Meet the hijab-wearing model who fled war in Somalia and became a Vogue fashion editor

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Rawdah Mohamed uses her Somali heritage as inspiration for her role as a fashion editor at the recently launched Vogue Scandinavia. (Ole Martin Halvorsen)
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Updated 20 August 2021
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Meet the hijab-wearing model who fled war in Somalia and became a Vogue fashion editor

  • Rawdah Mohamed is the first hijab-wearing editor of color at a western fashion magazine
  • Somali-Norwegian model’s family fled Somalia’s civil war for Kenya when she was a baby

LONDON: When Rawdah Mohamed lived in an asylum camp after arriving in Norway as a refugee, she was teased at school for wearing a hijab.

Now, the 29-year-old model confidently uses her Somali heritage as inspiration for her role as a fashion editor at the recently launched Vogue Scandinavia. 

Not only is Mohamed the first hijab-wearing editor of color at a western fashion magazine, but her journey to her dream job has been an extraordinary one, full of adversity.  

The Somali-Norwegian model’s family fled Somalia’s civil war for Kenya when she was a baby. Along with her parents and nine siblings, including an adopted sister, she grew up in a refugee camp in Kenya before moving to Norway as an eight-year-old. 

“We came to Norway and for two years we lived in an asylum camp, which was in a very small town. That was very hard because the people there were extremely racist. They didn’t want any refugees there because they thought we were dangerous and we were there to take their jobs,” Mohamed told Arab News. 

At school during the two years that Mohamed spent at the asylum camp with her family, she was bullied for wearing her hijab and the other children would take it off in class. 

As a result, her teachers discussed not allowing Mohamed to wear the hijab to school, which left her feeling “traumatized and upset.”

“When we were on our way to Norway, my mother kept on saying the country would be safe, that there was no war there and we could do whatever we wanted because we were free,” she said. 

The model said she felt as if everyone else was free except for herself in the place where she had hoped to enjoy liberty. 




Rawdah Mohamed is the first hijab-wearing editor of color at a western fashion magazine. (Ole Martin Halvorsen)

“When they teach you that there is something wrong with you, that you are the problem and that you have to change, I didn’t like that. I didn’t leave my home and come all the way here for them to tell me that I still don’t have my freedom,” Mohamed explains. 

“So I continued wearing the hijab just to make a statement.”

Mohamed said that life improved at age 10 after her family left the camp and were given the right to remain in Norway.

“When we moved, that’s when my real childhood started because we were safe and had a permanent address, a permanent place that we could call home. I hadn’t had that since I was born. My mum was very happy because all her children were safe and we had food and everything we needed,” she said.

Despite not living in Somalia for long, Mohamed said her love for fashion comes from her Somali background.

 “We are so colorful in the way we dress,” she said.  

The model said she loved watching the women at the refugee camp in Kenya where she spent her early childhood getting ready for a wedding and accompanying her mother to the market to “see what everyone was wearing.”

“At the refugee camp, I was one of the few kids who were allowed to attend the weddings just because I loved what they were doing. I would sit out in the street and watch the ladies go by,” she said.

On Fridays, teenage girls would attend religious classes where they were taught Qur’an and Islamic Studies. The girls would get dressed up for the classes and as a younger girl, she observed their style with envy. The allure of their hijabs is what inspired her to wear one herself eventually.

“In the refugee camp in Kenya, only the teenage girls would wear the hijab. I loved copying what they were wearing and how they spoke and walked. They would put accessories on their hijab and it was very stylish. I really wanted to look like them,” she said.

Mohamed described how “special” having traditional Eid clothes made at the refugee camp was. It was the only occasion for which her parents could afford to buy her new clothes.

“You would buy fabric, take it to a tailor who was always a man and tell him exactly how you wanted the dress so that he could make it for you. That was so special for me,” the model said.

Mohamed said she “sort of stumbled into modeling” after a mutual friend put her in touch with her manager whilst she was at university studying for a degree in  behavioral analysis and healthcare. 

