Behailu Wase: Ethiopia's Cafe Society | My Ethiopia
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- čas přidán 6. 09. 2024
- In a compound on the edge of Addis Ababa - next to a cluster of houses and a busy primary school - is a large corrugated iron shack.
Inside is a cafe. Not an ordinary cafe, but the set of Ethiopia’s first political satire show to be broadcast on state television - Min Litazez, which translates to "How may I serve you?".
"This is our mini Ethiopia," says creator and director Behailu Wase, who grew up in the same compound from where he now airs his popular show. "A lot of ideas are discussed here."
In the three seasons it has been on air, Min Litazez has built an enthusiastic and loyal audience among a population starved for political commentary and a new kind of comedy after almost 27 years of dictatorship during which such things would have been unthinkable.
But after Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed came to power in 2018, he instituted a number of political and economic reforms, including loosening restrictions on the media and freedom of speech.
The sitcom-satire is set in a cafe, meant to be a metaphor of the country as a whole. In each episode, the cafe owner's life tries to mirror and reflect the challenges faced by the country's new leadership.
Past episodes have dealt with issues like government inefficiency, ethnic nationalism and authoritarianism - despite attempts to censor some of the content and, at times, even temporary suspension of the show itself.
"We're not just trying to make people laugh, but raise awareness because we want to create a better country," Behailu says.
He acknowledges that ethnic politics are a thorny issue in Ethiopia, with sensitivities on all sides. But he adds: "We don't take sides. We reflect what we see, and we criticise everything we think should be criticised."
Each week, Behailu and his team go up against the clock to conceptualise, write, produce, shoot, edit and deliver a new episode for broadcast. They never shoot ahead of time because they insist on including the latest news and events in the script.
Each Monday, the team brainstorms to discuss what is topical and urgent, and they spin it into the outline of an episode. Behailu then retreats to a nearby restaurant and writes into the night.
By Wednesday they are in the studio shooting. On Thursday and Friday, they edit. And by Saturday the finished episode is taken on a flash drive to the building that houses Fana, Ethiopia's state-funded television network.
"I like exchanging ideas with my brilliant friends," Behailu says, adding that a big part of his Ethiopia is raising political and social issues through Min Litazez.
In this film, we follow Behailu and his team - getting a glimpse into their creative process and discipline - and take a unique look at Ethiopia's fast-changing political landscape and the public reaction to it.
Note: 'Min Litazez' was once again taken off air in September 2019. The series' creators are determined to restart production as soon as possible.
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I am Somali, I grew up in Addis and currently live in Canada. People like Behailu are very important for a country. They push a Country’s boundaries and move people out of their comfort zone. Something tells me he is about be a super star
@FRE wassie which ethnicity are you?
Max Farah well said
Why do you think Somalians always mention where they live is some sort of status?
You know you are a refugee right? You will be refugee, you will die refugee forever.
You need to come back to Somalia and build Somalia instead of wasting your time on youtube. 😂🤣😆
I’m proud of you guys congratulations 🎉you back to live.Menletazez the best
Ever reality showin Ethiopia.we really appreciate ሐገሬ Tv also Thank you so much thank so much.
Well Said Brother Farah 👌
I am somali grew up in adis, what i love from Ethiopians is their love of Country, in any were of the world there is incorrection and nothing is complete, but i love that loving unity and peace, may allah grant you peace and happiness
ደራሲው በቤተሰብህ ዙሪያ የተናገርክው ነገር እንዴት ደስ ይላል ለወላጆችህ እረዥም እድሜ እመኝልሀለሁ አባትህን 😘 አባቴ እወድሀለው አገላለፅህ እንዴት ደስ ይላል ለሀገርህም ለቤተሰብህም ፍቅር ያለህ ይመስለኛል ተባረክ 🙏💚💛❤
This is the best sitcom in Ethiopia sitcom history. I loved all three seasons and can’t wait for the new season.
the director/producer of this show is brilliant and i love his family and friends.
Amen
The best Ethiopian sitcom. Unfortunately, the government has stopped the show because it doesn’t tolerate free speech. So sad 😭
It's all about 💰. Don't tell me you don't know that. Too sad.
@Jalene Dinka
Can you be a little more specific?
I really loved this sitcom . It was fair ,unbiased to any side and hilarious. I’m sure if they want the audience can crowd fund it for more seasons.
I wish to see many more documentaries like this. this was great!
ምን እንደምልህ አላቅም በቃ ባንተ ንግግር ውስጥ ቤተሰቦቼን ተመልከትኩ እውነት ነው የሁሉነገር መሰረቱ ቤተሰብ ነው ሁሉም የዱሮውን አስተዳደጋችንን ያልተበረዘውን ማንነታቼንን ብንመለት እላለሁ በጣም ያላየንው በጣም ብዙ የሚያምር ባህል ባለቤቶች ነን ወንድሜ እግዛብሔር እድሜና ጤና ይስጥህ ከነቤተሰቦችህ ኢትዮጵያ ውስጥ ሆኜ እትዮጵያ ትናፍቀኛለች ባንተውስጥ ግን አሁንም አለች አሳይተህኛል ተባረክልኝ።
Behailu, you and your friends are doing a great job in bringing the socio-political issues to the art world. By that, I am sure you are provoking ordinary citizens to have political discussions about their country and exposing the government inefficiencies in varies areas. Thank you for your contribution!
