Once in Every Time

Kuwaiti TV series

Kaan fi Kel Zemaan or Once in Every Time (Arabic: كان في كل زمان) is a Kuwaiti TV series that started airing 27 May 2017 and finished on the 25th of June. The series is composed of 30 episodes, with each couple of episodes featuring a completely different and unrelated story.

Stories' names are:

  1. The Charge, "Allahu Akbar"
  2. The Deaf (one)
  3. August Treachery[1]
  4. Sa`ad... of People with Special Happiness[2]
  5. Her Job: Theif
  6. House Pigeon
  7. Um es-Sa`af we-l-lif (Mother of Fronds and Leaves)[3]
  8. Rgayya the Vulturish
  9. With You in Secret, Against You in Public
  10. You name Mary, Me Name Madame.[4]
  11. Watch Over Your Brother

Story 1 edit

  • - ما طلع ارهابي
    -احنا الي طلعنا ارهابيين؛ الارهاب مو انك تزرع قمبلة -لأ-، الارهاب انك تزرع فِكِر غلط.
  • -He wasn't a terrorist, afterall.
- We were the terrorists; terrorism isn't planting a bomb -no-, terrorism is planting a wrong idea.
    • Sebicha (Su`aad `Abdalla), Episode 1

  • - إذا بدَّلنا الأدلَّة، ما الفرق بيننا، وبين دُول العالم الثالث؟ نحن هنا دولة قانون وحقوق إنسان.

- اترك هذه الشعارات جانبًا واسمعني جيِّدًا، على أرض الواقع، مستقبلنا الوظيفي في خطر.
- هذه ليست شعارات، هذه مبادئ، هربنا من أوطاننا لكي نحتمي بها هنا، في هذه الدولة المدنية وشعارنا الحُرِّيَّة، والعدالة، والمساواة. أنت يهودي، وأنا مُسلم، وهو مسيحي، الدين، بيننا وبين الله. ليس كل مسلم إرهابي، ولا كُلُّ يهوديٍّ صهيوني؛ أليس هذا ما تعلمناه هنا؟
-اسمعني جيِّدًا يا خان، نحن الآن في حالة حرب، وداعش قد أعلن مسؤوليته.
-كلنا نعلم، أن داعش يتبنى أي عملية في العالم، لإثبات قُوَّتها [ك‍] وقُدرتها [ك‍].
-لذلك سنهزمهم إعلاميًّا، وسنرد عليهم بنفس أسلوبهم. لن نخسر تلك الحرب... أنا أُفضِّل إدانة امرأة بريئة، على إدانة جهازنا الأمني.

  • Khan: If we changed the evidence, what will the difference between us and third-world countires be? We are here in a country of law and human-rights...
Khan's Colleague: Leave these slogans behind and listen to me well; In real life, our jobs are at risk.
Khan: These aren't "slogans", these are principals; we fled our countries seeking their protection here, in this civil country and our slogan is Freedom, Justice, and Equity. You are Jewish, and I am Muslim, and he is Christian, religion, is between us and God. Not every Muslim is a terrorist, and not every Jewish is a Zionist, isn't this what we learned?
Khan's Colleague: Listen to me well, Khan, we are in a state of war, and DAESH has claimed its responsibility.
Khan: We all know that DAESH claims responsibility over any [terrorist] operation in the world, to prove its power and ability. :Khan's Colleague: And that's why we will defeat them via media, we will not lose that war. I prefer charging and innocent woman, over condemning our security apparatus.
    • Khan, a detective in the British anti-terrorist forces and his colleague, Episode 2

Story 3 edit

  • -لچ هاي الأوامر، من سيدي القائد، صدام حسين

-لا لأ لأ احنا ما عندنا سادة، سيدك انت صدام حسين سيدك انت بس. احنا عندنا بس واحد واسمه بابا جابر. صدام حسين سيدك انت بس. بس انت تفهم احنا عندنا بابا جابر

