The film “The Wall of Azbakeya” by director Muhammad Al-Dahi is a sober attempt to interrogate time, place, and memory. Although time does not go further than the revolution of July 23, 1952, it points to the greatness of Egypt and its cultural, artistic and urban civilization.
Perhaps “Al-Azbakeya Wall” itself represents an Egyptian cultural landmark firmly entrenched in the Egyptian and Arab collective memory alike, by virtue of its association with writers, intellectuals, readers, and students, starting from kindergartens, passing through institutes and universities, and ending with postgraduate students, as they visit this intimate place to obtain books, newspapers, magazines, and sources. The old ones they need. Rather, this market meets children's need for entertainment magazines at low prices that do not burden poor families with additional financial expenses.
The film deals with the time periods that passed through the Azbakeya wall after the revolution of July 23, 1952, the problems it faced during the five presidential eras that followed the fall of the regime of King Farouk I, and the difficulties faced by bookstore owners in order to obtain old books and practice this cultural profession. And cognitive par excellence, over a period of seventy years or more.
The director chose six main characters, including Uncle Harbi, the bookseller in Sur al-Azbakeya, the journalist Helmi Namnem, the researcher and writer Shaaban Youssef, the journalist Hossam Mustafa Ibrahim, Hani al-Tarabili, founder of the “Arab Comics” website, and the novelist Malaka Badr.
Book sellers place their books and magazines on the wall of Azbakeya Park, from which the book market takes its name
Although the appearance of the speakers varied between one appearance, as is the case with the novelist Malaka Badr, or ten appearances, as is the case with the journalist Helmi Nemnem, the six speakers expressed what was going through their glowing minds and their hearts filled with love and nostalgia for the Azbakeya wall, which resides in the memories of all Egyptians and Arabs. .
Uncle Harbi, the grandson of an illiterate man, loved the profession of selling books and was attached to it
Uncle Harbi recalls the past, and talks about his grandfather, who was an illiterate man, but he loved the profession of selling books and was attached to it. Due to his passion for this profession, he fled from Upper Egypt to Cairo, and entered an auction worth 3 thousand pounds, which he won in the end. Newspapers and magazines were busy photographing him. Even Al-Ahram newspaper published a picture of him every year on Science Day, carrying three “stacks” of books, with funny comments indicating his illiterate grandfather’s attachment to this cultural profession, which he loved to the utmost and was interested in its small details.
Uncle Harbi browses a book inside the book stall, which contains thousands of rare books and magazines
The seller would take a group of books and walk around with them in cafés, in order to promote his goods, which were acquired by Cairo’s intellectuals at that time. It is not difficult for the street seller to recognize an educated or educated person who is fond of reading, as he wears a formal uniform of a full suit and tie, and often He smokes a shisha, or holds a tombac in one hand and a book he is reading in the other.
The street vendors considered these cafés their market in which they marketed their wares, and they were mostly acquired by those readers who frequented the cafés near the “Azbekiya Wall” located in front of the Royal Opera House. Then the matter gradually developed, and the sellers began displaying their old books on the stone wall, sitting under the shade of the lush trees, and selling their books to passers-by who were browsing the books and buying what they liked or what caught their attention.
Backfilling of Barakat Al-Azbekia... A new Cairo that revitalizes the book trade
Journalist Helmy Nemnem delves into the origin of this area, and says that Azbakeya was not originally a residential area, but rather a water pool, and Cairo at that time was full of water pools that were considered closer to parks for the people of Cairo, and Azbakeya was one of the most important of these pools in which people lived nearby. Including some Mamluks.
When Cairo developed in the nineteenth century, and when Khedive Ismail came, he decided to build modern Cairo. The Azbakeya Pool was filled in and the Azbakeya Park was built in its place, and a group of rare trees were imported from all over the world. These trees remained erect until recently, and then a group of theaters were built in this park, attracting singers and artists at the beginning of the twentieth century.
An old photo of Azbakeya Park with rare trees
When Cairo developed in the nineteenth century, and when Khedive Ismail came, he decided to build modern Cairo. The Azbakeya Pool was filled in and the Azbakeya Park was built in its place, and a group of rare trees were imported from all over the world. These trees remained erect until recently, and then a group of theaters were built in this park, attracting singers and artists at the beginning of the twentieth century.
