Palast der Sehnsucht

Kamal, the youngest son of the beloved and feared family patriarch Abd al-Gawwad, clearly feels the hardships and hurdles of growing up: his first, violent love for the aristocrat’s daughter Aida remains unrequited and leaves him with the feeling that he was merely a means of a female scheme be. And his father harshly rejects his desire to become an English teacher, his enthusiasm for the national independence movement, and his interest in science, which makes him doubt religious customs; He demonizes Kamal as a heretic. Despite his longing for knowledge and freedom from the shackles of traditional traditions, Kamal feels paralyzed. Given the prevailing double standards, the dream of purity and beauty is in danger of being shattered. Discouraged, he begins to get drunk in wine stalls and wander through brothel alleys, while his brother Jasin and their father, without knowing each other, are vying for the love of the same young lute player – Zanuba. But this beguiling, demanding woman won’t let anyone play with her. She wants to be married and respected.