“I went to a fashion show in Oslo at the end of 2018 where I met my manager. He told me about what they were doing and I went to his office for a meeting and I said I wasn’t sure if I wanted to be a model but I wanted to work in fashion,” Mohamed said. 

However, after doing a few shoots that she was happy with, Mohamed decided to become a model in 2019.

At the beginning of her modeling career, Mohamed juggled the job with working with autistic people and people with different mental disabilities.

She continues to volunteer in mental health care to this day and has been working with patients at overstretched hospitals during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

She described her shock at how differently the hijab is perceived in the fashion world compared to in heath care professions.

“It’s almost bizarre, sometimes you can’t even believe the discussions that people are having. It’s simply a piece of cloth on my head,” Mohamed said. 

“You sort of expect every adult to be intelligent enough to understand that it is a religious choice and that’s it, there’s no more to discuss. When you come into fashion, you see the mindset is way backwards, it’s like being in the asylum camp where you have to defend your rights and how you look,” she said.

In contrast, “When you’re a nurse, you’re given a hijab as part of the uniform and nobody really questions it. Everyone is so used to it and it’s never an issue,” Mohamed added. 

She described her initial outrage and surprise at some clients who asked her how much hair she could show and or whether she could show her neck.

“At the beginning I was very shocked at people’s attitude towards things that are different or that they are not used to,” she said.

“There have been situations where I come in and they know I can’t show my hair or anything so they will ask for a meeting before that and try to persuade me to show a little bit of hair. Or they would ask how much hair I am willing to show because they would love to see just a tiny bit. I find that outrageous,” she added.

However, Mohamed said that the clients that book her are open minded toward the hijab and “that’s why they book me.”

“The people I work with are worth it and you can educate them. Ninety-nine percent of the people I meet and work with are different. I don’t work with the clients who don’t understand me,” she explained.

Mohamed said that although hijab-wearing models sometimes need to bring their own hijabs to shoots and show the stylist how to put it on, which is an added stress to the job, she sees it as her responsibility to educate the fashion world on the hijab and what it entails. 

“As the first generation of hijabi models, that is our job. If we don’t do it correctly, then the fashion industry will have the control to do what they want so you’re going to see so-called hijabi models but their hijab is not as the model or the Muslim community sees it. 

“So we do have the responsibility to educate the fashion industry on how our communities work, what we see ourselves as and how we interpret the hijab. 

“So when I am on a shoot and have to explain to a stylist what works and what doesn’t work, I don’t mind doing that. Sometimes I’ll go in the day before to discuss things and I don’t mind that because it is something I enjoy,” she said.




Somali-Norwegian model Rawdah Mohamed’s family fled Somalia’s civil war for Kenya when she was a baby and settled in Norway having lived in an asylum camp. (Emma Sukalic)

Mohamed added that hijab-wearing models also have to ensure that the photographer on a shoot understands their “religious views and integrity.”

“If the photographer asks you to do a certain pose that you’re not comfortable with or that might be on the sexual side, you have to say that you can’t do that because you’re not comfortable with it. So there is definitely an extra layer of responsibility with being a hijabi model; if those pictures are printed, you are the one who is going to get the backlash,” the model said.

Mohamed landed the role as Vogue Scandinavia’s Norway fashion editor earlier this year. 

The magazine launched last week with Swedish teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg on the front cover.

“I write articles about fashion and do the styling, attend and review fashion shows, make videos and work on social media,” Mohamed said.

She is a huge fan of Lebanese designers and mostly wears their creations to red carpet events. 

“I think their haute couture is the most amazing. I really like Nicolas Jebran and Georges Chakra. Those two are my favorites,” she said.

Mohamed added that Arab designers understand the hijab and so wearing their creations are much easier. 

“Some of their dresses are not actually modest. What they would do is get me extra fabric so I could wear it as a hijab and underwear garments that matched the gown so that I don’t have to worry if there is a split or the fabric is see-through.”