When printing spread in Egypt at the beginning of the twentieth century, and printed books became food for many intellectuals, writers, and scholars, street vendors began their promotional profession and displayed their wares to café patrons who were impatiently awaiting new books.
As for researcher and writer Shaaban Youssef, he believes that the most widespread things are well-known periodicals or magazines. Features of development and urbanization began to appear in Azbakeya, such as the construction of the Royal Opera House and the construction of a number of cafes, the most famous of which is the “Matatia” cafe, which was frequented by Jamal al-Din al-Afghani in the 1860s and many others. Some sellers were tempted to spread out their books after touring this area, and they discovered It is acquired by intellectuals, and the number of sellers doubles day after day.
The upscale Azbakeya area during Bonaparte’s campaign against Egypt
Uncle Harbi recalls that when he was six years old, he used to walk along Hamdi Seif al-Nasr Street, see the National Theater, and see the magnificent Azbakeya libraries as far as the eye could see. The state maintained the general appearance of the place, as pashas, beauties, and great intellectuals attended it.
The July Revolution...the beginning of the authorities’ interest in culture and arts
Shaaban Youssef - a well-known writer and poet who has etched his name in the Egyptian cultural scene - returns to monitor the way in which the sellers of “Sur Al-Azbakeya” behaved during the stages of conflict between the authority at that time and the people. The seller sensed this feeling and displayed political books by Muhammad Al-Tabei, Mustafa Amin, and Fikri Abaza. Fathi Radwan and Ahmed Al-Sayed, and the sellers were able to discover the importance of the political book.
In the early fifties, matters heated up between the authorities and the people until the Great Cairo Fire occurred in January 1952. It had started in the center of the country, and had affected a large amount of the Azbakeya Market, but after the fire the vendors returned again, and then the July Revolution occurred, which paid attention Great for culture and arts.
After the July 1952 revolution, Abdel Nasser ordered the construction of the Azbakeya wall in the form of kiosks
Uncle Harbi glorifies the revolution of July 23, 1952 and the rise of leader Gamal Abdel Nasser to power. He ordered that the library kiosks be made of wood. He mentions that Abdel Nasser used to come to Al-Azhar Mosque in a convertible car, walk on Hamdi Saif Al-Nasr Street, and pass in front of the libraries. They were standing on chairs to see him, and his father was carrying him on his shoulders, until Uncle Harbi imagined that his hand had touched Gamal Abdel Nasser’s hand.
Books of surahs... a refuge for forbidden works and a storehouse for bankrupt libraries
Hilmi Namnem describes booksellers as simple citizens, most of whom were students who did not complete their education and took up this profession, or people who loved books who were passionate about this profession or attached to it. It is noteworthy that many writers used to frequent the Al-Azbakeya wall, and one time Al-Mazni wrote an article about his experience with the wall, and he went back to old magazines from the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s.
Helmy Namnem, a journalist and pioneer of the Azbakeya wall
He is not revealing a secret when he says that the reader could have acquired an important book for one penny, and this price was not available in publishing houses. The book “Al-Hilal” was sold for 8 piasters, the book “Today” for 15 piasters, and the books “Zahrat Al-Ma’arif” ranged between 20-30 piasters. A piaster, and may reach 70-80 piasters.
Uncle Harbi recalls his memories of the Azbakeya Wall, and says that great people used to visit this wall. One time, he stood in front of Naguib Mahfouz and asked him: You write novels such as “Qasr Al-Shouq”, “Bain Al-Qasrain” and “Al-Sukkariyya”, so why do you buy philosophy books and what is the relationship between them? The novel with philosophy? He smiled, put his hand on his head, and said to him, “When you grow up, you will know.”
When any publishing house stops, or declares bankruptcy, its stores automatically move to the Azbakeya wall
My dream stops at the era of the seventies, in which the Azbakeya market flourished, not because of economic openness, but rather with the arrival of Sadat, who declared his hostility to the left, and all leftist books moved to the wall.
When the Soviet Union fell and the Russian Cultural Center was closed, all its books were automatically transferred to the Al-Azbekiya Wall, and when any publishing house ceased, declared bankruptcy, or ceased its activity for any reason, its stores would automatically move to the wall’s dealers and sellers. If the reader needs a specific book and cannot find it in all the libraries of Cairo or the Arab world, he can find it in Surat Al-Azbakeya.
