Sayed Darwish
Fascinated by music, he was an aficionado in particular of pioneering singer-songwriter Sayed Darwish. An initial foray as understudy for Ibrahim Hamouda, in a production by the Egyptian Troupe for Acting and Music Darwish’s operetta Shahrazad (Scheherezade) with direction by Zaki Talimat and an orchestra led by Mohammed Hassan Al-Shuja'i, was a failure. However, Rushdi gave him a second chance to work in her group as actor, composer, and singer. In 1944, Youssef Wahbi cast Fawzi in a small part in the film Saif Al-Jallad, in which he sang two songs of Darwish on the condition of dropping the Habs Abdel-Al Haw from his name. The role brought Fawzi to the attention of director Mohammed Karim, who cast him as the lead in the 1946 film Ashab El Saada alongside Suleiman Naguib and singer Ragaa Abdou. This time Fawzi was the one given a condition, namely plastic surgery for his slightly flat philtrum. The success of the film gave Fawzi the funds to start his eponymous production company in 1947.