  • Iraqi soldier: These are orders, from my master the leader, Saddam Hussein
Rasha: No no no we don't have masters, Saddam is your master only. We only have one and his name is Baba Jaber.[5] Saddam is YOUR leader ONLY, YOU HEAR ME YOUR LEADER ONLY.
    • Rasha (Shujoun el-Hajri), Episode 6

  • -تتحمد على سلامتك؟!... الكويت الي انذبحت
  • You thank God for your safety?! ... Kuwait is the one that got killed.
    • Rasha (Shujoun el-Hajri), Episode 6

  • وين اهدى الكويت راحت راحت... ربت ذيب ورضعته، ولما كبر كلاها
  • How can I calm down, Kuwait is gone, gone... she raised a wolf and fed it and when it grew up it ate her (Kuwait).
    • Taiba (Su`aad `Abdalla), Episode 6

  • يمه، يمه بنيتي سمعيني: الكويت ماهي مقبرة تعيش على جثثنا وعلى دمنا، لا يمه لأ، لأ، الكويت اليوم، وباچر، وعقب باچر ودب الدهر. ياما ناس، يا ما ناس يموتون عشان يظل الوطن عايش، وناس يعيشون عشان يعيش الوطن ويكبر معاهم ويكبرونه. مرت علينا سنين أسوأ من چذي، هذي مو اوَّل ازمة؛ مرَّت علينا ازمات يا يمه؛ هدامَّه والطاعون واليدري (الجُّدري) تعديناها كلها كلها يا رشا. الكويت اليوم، وباچر، وعقب باچر، "ولا تقنطوا من رحمة الله". الله فوق يا يمه، الله فوق
  • My sweetheart, my sweetheart listen to me: Kuwait isn't a graveyard that lives on our corpses and blood, no sweetheart no, no, Kuwait is today, and tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow, and eternity. Many people, many people die so that the nation lives, and people who live so that the nation lives and grow up with them and they bring it up. We have seen years worse than this, this isn't the first crisis; we have seen crises, sweetheat: Haddama[6] and Ta`oun[7] and Joudary[8], we passed all of them, all of them Rasha (her daughter's name). Kuwait is today, and tomorrow, and after tomorrow. "Do not despair of the mercy of God"[9]. God is above[10] sweetheat, God is above.
    • Taiba (Su`aad `Abdalla), Episode 7

  • شروق: والي ببطني انا حامل شفيك. تبي ولدي يتيتَّم قبل لا ينولد؟ ليش قع تسوي فيني چذي؟!!

لافي: عشانچ حامل؛ عشانچ حامل ابي اطلع؛ عشان هذا ينولد واهو عزيز على ارضه

  • Shurouq: And the baby in my belly, what's wrong with you I'm pregnant. Do you want my son to be orphaned before he is born?! Why are you doing this to me?
Laafi: Because you are pregnant, because you are pregnant I want to go (and fight), so that this child is born honoured and strong on his own land.
    • Shurouq to her husband Laafi before he leaves to participate in the resistance, Episode 7

Story 5 edit

  • حَقَّقوا مع حرامية: الي بايق دوا... قال بروح أوديه لوالدي لأنه تعبان. الي مختلس من بنك... قال بروح اسدد ديوني لاني مطلوب. الي بايق ذهب... قال بروح ابيعه وادز الفلوس لاهلي مو لاقين ياكلون. الي بايق امان الناس واعمارهم بعبوة متفجرة... قال ابي اروح الجنَّة
  • (They) investigated with some thieves: the one who stole a medicine... said he wanted to take it to his father who was not feeling well. The one who embezzled a bank... said he wanted to pay his debts because he was wanted. The one who stole gold, said he wanted to sell it and send its money to his family who can't afford to buy something to eat. The one who stole people's lives and safety with an IED... said he wanted to go to heaven.
    • Sharifa (Su`aad `Abdalla), Episode 12

Story 6 edit

  • ثمن زُجاجة الماء في ممر الجمعية 100 فلس..

