Renowned television host Laila Rostom passed away on 9 January at the age of 88. Born Laila Abdel-Hamid Mahmoud Rostom, the daughter of engineer Abdel-Hamid Rostom and the niece of the renowned actor Zaki Rostom.
Rostom earned her masters’ degree in journalism from Northwestern University in the United States of America and came back to the birth of Egyptian television in 1951 to start her career as a television host a few years later.
Laila Rostom had a striking presence across generations of Egyptians. Her style and elegance, her broad culture and her professionalism are all impressive, but my generation of viewers knew her mostly through YouTube videos or reels on social media showing clips from her interviews of some of the most top-notch figures whether Egyptians or Arabs, including Mohamed Ali Clay.
She was not just an ordinary television host, but a pillar of the earliest generation in the audiovisual media, she was a prominent figure who left an unforgettable mark on the Egyptian and Arab media all through the 1960s.
She presented many political, social, and artistic programmes like Nafeza Ala Al-Alam (A Window to the World), which covered the important world events every week, and Al-Ghorfa Al-Modeeaa (The Illuminated Room), which was written by Mufeed Fawzi and focused on local events. Rostom hosted two of the most significant TV programmes named Negmak Al-Mofaddal (Your Favorite Star) and Qemam (Peaks) where she hosted a number of renowned and influential icons in literature, art and even politics.
Her charisma blended with her abilities paved the way to unprecedented success and making history when she hosted the historic interview with the dean of Arabic literature Taha Hussein in the presence of numerous literary figures who would go on to be legendary: Naguib Mahfouz, Abdel-Rahman Al-Sharkawi, Mahmoud Amin Al-Alim, Youssef Al-Sebai, Anis Mansour, Tharwat Abaza, Abdel-Rahman Sedki, Amin Youssef Ghorab, Kamel Zohairi and Abdel-Rahman Badawi.
Her simple yet elegant style in posing questions and her ability to capture the attention of both guests and audience was captivating. One of the most famous interviews she had was with the talented actor Ahmed Ramzi, during which they talked about his roles in many films and his recent salary versus his first salary and in between the questions she joked with him about his famous style of the half open shirt.
Rostom also interviewed Syrian-Egyptian singer and music composer Farid Al-Atrash in 1967, raising a very sensitive issue about his health after a very crucial operation, and he talked open about his heart condition in a more than an hour interview.
In an hour and a half interview she sat down with musiqar al-agyal (The Maestro of the Generations) Mohamed Abdel-Wahab asking him about various topics and issues in art, music and life with the most controversial topic in the interview being the line between stealing versus borrowing in music. She also hosted al-andalib (The Nightingale), Abdel-Halim Hafez.
One of her most delightful interviews was with the talented actor Farid Shawki, in which they discussed cinema and his roles as well as family topics like his marriage to Huda Sultan and his previous marriages as well.
Rostom’s interviews were not merely casual conversations but they were rather profound encounters that highlighted her extensive culture and her ability to conduct a professional interview with delightful charisma and a sense of humour on many occasions. Her legacy will remain a testament to a distinguished career characterised by boldness, elegance and professional skills.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 16 January, 2025 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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