Awards season made its way over to the Gulf on Saturday with the Joy Awards 2024 in Riyadh.
The annual event, now in its fourth year, once again rolled out the red carpet in Riyadh – lavender carpet, more accurately – to welcome stars from across Arabic music, film and television, not to mention some notable international talent.
Broadcast live on MBC and its streaming platform Shahid and organised by the Saudi Arabia General Entertainment Authority, the event upped the glitz and glam from past years past, bringing in top names from Hollywood including John Cena, Anthony Hopkins and director Zack Snyder, as well as Bollywood stars including Alia Bhatt.
But on the lavender carpet, it was some of the region’s biggest stars that captured the most attention, with a host of unique looks as well as some continuation from trends we’ve seen pop up on the Golden Globes and Emmy Awards respective red carpets.
Here are a few of our favourites.
Raya Abirached
Lebanese MBC presenter and Joy Awards host Raya Abirached has steadily become a red carpet star in her own right over the years, after decades of conducting interviews from behind the velvet rope.
After wearing a dress by Tony Ward Couture and shoes by Christian Louboutin at the Golden Globes, styled by Cedric Haddad, her Joy Awards look matched the colour of the night.
Abirached wore a lavender sequinned Valentino gown, paired with Bvlgari jewellery before she took the stage.
Pamela El Kik
Lebanese actress Pamela El Kik, who currently appears in the Shahid hit and Joy Best Series winner Crystal, celebrated the country of Saudi Arabia with her Maison Geyanna Youness gown matching the colour of the country's flag. Her jewellery was by Mouwad.
"Thank you from the heart of Saudi Arabia and the people of its kind, hospitable and generous people. Overwhelmed with a feeling that I can't help of joy, appreciation, respect and love, love love!" she wrote on her instagram.
Carmen Bsaibes
Much as we've seen internationally at the Globes and the Emmys, the colour red was the most popular choice for the region's stars, with Lebanese actress Carmen Bsaibes, 30, who co-starred in the popular series Bride of Beirut with Tunisian actor Dhafer L'Abidine, wore a tasteful red dress by Lebanese designer Elie Saab, with jewellery by Marli.
Rym Saidi
Tunisian model an actress Rym Saidi, who started her career in 2003 after winning the Elite Model Look Tunisia and currently in Dubai Media Incorporated's series Fashion Star, was styled by Cedric Haddad in a lavender dress by Tony Ward, accessorised with pieces from Sartoro Jewelry.
The star also sported a new haircut by Lebanese hairstylist Georges El Mendelek.
Nancy Ajram
Lebanese pop singer Nancy Ajram, 41, also donned a red gown at the event, opting for an outfit by Italian fashion house Dolce & Gabbana.
She is a frequent visitor to Riyadh, having recently performed as part of the Saudi capital's new years celebrations, not to mention her performance at last November's Masterpieces by Baligh Hamdi concert, where she sang Black Eyes in a fitting black gown.
Annabella Hilal
Lebanese TV presenter and Miss World Lebanon 2006 representative Annabella Hilal opted for a mix of colour at the ceremony, wearing a dress by Zuhair Murad and jewelry by Mouawad, highlighted by a striking necklace that matched the deep greens on her gown.
Dima Kandalaft
Syrian actress and singer Dima Kanalaft celebrated her "joyful night", as she described it on Instagram, in a Georges Hobeika gown, with jewellery by Tiffany and Co and shoes and bag from Louboutin, styled by Jony Matta Ghorayeb.
Mona Zaki
Egyptian actress Mona Zaki wore another red gown from Elie Saab, also styled by Cedric Haddad, complemented by Roberto Coin jewellery.
Zaki, who starred in the 2022 Netflix Arabic-language hit Perfect Strangers, has been favouring red looks as of late, wearing a Valentino gown on the MBC1 programme Kalam Nawaem in September.
'My Son'
Director: Christian Carion
Starring: James McAvoy, Claire Foy, Tom Cullen, Gary Lewis
Rating: 2/5
The biog
Year of birth: 1988
Place of birth: Baghdad
Education: PhD student and co-researcher at Greifswald University, Germany
Hobbies: Ping Pong, swimming, reading
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Last 10 NBA champions
2017: Golden State bt Cleveland 4-1
2016: Cleveland bt Golden State 4-3
2015: Golden State bt Cleveland 4-2
2014: San Antonio bt Miami 4-1
2013: Miami bt San Antonio 4-3
2012: Miami bt Oklahoma City 4-1
2011: Dallas bt Miami 4-2
2010: Los Angeles Lakers bt Boston 4-3
2009: Los Angeles Lakers bt Orlando 4-1
2008: Boston bt Los Angeles Lakers 4-2
If you go
The flights
The closest international airport for those travelling from the UAE is Denver, Colorado. British Airways (www.ba.com) flies from the UAE via London from Dh3,700 return, including taxes. From there, transfers can be arranged to the ranch or it’s a seven-hour drive. Alternatively, take an internal flight to the counties of Cody, Casper, or Billings
The stay
Red Reflet offers a series of packages, with prices varying depending on season. All meals and activities are included, with prices starting from US$2,218 (Dh7,150) per person for a minimum stay of three nights, including taxes. For more information, visit red-reflet-ranch.net.
What are NFTs?
Are non-fungible tokens a currency, asset, or a licensing instrument? Arnab Das, global market strategist EMEA at Invesco, says they are mix of all of three.
You can buy, hold and use NFTs just like US dollars and Bitcoins. “They can appreciate in value and even produce cash flows.”
However, while money is fungible, NFTs are not. “One Bitcoin, dollar, euro or dirham is largely indistinguishable from the next. Nothing ties a dollar bill to a particular owner, for example. Nor does it tie you to to any goods, services or assets you bought with that currency. In contrast, NFTs confer specific ownership,” Mr Das says.
This makes NFTs closer to a piece of intellectual property such as a work of art or licence, as you can claim royalties or profit by exchanging it at a higher value later, Mr Das says. “They could provide a sustainable income stream.”
This income will depend on future demand and use, which makes NFTs difficult to value. “However, there is a credible use case for many forms of intellectual property, notably art, songs, videos,” Mr Das says.
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup – Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
