Cairo, the 26th October, 2010

Indecent proposal # ???

The first time a well known magazine (oriented for male readers) invited me to pose for a risky, sexy (so they said), quite nude photo session, I took it with an open mind and even some humour (me, posing for a lingerie/quite nude session struck me as improbable and funny!).

I met the journalist who proposed me this work and the photographer and I had very civilized conversations with both of them. In these conversations (where I am sure I was seen as a strange girl coming from a prude family) I made sure that the session would be tasteful, beautiful and elegant while sexy. They wanted a Thousand and One Night's session with the famous belly dancer stucking her ass to the camera and I wanted Mario Testino at its best with a touch of ...me!

- I have nothing against sexy. - I told them, almost apologizing.

-But I do have something against cheap!- I added.

My boyfriend at that time went nuts over the idea of me, posing almost nude for a male's magazine (although it was, indeed, a very well respected magazine) and was totally against it but my mum - unique and open minded as she is - was on my side: If the work is done with good taste and elegance, it can be GORGEOUS.

I LOVE U, MUM!

After talking and discussing and other magazine's reviewing - famous actresses and singers all had done sessions for this magazine - I stressed the points I considered non-negotiable:

1. No matter how we photograph, the image I want to pass is made of beauty, elegance, sensual allure without being pornographic and comunicating the magic of Oriental Dance (through props, specific items of cloth, lighting, landscape, etc).

2. No big plans of my genital parts because I don't see any specific interest in them for a public photo shoot.

3. No nude photos. I can deal with a little cloth (if dressed in the right places and showing only what is enough...not going overboard) but I cannot deal with PLAYBOY shots that will make me look (and feel) like an object.

Well...my restrictions and conditions were so many that the magazine quit the idea and I gladly forgot the subject until...yesterday!

Apparently, Oriental Dance is a fantasy for many men and, for that, I am - one more time - invited to pose NUDE for another well known magazine.

This time, there was nothing to negotiate (except the money they were willing to pay me for the session) because they required NUDE photos and that I will not do.

As it happened with the first invitation, the journalist who proposed me the work thought it was quite strange that a BELLY DANCER would reject a good deal of money to do quite the same she already does on stage: being nude (according to their vision).

Well, needless to say I didn't accept the invitation. And needless to say that this prejudice surrounding Oriental Dance doesn't irritate me anymore. It became so shallow, so insignificant and coming from such ignorant people that it doesn't touch me anymore.

My NO to this working proposal was taken as an arrogant, prudish, hypocritical answer from my side. They thought I was making myself a DIVA by telling them NO and I simply thanked them and moved on, as I always do whenever I receive any kind of indecent proposal.

The question, you see, is that I love and respect myself way too much and would never put myself in a place where everything I represent and work hard for would look bad, low and cheap.

It's the choices you make in life - the hard ones, mostly - that define your character as a WOMAN and, by that matter, the REAL BEAUTY you carry around and that can only be seen in the quality of LIGHT in your eyes.

For some reason, my eyes shine all the time...

I intend on keeping them that way, thank you.