When asked what she has lined up for the future, Mohamed said she doesn’t worry too much about it and likes to be a free spirit.

“I always like my life the way it is. I like to be very fluid with it and make sure I have a good time,” she said. 


AlUla a ‘cinematic wonder,’ says exec on 5th anniversary of Saudi Arabia’s Film AlUla

Updated 18 May 2025
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AlUla a ‘cinematic wonder,’ says exec on 5th anniversary of Saudi Arabia’s Film AlUla

CANNES: AlUla’s natural landscapes are fast becoming a national icon for Saudi Arabia, attracting tourists who wish to experience the scenes for themselves. But since the inception of Film AlUla, the region’s film agency, its sand dunes and historic landmarks have traveled the world through cinema. 

As Film AlUla celebrates its fifth anniversary, Acting Executive Director Zaid Shaker sat down with Arab News to discuss the entity’s milestones on the sidelines of the Cannes Film Festival in France.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Film AlUla (@filmalula)

“I think that our voice and our positioning (of) Film AlUla as a catalyst in the Saudi film industry has sort of echoed, and now we have amazing infrastructure,” Shaker said. 

Only seven years ago, cinemas reopened in the Kingdom after a 35-year ban. The establishment of Film AlUla in early 2020, under the mandate of the Royal Commission of AlUla, has played a hand in cementing Saudi Arabia’s role in the international film industry. 

One of Film AlUla’s headlining achievements is Tawfik Alzaidi’s “Norah,” released in 2023, which became the first Saudi feature film to premiere at Cannes. The film, which followed the story of a young girl in the 1990s with a thirst for artistic expression, featured a crew made up of 40 percent AlUla locals. 

This year, first-time director Osama Al Khurayji’s “Siwar” was the opener for the Saudi Film Festival, held at the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (Ithra) in Dhahran in April. The film follows two families, one Saudi and one Turkish, as they navigate societal challenges and personal upheavals. Here, AlUla acts as a stand in for the southern city of Najran and the shoot featured an 80 percent local crew. 

Film AlUla executives have long emphasized training the local community as part of their core mission.

The area is home to roughly 65,000 residents, the executive said, and one of the core factors to creating a sustainable film sector is establishing a well-trained local crew. This is done through training programs for capacity-building and skill refinement. 

“Whenever we work on attracting an international production, our organic by-product is sort of upskilling the locals so that they can take this forward and start narrating their own stories,” Shaker said.

The entity recently announced a partnership with Manhattan Beach Studios, which operates more than 600 sound stages around the globe, as operators for their local facilities.

“We try to do everything looking at very high quality and the highest of standards… In partnering with MB Studios to manage our cutting-edge, state-of-the-art facilities, we are showing commitment locally, regionally and internationally, that our positioning is real, and that we offer a seamless, advanced experience to every storyteller that comes to AlUla,” Shaker said.

Some of the first major Hollywood productions to shoot in the region were Anthony and Joe Russo’s drama “Cherry,” and Ric Roman Waugh’s “Kandahar,” and others followed. In 2024 alone, AlUla hosted 85 projects, ranging from films and TV series to commercials and music videos. 

These productions are largely incentivized by the country’s rebates policies, operated under the umbrella of the Saudi Film Commission and the National Rebate Fund.

“We offer 40 percent rebates and an uplift of 10 percent incentives, which are usually designed based on training programs and marketing efforts,” he said. 

This rebate can be elevated to 50 percent when Saudi nationals are employed in key roles within the production.

“AlUla is blessed with a vast, diverse collection of amazing locations. It’s awe inspiring — it’s a cinematic wonder in itself. So part of the attraction and work in bringing productions and building a film sector relies on the sense of location,” Shaker said.

“It’s building on this amazing backdrop, which spans, in its history, more than 200,000 years. The … location has witnessed lots of cultures, lots of civilizations, lots of stories. It’s how we position these amazing, inspiring locations to be pivotal characters in any audio-visual production.”


