The Egyptian Censorship Board has protested the title of actor Ashraf Abdul Baqi’s latest movie Shai Min El Farah (Some Sort of Happiness), saying that it resembles one of Egypt’s most famous movies, Shai Min El Khawf (Some Sort of Fear) starring Mahmoud Mursi and Shadia.
In an interview with ‘Al Sharq El Awsat’ daily, Abdul Baqi said that he has made an agreement with the head of the Board, Madkour Thabet, to find a midway solution to the problem. The two decided to get the written consent of the writer of Shai Min El Khawf, Tharwat Abatha.
Baqi also said that the two movies are very different and do not resemble each other in the least.
Meanwhile, the censorship boards have currently gone down hard on the movie industry due to the implementation of the new Intellectual Property Rights law.
Earlier this year, actor Ala Wallieddine was subjected to the same problem when the board protested against Al Nather Salaheddine. They argued that the title is very similar to that of another famous oldie, Al Naser Salah Eddine. In that incident, the board won and the title was changed to Al Nather (The Teacher).
However, in the international arena, the IPR laws dictate that a patented name may not be used. It does not state that a name close to the one patented is also illegal – Albawaba.com.
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