The Indefatigable Rise of Rawan Bin Hussain | Harper’s Bazaar Qatar Special, Spring 2024 Issue
From a law degree to a trending Netflix series, the Kuwaiti actress and singer is carving out her own path
From chart-topping hits to Netflix blockbusters, 27-year-old Rawan Bin Hussain is a star on the ascent. Having releasing her first single Kan Ya Ma Kan, she has gone on to play career-defining roles in major films and series with a breakout performance in She’s Gone With Water catapulting her into a household name across the region. Growing up, however, she didn’t see the entertainment industry as a viable career option. “I loved singing for friends and family but I come from a very conservative background,” she tells Bazaar. “I was an A-student, excelling in geography, politics, and French, and my parents wanted me to be a doctor, a lawyer, or an engineer. I decided to pursue a law degree at King’s College London.”
The shift into music only came during, and because of, the Covid pandemic. “It was such a challenging time,” she recalls. “We all thought the world was ending and I was simultaneously going through a divorce.” That unsettling feeling led to an epiphany; an understanding that life is fleeting and we should make the most of it. “I decided that I wanted to follow my heart and start doing music professionally. I made my first song – Kan Ya Ma Kan – and haven’t looked back.”
From music, she moved into acting but, as a renowned beauty, was quick to realise that some producers were only interested in her looks. “They didn’t really believe in me as an actress,” she tells Bazaar. “I didn’t want to be cast purely because of my appearance so I took my time and waited for the right producer, director and team that believed in me.” That break came with She’s Gone With Water, a Kuwaiti drama based on a novel by Laila al-Othman that became a major hit for Netflix. Rawan followed this with political thriller The Deep Fate, an Arabic series that also trended throughout the region.
Despite her career change, her parents have remained her biggest fans. “My mother, may she rest in peace, was always very supportive, and even helped me with my first song. My dad is especially supportive of my acting career. He watches all of my series and my music videos and gives me feedback. I am very lucky to have a backbone like him.”
Her refusal to be typecast, and choice of hard-hitting dramas underwritten by political and social commentary, has helped her carve a name for herself as a rising star in the acting world. Combined with her success as a singer, she is embracing her talent as a multi-faceted woman. How important is that ethos that as women, we can do it all? “Look at Haifa Wehbe and Jennifer Lopez,” she says. “They are legendary performers and actresses and also entrepreneurs. I do what I enjoy and focus on that. Society cannot box me in, I will keep doing me.”
“The unsettling feeling of the pandemic led to an epiphany; an understanding that life is fleeting and we should make the most of it.”
It’s an empowering message that she hopes to instil in her daughter, Luna, crediting becoming a mother with changing her perception and awakening her to new possibilities. “I always say that my daughter raised me more than I raised her,” she confides. “First of all, Luna taught me how to take care of myself, how to think of the future and how to plan things. I was young, fun and full of life when I had her but I was also inexperienced. I don’t blame my young self, I got married at 22, and my younger self didn’t know anything – at 22, what did I know about life? If you gave me ten million dollars, I would find a way to spend it. Luna taught me to focus on me, to have a long-term plan, to invest. The first lesson that I will teach her, which is also very personal for me and I only learned at a late stage, is to love herself no matter what. Whatever people think of her is a reflection of them, they are projecting onto her. What people think of her does not make her who she is, does not give her value, she is valuable regardless; she is enough.”
Having been diagnosed with Lupus — an autoimmune disease — back in September, that message of self-love has taken on new meaning. “It was a wake-up call,” Rawan tells Bazaar. “A reminder of the importance of really taking care of myself and loving myself because if my health is gone then Rawan is gone and the mother of Luna is gone. Today I eat better, I sleep better, I respect my mental health, I treat people better, and I treat myself better.”
Body positivity has always been a part of her mindset, encouraging her followers and fans to embrace healthy eating and fitness. During Covid, she launched a weight loss challenge but in recent years her approach has broadened to take on an altogether more holistic approach to wellness. “It’s not so much about weight loss, but rather the whole lifestyle, the whole package. My followers have seen the way I have taken care of myself since my diagnosis and I want to encourage them to also take care of themselves so I created the Rawan Fitness Challenge. People come in all sizes and all shapes. I want them to focus on fitness, on wellness, and on being healthy.”
Outside of wellness, where does she find peace? “If I want to feel grounded, I go back to Kuwait, to the place I grew up. My mother is buried in Kuwait so I feel like I am closer to her, too. I also find peace with my daughter, doing the things that I love — creating music, being in my element, brainstorming ideas, reading scripts. I really genuinely love and enjoy my job and find peace in it. It really makes me happy.”
Photographer: Amer Mohamad. Styling by: Seher Khan. Qatar Director: Bianca Brigitte Bonomi. Acting Group Editor: Natasha Faruque. Hair: Maggie Semaan. Make-Up: Manu Losada. Senior Producer: Steff Hawker. Producer’s Assistant: Rania Algethami. Lighting’s Assistant: Yasir Ali. Stylist’s Assistant: Yasmin Reda. Special thanks to One & Only The Palm
From Harper’s Bazaar Qatar Special, Spring 2024 Issue