Women from Pakistan, Middle East showcase powerful themes at international film festival in Islamabad

Updated 18 May 2025
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Women from Pakistan, Middle East showcase powerful themes at international film festival in Islamabad

  • Eleven short films from Pakistan, Iran, Lebanon, Egypt, Canada, France, Sweden and Spain filmmakers screened at Women International Film Festival
  • Women filmmakers explore powerful themes such as conflict, patriarchal oppression, grief and others at ninth edition of international film festival 

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani women filmmakers, along with their colleagues from Egypt, Lebanon, and other countries, this week showcased short films focusing on powerful themes such as grief, resistance, and patriarchal oppression at the ninth edition of the Women International Film Festival (WIFF) in Islamabad. 

Organized by the Women Through Film community organization that aims to empower women filmmakers by promoting their art, the ninth edition of the festival was hosted at the Islamabad Community Library at the capital city’s I-8 sector on Saturday night. 

The open-air event showcased 11 short films from filmmakers hailing from eight countries, namely Pakistan, Canada, Spain, Iran, Lebanon, Egypt, Sweden, and France. Three of the films were Pakistani productions while the rest were helmed by international filmmakers. 

Each film explored profound themes of grief, resistance and patriarchal oppression.

“This was a dream more than a plan— to encourage women to tell their stories,” Madeeha Raza, WIFF’s curator, told Arab News. 

“We try to prioritize locally made films, and I am glad we have three Pakistani films this year. The films from Iran and Lebanon touched upon resistance and war and how that affects the lives of normal people,” she said.

“I could resonate with that a lot, which made me choose them.”

People watch a film at the Women International Film Festival (WIFF) in Islamabad, Pakistan, on May 17, 2025. (AN Photo)

The festival also featured panel discussions on filmmaking and the role of women in it. Anya Raza, whose film about an Afghan teacher dealing with the horrors of conflict, was one of the highlights of the festival.

Alongside her on a panel discussion were filmmakers Marya Javad and Nargis Muneeb, co-founder of the Islamabad Film Society. The conversation delved into the power of storytelling to challenge narratives and provide a voice to marginalized communities.

“This platform was created to give women a space to make films and submit them,” Raza explained. “The stories seen as controversial need to be shown more because they break the status quo. They shatter the concept of normalcy and allow people to take meaningful lessons.”

For Ayesha Siddiqa, a 25-year-old marketing professional, WIFF was an “eye-opener.” The Egyptian film ‘If The Cat Is Gone,’ which explored the complexities of friendship and societal judgments, stood out for Siddiqa the most. 

“It was a simple story, but it was so relatable,” she told Arab News. “The way it showcased stereotypes we face every day was impressive.”

‘CREATING A COMMUNITY’

The event also offered a valuable networking opportunity for filmmakers. Jawad Sharif, a seasoned award-winning filmmaker, said festivals such as the WIFF are essential for the creative community. 

“Such events motivate artists. In a society where stories of grief and struggle are often ignored, festivals like this ensure they are heard,” he said. 

“It’s not just about watching films, it’s about creating a community.”

People watch a film at the Women International Film Festival (WIFF) in Islamabad, Pakistan, on May 17, 2025. (AN Photo)

Waghma Feroz, a documentary filmmaker from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said events such as WIFF are crucial for women to highlight their issues.

“If women create films, they often focus on women’s issues or human rights, which are rarely highlighted in mainstream media,” she pointed out. “Events like WIFF allow these stories to be told.”

Raza, whose film ‘On the Mountain’ touched upon the struggles of Afghan refugees, agreed. 

“Stories about refugees and the human cost of conflict are rarely given space,” she said. “But they need to be told, and festivals like this ensure they reach the audience.”

Due to limited sponsorship this year, the festival was reduced to a three-hour event, which was far shorter than its previous editions. 

Despite the challenges, Raza remained optimistic about the future. 

