Known for Acting
Ayam el Derasa or School Days is a Syrian Series created by Talal Mardini.
During the period of the French occupation of Syria, the events of the series revolve around As'ad AlWarraq, an orphan, illiterate, poor young man who is pushed by circumstances between various paradoxes, between false accusations and the injustice of his neighborhood people towards him.
In one of the slums, a group of intertwined stories revolve around residents whose movement may extend outside this neighborhood due to work or study, and their fates intersect with the paths of some characters from other neighborhoods of the city.
Having spent most of her 20s taking care of her sick mother and her family's household, a sexually repressed woman elopes and has to face the hypocrisies of middle eastern society.
The show tells the story of a playwright, Jalal, who holds secular views, and his close friendship with Michel, his childhood friend. Michel initially worked as a lawyer but later transitioned to journalism, founding his own magazine in which he boldly addresses societal issues, drawing significant criticism. Additionally, the narrative explores themes of separating religion from civil and political life through a love story between a man and a woman from different faiths: Jalal (a Muslim) and Hanan (a Christian). Their relationship culminates in a secret marriage, which lasts until Jalal’s sudden passing. Throughout the story, the work focuses on two major issues related to secularism: the demand for a civil personal status law that permits civil marriage, and the call for a secular education system that allows students the freedom to seek their own truths instead of being indoctrinated with a predetermined "absolute truth." It also tackles issues of political and social corruption.
The events of the work take place in the city of Aleppo in the early 1950s. The work deals with the issue of disagreement between enlightened thought and puritan thought, between two brothers because of a beautiful love story within the framework of Aleppo customs and traditions in that period.
Nader is lost between his parents, who are experiencing a struggle between love and hate, Lulia, who is persecuted by her stepmother, Dalal, whose hatred for her stepdaughter reaches the point of attempting murder. Dalal considers Lulia the reason for her unhappiness, but when Lulia leaves her life, she discovers her mistake. Tahseen her husband can only run away from problems and cannot solve any of them.
The series monitors the social, political and cultural life in Syria from the period 1932 to 1936, where the events take place in two neighboring areas: the city of Aleppo, and a supposed rural area called Kom alHajar.
The Halaby family works in trade. When the father decides to write all his property over to one of his sons, the two brothers clash, until the eldest brother falls ill, and his younger son is forced to give up his ambition to take care of their business.
