Hajar Brown
Born
Hajar El Bahraoui

(1996-03-15) 15 March 1996
Madrid, Spain
Occupations
  • Actress
  • model
  • activist
Notable workSkam España
Height170 cm (5 ft 7 in)

Hajar El Bahraoui, known professionally as Hajar Brown, (born on March 15, 1996) is a Spanish-Moroccan actress, model, and activist, best known for her role as Amira Naybet in Skam España, the Spanish adaptation of Skam.

Early life

Hajar Brown was born in Madrid, Spain to Moroccan parents.[1] She dreamed of being an actress at an early age, going on to study acting professionally for four years, from 14 to 18 years old. However, she then decided to focus on her university studies, opting to major in Civil Engineering at the Polytechnic University of Madrid. Even so, she remained linked to the world of acting, participating in different short films, usually with other college students.[2]

Brown is also a practicing Muslim. She can speak Spanish, English, French, and the Moroccan Arabic language, Darja.[3]

Involvement with Skam

A fan of the original version of Skam, a Norwegian teen drama created by Julie Andem, Brown was contacted by the production team in charge of adapting the show for a Spanish audience. They had seen how she talked about her day-to-day life as a practitioner of Islam on various social networks, and were seeking guidance on how to translate the character of Sana Bakkoush, a Muslim teenager who is religious by choice, and encounters prejudice she must deal with regularly.[1]

After the Skam España showrunners worked with Brown to better understand Muslim life in Spain, she was later cast herself to portray Amira, the Spanish counterpart of Sana.[1]

Career

Skam España officially premiered on September 16, 2018, on Movistar+ to positive reception and popularity. The fourth and final season centers around Brown's character of Amira Naybet, and how she faces the challenge of being a Muslim faithful to her beliefs and customs in an environment and society that looks at her in a strange way for being different and wearing a hijab.[4] Brown's appearance in the show made her the first actress with a veil recognized in Spain for her achievements.[3]

The success of Spain's version of Skam also helped to open other doors for Brown, who later debuted as a Spanish ambassador for the Chloé perfume in October 2020, as well as collaborating with Elle Spain magazine that same year.[5] She has also collaborated with the Spanish counterparts of Cosmopolitan and Vogue in later years, appearing on the latter's YouTube channel in July 2023 demonstrating her makeup routine and hijab tutorial.[6][7]

She also has done influencer work on behalf of companies like Hugo Boss, Bershka, and Electronic Arts.[8][9][10]

In August 2023, it was announced that Hajar would be one of the protagonists in Islamization, a six-episode romantic comedy from Compostela production company CTV. The show is partly funded by financial aid through the European Union's Regional Development Fund, a response to alleviate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic to the most affected sectors of the economy.[11] Islamization was described as "a love story—a universal story—with comedy and a European approach." Brown was also noted to have contributed to the production's script as a consultant.[12]

Activism

Brown seeks to use her creative gifts to emphasize a message in favor of a more democratic and inclusive artist concept and to break stereotypes. Since 2018, she has served as a Coordinator of the Advertising and Media Commission of the Association of Muslim Girls of Spain.[3]

In September 2020, she defended the importance of intersectional and inclusive feminism in a speech at the FesTVal de Vitoria, an event where Skam España received the "Cima TV Award for Equality" for how it promoted feminist values and themes of empowerment to a youth audience for its third season, which focused around the characters of Nora and Viri, two of Amira's best friends.[13][14]

In October 2023, Brown went viral online when she made a TikTok video describing an Islamophobic incident she endured while attending the opera. While wrapping up her video, she said she wanted to bring attention to this certain situation because of the violent comments and behavior she faced, unlike other incidences she's learned to ignore in her everyday life. The video gained more than 42,000 likes in just a few days, as well as media attention.[15] Many in the industry, including Brown's Skam España co-star, Nicole Wallace, also offered her their support.