A meeting place for writers, artists, and public figures...an exceptional place
Perhaps the memories of Uncle Harbi constitute rich material in this film, as he refers to the beauty of the Azbakeya Wall and its distinctive mark, and provides several examples, including a reference to a quote from the book “The Search for Self” by Anwar Sadat, in which he says: I was fond of reading, and I hunted for books from the Azbakeya Wall. Every time I go to Cairo.
But Uncle Harbi began to complain about his limited means, due to random and unplanned movements. It tired the sellers and made them complain about the hardship of life, to the point that he hated the profession that he had loved for many years.
Uncle Harbi, one of the oldest booksellers in Sur Al Azbakeya
Researcher, poet, and critic Shaaban Youssef had an important experience in Sur al-Azbekiya. During his secondary school years, he tried to approach bookstores, not only to buy books, but he also tried to see some writers such as Taha Hussein, Al-Aqqad, and Muhammad Abdel Halim Abdullah.
When he asked about some books, they advised him to go to the Azbakeya Wall. His first visit was in the early seventies, and he discovered that books and magazines were very cheap, and that there were many different books that transformed the Wall into a magical world or Ali Baba’s Cave, in which he found what he had not found in the other. Any popular library.
Shaaban Youssef, researcher, poet, critic, and one of the pioneers of Sur al-Azbekiya
Shaaban’s relationship with the Azbakeya Wall was not limited to that of a seller and a buyer, because he himself worked on the wall, benefited greatly from it, and learned archiving from the artists’ agent who woke up in the morning, opened the newspapers, looked at them, and examined them every day. He was archiving for ten artists, including Faten Hamama and Hind Rostom. Nadia Lotfy, and other bright names in the sky of Egyptian art.
The collapse of the wall... libraries with a history in vain
Helmy Namnem talks about the collapse of the Azbakeya wall in the late 1980s, when the features of the place changed. The Cairo Governorate decided to demolish the old Opera House and build a multi-storey garage in its place. Badia Masabni Café, which is considered an artistic and cultural place, was also demolished and a large market was built in its place.
A building for public parking is built on the land of the Azbakeya wall for ancient books
Then the great catastrophe happened, when the Cairo Governorate decided to complete the second leg of the metro train that moves from Ramses to Ataba, passing through Tahrir. It was necessary to dig under the Azbakeya area, and this led to fatal mistakes being committed, the first of which was demolishing the Matatya Café, and the second was cutting down all the trees. Which was imported by Khedive Ismail from abroad, and the third was the complete removal of the wall. The governorate was not satisfied with what it did, but sent mechanisms to remove all the beautiful kiosks that people used to see and frequent to buy books and magazines.
Helmy Namnem praises the initiative of Dr. Samir Sarhan, head of the Egyptian General Book Authority, when he suggested that booksellers be invited to stand on the Nile Corniche in front of the headquarters of the Book Authority and Dar al-Kutub, in an attempt to save the wall.
The governorate demolishes the Azbakeya wall in order to build a car bridge
But the Governor of Cairo, Major General Omar Abdel Akhir, who issued the order to remove the wall, rejected the idea and said that it was not within the jurisdiction of Dr. Samir Sarhan and the General Book Authority, because the Corniche area is under the jurisdiction of the governor, so it was agreed with the Cairo International Book Fair to allocate a specific space for them annually with reduced rents, in which they sell books and officially attend every annual fair.
Azbakeya sellers...a portal to rescue readers searching for lost books
Journalist Hossam Mustafa believes that the Azbakeya Wall represents a gateway to the rescue of thousands of readers who go to the book fair annually, and they go to the place designated for the wall, because they find all the old books they are looking for at cheap prices. There are even new editions of recently published books at reduced prices, which solves the problem of confusion. the reader.
Hani Al-Tarabili - the founder of the Arab Comics website - heard about Al-Azbekiya Wall through the stories of his father, Abbas Al-Tarabili, a newspaper writer. He had told him that this wall was a place designated for selling old books and magazines, and when he inquired about the place, they told him that it was in the Ataba area, so he went there. He was surprised by dozens of stalls, which dazzled him and made him regret that he had been so late in visiting this amazing place of knowledge.
Hani Al-Tarabili, founder of the Arab Comics website
Hani was looking for the missing issues of “Samir” magazine, and he found them at one of the book dealers. He had bought them from Dar Al-Hilal when it emptied one of its stores and sold all the books and magazines stored in it. This means that book sellers always know the required goods that readers need. And they do their best to meet it.
