Abdurrahman Shala, actor, director, passed away. He was born in Vushtrri (Kosova), in 1922. He studied acting in Belgrade. From 1948 he started working at the Regional People’s Theater in Prishtina as an actor and director. As a director, he directed over 35 shows. With the play “Zhelanët” by Matje Bori, he received the first prize at the Festival of Theaters of Yugoslavia in Belgrade (1952), where he was also awarded the best actor award in the same show. But Abdurrahman Shala made his artistic profile as an actor with a multitude of roles in theater and film. After 1968, Abdurrahman Shala left the theater and devoted himself to cinematography, where he successfully performed many roles in the films: “Rafale in the sky” (1958), “Captain Leshi” (1960), “Revenge” (1962), “Uka i Bjeshkëve të Nemuna” (1968), “Ballad for the bloodsucker” (1971), “How to die” (with which he won the “Bronze Arena” award at the Pula Festival), “The red attack” (1974), “Wind and Oak” (1979), “Man of the Soil” (1984), “Before the Rain” (1994) etc. With his manly attitude, restrained emotions and minimalistic gestures, Abdurrahman Shala created a special style of acting, which made him one of the most valuable actors in the former Yugoslavia. Apart from being a director and actor, Abdurrahman Shala also contributed to the creation and development of the Kosova Theater and the film house “Kosovafilm” (1969), where he was the director for several years. For his contribution to the development of stage art and cinematography, he was awarded with awards and recognition. (In the photo: Abdurrahman Shala)
Text: The encyclopedic dictionary of Kosova – Vol. II , Academy of Sciences and Arts of Kosova, Prishtina, 2018, page 1562.
Photo: © https://mubi.com/en/cast/abdurrahman-shala
Graphic processing: AHCF