قيمة زجاجة الماء وانت في ذمة الصحراء حياتك
الفرق بين الثمن والقيمة هو الفرق بين الـ100 فلس وحياتك

  • The cost of a water bottle in a supermarket is 100 Fils (≈ 0.32 US$)
    The value of a water bottle in the middle of the desert is you life
    the difference between cost and value is the difference between 100 Fils and your life.
    • Episode 13
  • لا تُخبرني أنَّنا شُعوب لا نقرأ؛ في الحقيقة، نحن نقرأ بلا توقُّف. نقرأ لحد الإدمان. الجدات، أحفاد، بُسطاء، هامشيُّون، والفاعلون. نحن لا نفعل شيئًا في مجتمعاتنا مؤخرًا، سوى القراءة المتواصلة. رسائل الوتس آب، تغريدات توِتر، قوائم الطعام، تعليقات أنستگرام، ترجمة الأفلام الأجنبيَّة، لكن لا أحد يتجرَّأ على فتح كتاب؛ لأن الكُتُب، لأصحاب النفس الطويل؛ ونحن في لهاث مُستمر.
  • Don't tell me we are peoples that don't read; in fact, we read non-stop. we read until addiction. Grandmothers, grandsons, simple people, bystanders, and the do-ers. We do not do nothing in our communities recently, except continuous reading. WhatsApp messages, Twitter tweets, food menus, Instagram comments, foreign movies subtitles. But nobody dares open a book; because books, are for those with long breath, and we are in a continuous pant.
    • Anisa (Su`aad `Abdalla), Episode 14

Story 8 edit

  • كل نفس ذائقة الموت، صدق الله العظيم؛ بس مو كل نفس تذوق الحياة. احنا ما نموت دفعة وجدة مثل ما نتصور؛ احنا نموت يوميًّا بالأقساط؛ لما نفارق أحد نحبه، أو نفقد الوناسة بشوفة ياهل بالعربانة الصبح، ونستبشر بويهه الخير، او نتجاهل نظرة أحد، متعشم فينا
  • "Every soul (will) taste death"[11], God Almighty has spoken the truth[12], but not every soul taste life. We do not die once, as we imagine; we die daily on instalments; when we part someone we love, or miss the joy of seeing a baby in his/her stroller in the morning, and anticipate good tidings after seeing their face, or ignore the look of someone, who has no one but us.
    • Rgayya (Su`aad `Abdalla), Episode 20

Cast edit

  • Su`aad `Abdalla
  • Shujoun El-Hajri as Rasha in August Treachery (episodes 5-7)
  • Fatma Es-Saffi
  • Abdelmehsen el-Gaffas
  • Jasem el-Nabhaan
  • Slaimaan el-Yasin
  • Elhaam el-Fadhaala
  • Maraam
  • Ali Kaakouli
  • Farah el-Sarraaf
  • Hamad Ashkanaani

External links edit

Notes edit

  1. In Kuwait, "August Treachery" refers to the dawn of 2 August 1990, when the Iraqi forces invaded Kuwait
  2. In Arabic, this is a word play on the phrase "Special Needs" i.e. handicapped people
  3. In Kuwaiti Methology, Um es-Sa`af we-l-lif is a fictional supernatural woman who controls the fronds and leaves of Palm trees and kidnaps children
  4. The ungrammaticalness is intentional and it is intended to imitate the way Arabs talk to people from southwest Asia who take low-wage jobs and who usually have hard times understanding real-life Arabic
  5. "Baba Jaber" which means "Dad Jaber", is what many Kuwaitis used to call the Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Subah. This still do the with the current Emir, calling him Baba Subah
  6. 1934 in Kuwait: a year with exceptionally heavy rains that demolished many mud houses and infrastructure and affected an estimated 18,000 people and rendered 2 people dead.
  7. 1831 in Kuwait: A year in which the plague spread across the city, causing an epidemic and taking the lives of thousands.
  8. 1931 in Kuwait: A year in which the pox spread across Kuwaiti City, rendering an estimated 7 thousand fatalities, most of whom where children.
  9. This is a verse from the Quran (39:53)
  10. "God is above" is an expression that roughly means "God is just and omnipotent"
  11. Quran 3:185
  12. "God Almighty has spoken the truth" - "صدق الله العظيم" is an expression commonly said after reciting the Quran or verses of it.