Huda Hussain: Cherished Memories, Her Remarkable Projects

For more than 40 years, Huda Hussain has worked in the entertainment industry as she starred in television series and plays. She started working at a young age, but she became a household name and gained the admiration of children in Kuwait and in the GCC when she played Laila in 1988 in the Arabic adaption of “Little Red Riding Hood,” “Laila and the Wolf.”

Huda has a certain spark to her, and she continues to wow audiences as she takes on more serious roles. In 2022, she starred in a TV series called “Min Share’ Al Haram Ela” and it was the most watched show during Ramadhan. More recently, Huda has starred in the popular show “Melh w Samra” with her sister.

3oud.com sits down with the iconic Kuwaiti actress, Huda Hussain, as she stars in Gucci’s campaign.

1. The character you played in “Min Share’ Al Haram Ela” was a strong woman who may have been misunderstood. Do you prefer more complex characters, or do you find funny and simple roles to be more fun to play?

The character I played in “Min Share’ Al Haram Ela” was an important character, and indeed she was the strong woman who surrounds her children and who, we can say, guides her children with her strength. In fact, I prefer serious characters, but sometimes from time to time one has to look for new characters and take some comedy roles, but the comedy that stems from the situation, not Farce comedy. Of course, most of the personalities that I played in my artistic career are serious personalities. The Arab women, whether they are lawyers or doctors, whether they are even complex women, are nothing but models of society who provide a lot of lessons and advice to women.

2. How do you decide if you want to work on a project or not? For you, does the decision depend on the producer, the script, or the director?

If I decide to work on any project, of course at first, I rely on the script and read it and whether I like the idea and the role. Therefore, I ask the producer who is the director. I have good relations with all the producers and directors, and I am ready to cooperate with them all. But I am primarily interested in the story and script.

3. Of all the characters you've played so far, which one is your favorite? And why?

I cannot favor one character over another. I gave each character my all, from my heart and soul and worked hard on it. I cannot favor one role over another, a character over another character, a project over another. I consider all of them a great effort in which I was tired and exhausted, and I played them with all of my heart and soul. All the roles I played mean something to me.

4. Is there a project you wish you were a part of? Perhaps a project that you turned down, but later on, proved successful?

There are always projects that are in my mind, I mean, for example, I wanted to play Shajarat al-Dur, a sweet, beautiful and historical character who left a memorable imprint. I always wished to participate in one of the history shows played in Standard Arabic, but unfortunately, I was not lucky to be part of it, but maybe in the future I get to have a chance.

5. For someone who wants to start a career in acting, what advice would you give them?

Sometimes, people have the opportunity right award and the starring role comes to them and they play it, and they continue starring in roles. Some people, for example, have talent but the space for the role is not yet there. Sometimes there are people who have a scene or two scenes only but they excel and become famous for such small participation. So, it is the talent in the first place and I say what is beautiful is that one’s talent gets refined through study, dedication, sincerity, loyalty to work, and focus on the profession. Some may take it only for fame, and this is not right. If acting is performed for the sake of acting itself and in order to deliver a message to people, I think one will succeed.

6. What is something that you will never forget?

A situation that I never forget is not a sweet memory, and even when I get asked about it, I feel pain. It is when my mother’s death coincided with the invasion, and this was one of the most difficult memories, and I really don’t like to mention it. I avoid going back in time and I try to get distracted by anything, so I don’t remember this. This was very difficult for me.

7. What is your sweetest childhood memory?

The sweetest memory was gathering with family on occasions such as holidays. We were a very close and loving family. My sisters, although they are older than me, would sit with us and we would study together. When we went shopping on holidays or when we had any nice occasion, we used to go shopping with our mother who used to say that each gets to buy one suit only, but our mother then buys us each three suits, especially for me and my sister Sahar, because we were very close to each other, and she always spoiled us both.

8. Who is your role model?

My mother is my role model in everything: in my commitment and in preserving my personality, in shaping my personality from childhood until now. After my mother, my older sisters came to complete this role.