Shouikar Veteran actress Shouikar said she refused more than 40 series in one year out of respect for herself and her long career, saying "it is not only a matter of money." Shouikar said in an interview with 'Arabstoday': "There is often no respect for the history of great artists, and they do not try to give the artist enough to stop them from presenting poor work only to make a living...screenwriters themselves are going the same way as senior actors, as they put the actor in small and non-central roles, that does not acknowledge or respect the career of the actor."
"There is no interest but to polish the star of the work, and this is a big mistake, it is wrong to put all the efforts of the series or the film only to serve the hero or the heroine...there must be other pivotal roles, to establish the drama, away from the protagonists," she said.
About her apology for not attending this year's Alexandria Film Festival, Shouikar said that this was not the time for honours but work, especially considering the current atmosphere in Egypt. "I wonder why the Cairo Film Festival, the largest festival in Egypt, has not been held this year while we're holding the Alexandrian film festival , which is less important?" she said, stating that she did not need another award beside the many others she already has.
"My real honour is to see the best for Egypt," she said.
Shouikar denied regretting any of her work, as she did not partake in a film unless she was completely satisfied with it. She said that she and her contemporaries enjoyed a different and beautiful way of performing in the "golden days", and they dealt with work ethically, which was consistent with her artistic culture, and this combination led the artist to focus in choosing their work.
Regarding her collaboration with director Khaled Youssef in his film "Call Me Please" she said she wanted to deal with the youth generation
"I adore Khaled Youssef and was hoping to work with him, and will play any role directed by him...his films are good and successful, and I like his way of thinking," she smiled.
Shouikar denied that she was considering an autobiography, saying she was just an actress and away from her career, and did not have secrets or adventures to share.
The actress told 'Arabstoday' about"El Shahroura" about the great Lebanese singer and actress Sabah, noting that "the series left out many parts of her life, like her stories with ministers and ambassadors, as well as her life in Egypt and Lebanon, and where is the history of these countries at that time? Was the life of Sabah just about marriages and divorces?"
She likens the instance to that of Leila Murad, which also presented poorly according to Shouikar. The series, according to her, does not represent the life of the great artist, and she refused to accept that there was any resemblance between actress Safaa Sultan, who played the role of Leila Murad, and the great artist herself.
The only autobiographical series that is worth considering, in her view, is "Asmahan", both in terms of Sulaf Fawakherji's acting in the title role, as well as the production, directing, and the content, truly reflecting the life of Asmahan as a great artist.