“We’ve had highs and lows. Some editions were very well-supported,” she noted. 

“This time we couldn’t garner much support and had to rely on partners. But next year will be our tenth edition, and we hope to make it grand,” she added. 


Rawdah Mohamed walks the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival

Updated 18 May 2025
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Rawdah Mohamed walks the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival

DUBAI: Somali Norwegian model Rawdah Mohamed walked the red carpet at the 78th Cannes Film Festival in France on Saturday night.

The model showed off a blush pink-toned look, complete with a drop waist, on the red carpet ahead of the premiere of “Die, My Love.”

The model showed off a blush pink-toned look, complete with a drop waist, on the red carpet ahead of the premiere of “Die, My Love.” (Getty Images)

The film is an adaptation of the 2017 novel of the same name by Ariana Harwicz about a new mother who develops postpartum depression and enters psychosis. “Die, My Love,” starring Oscar-winner Jennifer Lawrence and Robert Pattinson, earned a six-minute standing ovation from the audience at Cannes.

Directed by acclaimed Scottish filmmaker Lynne Ramsay, the film has been hailed by critics, with Deadline calling it a “brutal but beautiful portrait of a woman on the edge.”

Visibly teary eyed during the standing ovation, Ramsay addressed the crowd, saying: “Wow. I’m so overwhelmed. Thanks to these amazing actors. I’ve got to get it together — I’ll see you in a minute.”

Joining Lawrence and Pattinson in the cast are LaKeith Stanfield, Sissy Spacek, and Nick Nolte.

Mohamed watched the film one day after appearing on the red carpet for the “Eddington” on Friday.

On Friday, she wore a look by Chinese couture label Cheney Chan. The gown hailed from the label’s Fall/ Winter 2024 collection.

A self-taught fashion designer, Chan was born and raised in the Jiangsu province.

“Growing up, my parents always wanted me to be a pilot,” he previously shared with Vogue Singapore. “I had cleared all the flying tests effortlessly back in high school, but it was unfortunately not where my heart lay.” Eventually, he gained a fashion media degree at Peking University before starting his eponymous label in 2012.

The label has previously been flaunted by the likes if US singer Kelly Roland and actress Anya Taylor-Joy.

Mohamed finished off her look with a matching hijab and bejeweled brooch.

The rising star has attended the Cannes Film Festival before, in 2023 and 2024, and is fast making a name for herself as one to watch in the fashion industry.

She has worked with brands like Boss and H&M and walked the runway during Roberto Cavalli’s show in Dubai in 2024.


Palestinian Film Institute amplifies local stories at Cannes

Updated 18 May 2025
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Palestinian Film Institute amplifies local stories at Cannes

DUBAI: The Palestinian Film Institute is making a resounding statement at the Cannes Film Festival with its largest presence to date under the banner #HereThereAndForever.

This year’s Pavilion Program spans a range of activities including exhibitions, screenings, producer talks, and intimate meet-and-greet sessions, reflecting a commitment to amplifying Palestinian voices on the global stage.

“We’re not celebrating being in Cannes,” PFI programmer Mohanad Yaqubi said in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. “There’s nothing to celebrate for us … it’s really about orienting the narrative surrounding Palestinian cinema and Palestinian stories through the filmmakers themselves.

“We feel the responsibility, and it’s very hard,” he said. “Some of our members actually have families in Gaza now, and they are here in Cannes. It’s uncomfortable, but this is not an industry only for rich people. We have to make that industry accommodate us and our needs as an oppressed and underrepresented (group).”

A major highlight of the program is the official launch of the PFI Film Fund. According to Yaqubi, the fund represents a dream long in the making. “The aim for the first three rounds is to fund or support four to six projects in different formats, at least, to give them a base so that they can start working,” he said.

