Hollywood film and television scriptwriter Yasser Omar Shaheen participated in the latest episode of 'Otr Elkalam', an international Qur’an recitation and adhan competition being held in Riyadh.
The Palestinian-American contestant said he enjoys teaching Muslim children verses from the Qur’an and the rules of intonation in mosques in Dallas, Texas, Arab News reported.
“My life is a mixture of memorising and reciting the Holy Qur’an and writing scripts in Hollywood, where I have supervised the production of more than 130 programmes, produced 14 documentaries, and contributed to several shows on TV channels of Arab and Islamic countries,” he added.
More than 50,000 contestants from 165 countries registered to participate in the contest when it officially opened on January 4, 2023, and Mr Shaheen was one among 50 contestants from 23 countries who qualified for the final round of the competition.
In the initial rounds, contestants had to upload audio clips to earn a place on the show and those who cleared the electronic qualifying phases, are currently appearing for the finals in Riyadh before an arbitration committee.
Supervised by the General Entertainment Authority, 'Otr Elkalam' is being broadcast on MBC and the Shahid digital platform.
Prizes for the competition will amount to more than SR12 million ($3.2 million).