The Egyptian novelist Malaka Badr has a good relationship with the sellers of Soor Al-Azbakeya, such as Uncle Harbi. She has known him for many years, and he knows, with his accumulated experience, which book you are looking for, and if he does not have the book available, he will guide you on how to obtain the desired book.
She once needed the novel “Great Expectations” by Charles Dickens, and she hesitated to ask Uncle Harbi for fear that he would not be one of those who knew the English language, like many salesmen who had not completed their studies. When she mentioned the name “Charles Dickens,” he told her that the novel What she was looking for was “Great Expectations.” Then he asked her, “Do you want the old copy or the new one?”
Malaka Badr is an Egyptian novelist who believes that she owes much of her intellectual and cultural formation to Sur al-Azbakeya
Malika Badr considers herself to be indebted to Sur al-Azbakeya for her intellectual and cultural formation, and that if she had relied only on modern books, she would not have reached this mental development that she has now.
Critic Shaaban Youssef reinforces Malika Badr’s opinion, saying that booksellers know the value of the book, when it was published, the number of editions, and the difference between one edition and another. For example, the book “Imani” by Ahmed Hussein, which was published in 1936, is different from the book that was published in the eighties, and the book dealer knows this. Differences well.
Journalist Helmy Namnem points out the book photography service that has appeared in recent years and was not known before, as the seller can photograph the requested book, bind it, and present it to the reader. Because of this feature, Western researchers began to flock to the Azbakeya wall and search for specific types of old books and magazines.
The January Revolution...an ambiguous political climate that changes reading trends
Journalist Hossam Mustafa believes that the Azbakeya Wall continued to perform its well-known role until the revolution of January 25, 2011 occurred, and changed many things. Director Mohamed Al-Dahi presents a part of President Hosni Mubarak’s speech in which he says: “Fellow citizens, I speak to you in difficult times,” and then we hear the news of his relinquishing the position of President of the Republic.
Hossam says that the biggest concern after the revolution became following political events, while interest in many things, including reading, declined, and the focus was on political books in an attempt to understand what was going on in light of the ambiguity that dominated the general atmosphere, which reduced going to the Azbakeya Wall.
After the 2011 revolution, following political events increased and interest in reading declined
Uncle Harbi asks the Cairo Governorate to develop the book market and recognize the importance of books, and given this distress he feels, he did not teach his children this profession so that they would not be involved in it in the future.
My dream is that today's seller has changed from yesterday's seller, and that the buyer and the goods have also changed, and that the state of intimacy that existed previously has changed and no longer exists now.
As for Hani Al-Tarabili, he believes that textbooks have invaded the wall, and he sees this invasion as a positive case for the continuation of this industry, which provides the book dealer with a decent living.
Hani Al-Tarabili, founder of the Arab Comics website, wanders around the Azbakeya market
Uncle Harbi distinguishes between the old customer who reads everything, and the contemporary reader who is looking for novels that he should have read ten years ago. When ten young people come to him looking for the book “People of the Cave” by Tawfiq al-Hakim, he will know intuitively that this book is in demand, and that it must be made available to readers, because he feels happy whenever it meets the reader’s need.
“A piece of Egypt’s history, culture, mind and conscience”
Hossam Mustafa believes that people are fighting for a living, and do not find enough time to go to the Azbakeya wall to search for an old book. Also, the spread of PDF has allowed readers to find many old and modern books within ten minutes, and you can read them online. Laptop or mobile phone while you are on the street or anywhere else.
He says that the trade in “fake books” has found its way to the reader, so instead of buying the book for 50 pounds, you can buy a poor edition that does not cost you more than 10 pounds. He criticizes the greed of some publishing house owners who set high prices, making the book out of everyone's reach.
The Azbakeya Wall will remain a piece of Egypt’s history, culture, mind and conscience
Director Muhammad Al-Dhahi concludes his film with extensive opinions from four speakers. For Uncle Harbi, the fence represents “his age, his childhood, his youth, and his intimate memories.” As for Helmy Nemnem, he sees it as “a piece of Egypt’s history, culture, mind and conscience.” Researcher Shaaban Youssef believes that it is “Egypt’s living and vibrant memory that will never go away.” While Hani Al-Tarabili sees it as “a cultural cycle that connects the old with the new, and the sellers with different readers from Egypt.”