Where is Agrabah? The story behind the Aladdin casting controversy
Not everyone is happy with the decision to cast a British Indian actress as Princess Jasmine — rather than someone of Arab descent. But Aladdin was originally set in China
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Disney has announced the cast for its live-action adaptation of Aladdin — and not everyone is happy with the decision to cast a British Indian actress as Princess Jasmine.
At the company’s D23 Expo on Saturday, Disney production President Sean Bailey said that relative newcomer Mena Massoud will star as Aladdin, and Power Rangers’ star Naomi Scott will play Jasmine in the film directed by Guy Ritchie. Will Smith was confirmed to play Genie.
Even before the cast was announced, a story in the Hollywood Reporter about Disney’s struggle to find an Aladdin who can sing and act had prompted a debate about who should be cast — and where exactly the classic film is set. Some fans responded to the report by pointing out that Bollywood would be a great place to find a real-life Aladdin, while others countered by saying that an Arab actor should play the loveable street urchin.
Some fans wanted Canadian actor Avan Tudor Jogia to get the role (his father is a British Indian expatriate and his mother is of English, Welsh and German descent).
Others preferred British Indian actor Dev Patel, who rose to fame after starring in Slumdog Millionaire.
Pakistani American actor and Silicon Valley star Kumail Nanjiani even offered himself up for the role.
“Nobody in their right mind can state that it is impossible to find a young male South Asian or Middle-Eastern actor who can dance, sing and act,” German-Palestinian director Lexi Alexander told the BBC.
In the end, Disney settled on Massoud — a Coptic Egyptian who was raised in Markham, Ont., and recently graduated from Toronto’s Ryerson University.
But it’s the decision to cast a British-Indian actress as Jasmine that is proving controversial. After the announcement, some fans said they were disappointed that the role of Jasmine didn’t go to a Middle Eastern actress.
The debate over whether an Arab, Indian, or both can play the iconic roles has raised another question: where exactly is Aladdin set?
Aladdin originally hit the big screen in 1992, and a generation fell in love with the rags-to riches tale of a street urchin living in Agrabah. While a 2015 poll found that 30 per cent of Republican primary voters supported the U.S. bombing the city — it does not, in fact, exist.
Many people assume the fictional city is located somewhere in the Middle East, hence why they wanted Aladdin and Princess Jasmine to be played by Arab actors. The movie seems to support this idea. Princess Jasmine’s father is a Sultan (an arabic title), the movie features a song called Arabian Nights and in the opening lines of the film, the narrator greets the audience with “Salaam” (Arabic for hello) and locates the city somewhere in relation to the River Jordan, which straddles Israel and Jordan.
“Welcome to Agrabah, city of mystery, of enchantment, and the finest merchandise this side of the River Jordan,” the narrator says in the opening scene.
The character Gazeem also exclaims “By Allah” when he sees the Cave of Wonders for the first time.
However, others have identified similarities between the Sultan’s palace in Agrabah and the Taj Mahal in Agra, India.
Meanwhile, both sides of the debate — and the animated Disney movie — may have gotten it wrong. The original Aladdin story was actually set in China.
Aladdin is one of the stories compiled in The Thousand and One Nights — a collection of Middle Eastern and Indian folk tales, however, it did not appear in the original Arabic text. It was added by a French translator. In 1709, Antoine Galland wrote in his diary that he had heard the story from a Syrian man Youhenna Diab. In this version, Aladdin is the son of a deceased Chinese tailor and his poor widow. However, it is laden with Arab references — for example there is a sultan rather than an emperor — so it’s no wonder that later adaptations of Aladdin were set in the Middle East.
Disney had previously come under fire after English actor Tom Hardy was mentioned as a possibility for the role of the villain Jafar, leading to accusations of “whitewashing” parts that should go to actors of Middle Eastern descent. (Hardy later denied that he had been offered the role.)
One thing is certain, the live-action adaptation will be far more diverse than the animated original. In 1992, Disney was criticized for ethnic stereotyping. The original version of the opening song Arabian Nights included the line: “Where they cut off your ear, if they don’t like your face, it’s barbaric, but hey, it’s home.” The lyrics in the VHS version were updated to: “Where it’s flat and immense, and the heat is intense, it’s barbaric, but hey, it’s home.”
The original cast was also predominately white. Aladdin was voiced by Scott Weinger, who is known for playing Steve Hale on Full House. Another white American actor, Brad Kane, sang Aladdin’s songs. American TV actress Linda Larkin voiced Princess Jasmine, while Filipino actress Lea Salonga provided her singing voice. American comedian Jonathan Freeman played Jafar and Robin Williams was cast as Genie.
Nobody seems to have a problem with the fact that the blue Genie will be played by a black man, although some fans doubt that anyone will be able to live-up to Williams’ iconic performance.
With files from Emilie Must, The Washington Post and The Associated Press
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