Ramadan TV Series Gain Popularity Across North Africa and France

The Ramadan television series, specially designed for this fasting month, are very popular. In Morocco, the series "Mabrouk Elina", which follows the daily life of a slightly overwhelmed young couple, is a big hit. In Algeria, it is "Banat el mahrousa", which follows the story of three students confronted with a wave of crime in their neighborhood, that is a hit. "It’s been about fifteen years since these programs appeared," estimates Omero Marongiu-Perria, a sociologist specializing in Islam, a keen observer of Maghreb society for Le Parisien. "Television has become a central object, almost a member of the family. And during Ramadan, it is constantly on."

During Ramadan, people gather at home, with family. "You have to see the month of Ramadan as a month of celebration where all the rhythms change," describes Samia, a high school teacher and mother of three children, who lives in the Paris suburbs. "In Morocco, school and office hours are adapted, everyone finishes earlier to gather at home. People have time to get together, together, to eat, around the TV. The series are part of this annual ritual. Even when we are in France." After breaking the fast, television becomes an attraction. "We eat a lot, at the time of the ftour (the breaking of the fast), it’s heavy, tiring for the body, so just after the meal, we can’t do much else but watch TV," explains Nadia, a Moroccan in her thirties living near Paris.

The time when Egyptian productions flooded the channels of the Arab world is over. It was about fifteen years ago. "It was in literary Arabic, and me, as a little girl, I didn’t understand it. Only my mother watched them," Samia remembers. Today, each Arab country produces Ramadan series. "We talk about it with friends, we tell each other what we thought of last night’s episode. It’s really something that brings together all the layers of the population, that we share," she continues.

These series generate considerable advertising revenue. Their success is also on the menu of a conference organized this Saturday by Séries Mania, the must-attend event for series fans, in Lille (North). It will be hosted by actor Sofiane Zermani, director and producer Yahia Mouzahem and actress Zahra Harkat.