In addition, PFI is hosting a special spotlight session on Palestinian producers, as well as a reception featuring filmmakers Arab and Tarzan Nasser, whose film “Once Upon a Time in Gaza” is part of the Un Certain Regard lineup. Another notable event is the screening and reception for “From Ground Zero,” an initiative spearheaded by filmmaker Rashid Masharawi. The anthology film is a collection of eight short documentaries and two feature-length films by 22 Palestinian directors, each offering raw glimpses into life under airstrikes in Gaza.

With four Palestinian producers participating in the Producers’ Network, Yaqubi encouraged attendees to explore their slates, which he described as “the upcoming Palestinian films and narratives that need to be supported.”

Yaqubi’s aims are clear. “We hope to be here every year,” he said. “The presence is important, and to stay away won’t make a change. We have to dip our toes in the cold water and change things.”


 


Iraq’s first filmmaker in Cannes says sanctions no piece of cake

Updated 18 May 2025
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Iraq’s first filmmaker in Cannes says sanctions no piece of cake

CANNES: Hasan Hadi, the first filmmaker from Iraq to be selected for the prestigious Cannes Festival, said economic embargoes like those imposed in his childhood under Saddam Hussein did not work.
“Sanctions empower dictators,” he told AFP, as they concentrate scant resources in their hands and only make them “more brutal.”
“In the history of the world, there was no one time when they (imposed) sanctions and the president couldn’t eat.”
Hadi’s first feature film, “The President’s Cake,” has received very good reviews since premiering Friday in the Directors’ Fortnight section.
Cinema publication Deadline said it was “head and shoulders above” some of the films in the running for the festival’s Palme d’Or top prize, and “could turn out to be Iraq’s first nominee for an Oscar.”
The film follows nine-year-old Lamia after she has the misfortune of being picked by her school teacher to bake the class a cake for the president’s birthday, or be denounced for disloyalty.
It is the early 1990s, the country is under crippling UN sanctions. She and her grandmother — with whom she shares a reed home in Iraq’s southern marshlands — can barely afford to eat.
As they set off into town to hunt down unaffordable ingredients, with Lamia’s pet cockerel and their last meagre belongings to sell, the film plunges into the social reality — and everyday petty corruption — of 1990s Iraq.
The near-total trade and financial embargo imposed on Iraq after it invaded Kuwait “demolished the moral fabric of society,” Hadi said.
It sent the country “hundreds of years back.”


The filmmaker said he did not taste cake until he was in his early teens, after the US-led invasion in 2003 toppled Saddam and sanctions were lifted.
Instead, with processed sugar and eggs out of reach, there was “date cake” — whose main ingredient was squished dates, sometimes with a candle on top.
“As a kid you’re sad that you’re not getting your cake,” he said. But as you grow up, you realize what your parents must have gone through to put food on the table.
“Not only my family, but all of these people had to sell literally everything,” he said. “There were people that were even selling their door frames.”
Hadi and his team shot the film entirely in Iraq.
It beautifully captures the ancient wetlands in the south of the country, listed as a World Heritage Site since 2016 and reputedly the home of the biblical Garden of Eden.
Saddam drained them in the 1990s, trying to flush out rebels hiding in the reeds.
But after the US-led invasion, authorities opened up the valves and the wetlands flourished again — even if they are now threatened by climate change.
Hadi said he chose the location partly to make the point that “the marshes stayed and Saddam went away.”


To re-create the Iraq of his youth, Hadi and his crew paid close attention to detail, amassing vintage clothes and bringing a barber on set to trim the hair and moustaches of everyone down to the extras.
They scouted out the best locations, shooting one scene in a small eatery reputed to have been frequented by Saddam himself.
They chose non-actors to play ordinary Iraqis under the ever-present eyes of the president in posters, pictures frames and murals.
Hadi said hearing US President Donald Trump say recently that he planned to lift sanctions on Syria after Islamists toppled president Bashar Assad last year was “amazing.”
“I don’t think the sanctions helped in any way to get rid of Bashar, but definitely empowered him to kill more people, and torture more people,” he said.