podcast app as well as on YouTube.

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Nouf Al Moneef is an interior architect and the Director of the Noor Riyadh festival, which falls under the larger umbrella of the Riyadh Art Project. Noor Riyadh has now welcomed more than 3 million visitors and hosted artworks by hundreds of Saudi, regional and international artists.

Nouf also continues to help grow the conversation about art and design on social media, although she is not a fan of the word influencer. Nouf has garnered a huge following and has had an obvious impact on how the KSA is perceived and she is a wonderful ambassador for culture, the arts and her country as a whole.

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We’re continuing my conversation with actor Khalid Abdalla this week, going behind the curtain into his solo play, Nowhere. I saw the play when I was in the UK last October and was personally moved by his performance.

On this episode, Khalid tells me about the journey that led to him writing Nowhere, and the impact of his work.

On a bonus episode for members out next week, we’ll dig into his process as an actor, and how he prepared for his role as Dodi Fayed on The Crown. If you haven’t tuned in, you can also catch the first part of my conversation with Khalid in your podcast app.

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