Thuriya Salem

An Egyptian dancer who appeared with musician Farid al-Atrash in a love letter and the tune of eternity. She became famous in the 1950s. She was born on June 5, 1928, and joined the nuns’ school in Ezbet al-Nakhl. When her father died, the family left their home and resided in a small house on Jami’ al-Banat Street in the Bab al-Khalq neighborhood, very close to Muhammad Ali Street. From here, Soraya Salem began to look at a world that she had never seen before. A famous wedding artist named Firdous Al-Zumar was residing in the house opposite hers, and she would often see her meeting with her band and singing with them in preparation for the weddings and parties that they held. One day she was dancing to the tunes of her favorite song, Take the Answer from My Eyes, and the scholar Firdaws al-Zumar was watching her from the window. As soon as she finished her dance, she found Firdaws al-Zumar, applauding her warmly, and this was the first time anyone had applauded her. Firdaus went to her mother to ask her to join Soraya in her troupe to teach her the basics of dancing, and indeed her mother agreed to help her through the difficult living conditions, especially since they were without a breadwinner after the death of the head of the family. Soraya Salem moved from one band to another, larger band, and the first salary she received was one pound. In 1947, she went to perform for Farah, the daughter of the then Prime Minister, Hussein Pasha Sirri. King Farouk and his wife, Queen Farida, were invited to the party. In the summer of 1950, she was celebrating a wedding, and director Hassan Al-Imam, who had been invited to this celebration, went to her to express his admiration for her dancing and offered her 50 pounds for one dance through the movie “An Hour for Your Heart” with the great artist Shadia and the artist Kamal El-Shenawy. She flew with happiness to participate with the great artist Shadia, and this was her real beginning in cinema. At one of the parties held at the Baron Palace in Heliopolis, the great director Elhamy Hassan saw her. He was looking for a dancer to travel to the city of Deauville in France at the time, so he offered her to travel to France to participate in a major show within one of his works for 300 pounds. She agreed immediately, and this was the first time she had traveled to a European country. Since that time, the name of Soraya Salem has become prominent in the world of dance until the great artist Farid Al-Atrash nominated her to participate in the reviews of the film “A Love Letter” and the film “Melody of Eternity.”