DUBAI: For Malek Rahbani, the performing arts are not just a passion. It is the family business, and the Lebanese actor is bringing it to the US.
As the grandson of Mansour Rahbani, the Lebanese composer, musician, and producer and one half of the Rahbani brothers, he grew up surrounded by artists, music, and poetry.
The 27-year-old’s interest in entertainment was almost inevitable, but as Rahbani reveals, his grandfather advised the younger members of the family against the entertainment industry.
“I wouldn’t say discouraged us, but he wanted us to do something different because he knew how hard it was to succeed in this business. They wanted us to be doctors, to become engineers. But in their hearts of hearts I think they knew that we always wanted to pursue the arts.”
While the Rahbani entertainment dynasty has included many famous arts such as singer Fairuz and musician and playwright Ziad Rahbani, stardom is not guaranteed for family members just starting out. Just as the original Rahbani’s did, everyone is required to start at the bottom and work their way up.
“We had to start just by being an extra without having any speaking roles,” said Rahbani about his early theatrical performances with his family. “That was amazing for me because in some roles I have had to play the king. I played the peasant. I played the soldier.”
With the experience of a wide variety of roles under his belt, Rahbani went on to an early career in TV playing Tiger on “Chawareh Al-Zill” and co-writing and acting in the series “Jungle Law Shariaat Al-Ghab” which he worked on with his brothers, Mansour and Tarek. Soon, he will be spreading his family’s legacy in the West by playing the title role in “Jacir.”
He said: “‘Jacir’ tells the story of Jacir, a Syrian boy who has become an orphan because of the war, and he goes to America, Memphis, Tennessee, as a refugee. He starts discovering his new life and how difficult it may be for him because he has his own traditions and his own atrocities that he has experienced during the war.”
The film is the brainchild of American Jordanian writer-director Waheed Al-Qawasmi and co-stars US actress Lorraine Bracco — from HBO’s “The Sopranos” and Martin Scorsese’s “Goodfellas” — as Meryl, an American woman with whom Jacir initially clashes and eventually befriends.
“The message of the film is that you know no matter what your religion is, what language you speak, your nationality, each and every one of us deep down inside are the same,” Rahbani added.
“We feel the same. We experience love, the same fear. I think it is a very humanistic story. I think it’s going to be really something beautiful.”
“Jacir” will begin filming on location in Memphis once health and safety officials allow production to resume after the coronavirus disease outbreak.
In the meantime, Rahbani said he would not be slowing down, and would continue writing new scripts and working on a second book to follow his 2016 anthology, “IMAGES: A Personal Evolution of the Mind.” He credits this work ethic to his father, Marwan.
“My father always taught me and still teaches me to be my very best at everything I do, to be completely dedicated, always be passionate, always listen to what the directors and the people that I’m working with offer me because their input is extremely important. I’m just truly blessed at having him in my life and learning from him every day.”
Just as his family inspired, instructed, and supported him and his brothers, he hopes to one day pass on the lessons to the next generation of the Rahbani entertainment dynasty.
“I feel very privileged and blessed to be part of this beautiful family that has embraced the arts in so many ways and that continues to embrace the arts,” he said.
“I always dream of becoming a father and would love that my children do what they like. If they wanted to pursue the arts, I would do everything in my power to help them just like my parents helped me.”