Filmography

Television

Year Title Character Notes
2018–2020 Skam España Amira Naybet Main role; 39 episodes & central character of season 4
2021 Alba Fatia Recurring role; 4 episodes
TBA Islamization TBA Main role & script consultant

Film

Year Title Character Notes
2017 SKAM Hajar Hajar Short film

Music videos

Year Title Artist
2021 "Con cuidao" Shack Rose
"Nosotras" Paula Cendejas

References

  1. 1 2 3 Sánchez, Samuel; Romerales, Laura (26 May 2020). "La Actriz Hajar Brown: 'Cuando Me Puse El Hiyab Tuve Que Construir Mi Identidad Desde El Principio.'". Verne (in Spanish). Retrieved 23 June 2023.
  2. ↑ "¿Quién Es Su Amor Platónico? ¿Y Su Primer 'Crush'? Hajar Brown Responde Las 20 Preguntas de Hola!4U". HOLA (in Spanish). 4 October 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2023.
  3. 1 2 3 "Hajar Brown". Miranda Talents (in Spanish). Retrieved 1 August 2023.
  4. ↑ Salinero, Mario Cerdeño (28 August 2020). "[Entrevista] Hajar Brown ('Skam España'): 'La 4a Temporada Romperá Prejuicios y Estereotipos Preestablecidos". Los Lunes Seriéfilos - Cine, series, televisión y entretenimiento (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 July 2023.
  5. ↑ Fuentes, Susana (1 October 2020). "Valiente, Libre: Así Es Hajar Brown". ELLE (in Spanish). Retrieved 23 June 2023.
  6. ↑ Brown, Hajar (13 September 2021). "vosotros k tal? yo de lunes fatal alhamdulillah👗: @lolali_madrid 💍: @theofficialpandora 💚: @ilacheyenne #cosmoxpandora @cosmopolitan_es @theofficialpandora". Instagram (in Spanish). Retrieved 1 August 2023.
  7. ↑ "Hajar Brown (SKAM): look para el día a día con mirada definida: Secretos de Belleza: VOGUE España". YouTube (in Spanish). 14 July 2023. Retrieved 1 August 2023.
  8. ↑ Brown, Hajar (26 January 2023). "BOSSes aren't born, they're made 🎤💥 @boss #BeYourOwnBOSS". Instagram (in Spanish). Retrieved 1 August 2023.
  9. ↑ Brown, Hajar (15 November 2022). "estoy viviendo mi fantasía fancy cute despistada con la nueva colección de @bershka ✨ ¿Que opináis de llevar mini vestidos con pantalon? A mi me parece súper practico💕 📸: @sergiovvelarde". Instagram (in Spanish). Retrieved 1 August 2023.
  10. ↑ Brown, Hajar (6 August 2022). "El otro día estaba jugando en una de las expansiones nuevas de los Sims 4 y he tenido mi propio baile de promoción rollo americanada, mi sueño🥺🎉 ¿Con que vestido os hubierais quedado? El mío era obvio😉 #sponsoredbyea #LosSims4AñosHighSchool". Instagram (in Spanish). Retrieved 1 August 2023.
  11. ↑ "Presentamos os teasers das tres series de ficción,"Islamización","Doutor Cunqueiro" e "O círculo de Gaia", desenvoltas grazas ás axudas do programa Hub da Industria Creativa Galega para o desenvolvemento dun paquete de propostas audiovisuais". Instagram (in Spanish). 1 August 2023. Retrieved 1 August 2023.
  12. ↑ Casais, Maria (1 August 2023). "La actriz Hajar Brown participa en 'Islamización', la nueva serie de la productora gallega CTV". El Español (in Spanish). Retrieved 1 August 2023.
  13. ↑ "'Skam España', Galardonada Con El Premio Cima TV Del Festval de Vitoria". La Opinión de Murcia (in Spanish). 31 July 2020. Retrieved 26 July 2023.
  14. ↑ Higueras, Laura García (2 September 2020). "Hajar Brown Encabeza El Adiós de 'Skam': 'Una Musulmana Protagonista No Es Normal En La Ficción Española.'". Vertele (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 July 2023.
  15. ↑ Valdivelso, Cristina (14 October 2023). "Acude al teatro, una señora le increpa por ser musulmana y se tiene que cambiar hasta de butaca". The Huffington Post (España) (in Spanish). Retrieved 16 October 2023.
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