Keep up the good work!
The most intelligent man I have ever known. This drama is very amazing & it reflect the reality what is going on Ethiopia right now.
This sitcom was very very interesting.I hope we will see it again.The story ,the actors the place every thing was so nice.Behailu you are one of Ethiopia’s precious sons.
It has already started today
Maximum Respect to Lij Behailu Wassie, his family, and his professional friends‼️💪🇨🇬
Good job behailu keep forward ur journey,ur strong and brilliant young men.
በጣም. ጉበዝ. ነህ. እግዚአብሒር. ይርዳህ.
እድለኛም. ነህ. የቤተሰብ. ባለጸጋ. በመሆንህ. እግዚአብሒር. ሥራችሁን. ይባርክ
እንደዚህ. ያሉትን. ኢትዮጵያውያንን. ይብዛልን
ሀገርን. መውደድ. ሽልማት. ነው
one of the best sitcom in Ethiopia ever that tries to limit political power by creating political entities through entertaining the audience
በነፃነት ቢሰሩ ደግሞ እንዴት ምርጥ ይሆን ነበር አሁንም ምርጥ ነው ግን ነፃነት ደግሞ አስፈሌጊ ነው
long live my Country Ethiopia
Such An inspiring man. He is a part of everything in his world and does this with great humanity.
Kathleen McCormick 🤣
Lots of Respect ! 🇪🇹
ጠንካራ ሰው ነህ ፈጣሪ በብዙው ይባርክህ ይቀድስህ።
Such a wonderful group of people & a great work ! I am so impressed . Good luck guys !!!
እግዚያብሄር ይጠብቃችሁ ምን ልታዘዞች
በጣም ድንቅ ቃለምልልስ ነው ። በርቱንኝ ቸሩ መድሀኒያለም ያበርታችሁ !!!
Good to see you doing what you love waje. Keep following and sharing the truth.
I was class mate with your sister Frehiwot Wase...Great Family ! Well done👏🏻
Jogman Free, she was my class mate too at Belay zeleke #2......and their neighborhood is G***A menged.....
Jogman Free like like like....
We were in the same school then🤔
Hey Mr.Jogman if I see your pic. You might be my classmate too.
what a beautiful documentary ... i wish it could be long ... wase i respect u
This sitcom is by far the best and forecasted everything correct. We have seen it in real government executions. Thank you MIN LITAZEZ
ምን ልታዘዝ ሀገራዊ የሆነ ምርጥ ድራማ ደራሲውን አደንቃለሁ 👍👍👍
ኢትዮጵያ ሀገራችን ፖለቲከኞች ወይም መሪ ሳይሆን የጎደላት
የኢትዮጵያን ኤኮኖሚ ለውጥ በሙያ ዘርፎች ላይ በሂደት ለመቀይር ለመለወጥ
ህዝቡን የሚሰማ ህዝቡን የማዳምጥ መንግስት እና መሪ ግድ ነው
ምርጥ ስራ ነው ፈጣሪ ይባርክ እስክ መላው ቤተስብ ድንቅ ስራ ነው ❤️🙏🏾👏🏾
ኢትዮጵያ እና ህዝባችንን ፈጣሪ ይባርክ ❤️🙏🏾👏🏾
ደራሲዉን አለማድነቅ አልችልም የምትወዳት የኢትዮጵያ አምላክ ይባርክኽ ወድማችን ❤❤❤❤
We are very proud of you brother... our beautiful country need's more people like you. 🙏🙏
This show is kind of a modern day "Kene" ("Seme Ena Worke"). On the surface, it is comedy. On the flip side it's a sharp and hilarious political satire especially for those who follow Ethiopian politics.
A wonderful satire comedy..
But it is sad that some people are so jealous and as is speaks the truth those people conspired against it.
This is my brother!! No word to express what I felt while I was watching this documentary. I'm so proud of you Behailu. We are a big fan of your show
MENLETAZEZ!!! Keep up the good job! God got your back.
behayelu you are my hero min litazez is my favorite satayer comedy i get alot from this drama keep it up
I like Behailu Wasse & the whole crew, very talented....
One of my favorite show. Hope it will televised again.
በሀይሉ ዋሴ አንበሳ ነሽ ከነ አክተሮችሽ ጨርቦሌና አያልቅበት በጣም ተመችተውኛል ያልገባኝ የእድል ነገር ነው ማንን ነው የምትወክለው ።ጋሽ ተሀለንም እጅ ነስተናል ሁላችሁም ምርጥ ናችሁ በርቱ።
Are u guys u did an amazing job. #1 Ethiopia best sitcom drama
Woooow this guy's are impressed me !! Thanks Al Jazeera
I Love All Of Ur Films
Please, Keep Going Waje👏👏👏👏
What kind of practical change you want, practically you are working on the first-ever political satire sitcom in Ethiopia, this is one of a tangible change "Freedom of Speech " basic democracy, which we never saw in the past. we need to give credit to our prime mr Dr Abiy and move forward.
Thank u well said
haha that is why the show was banned while former dictators with their billions stolen live a luxurious life
💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙 love to these beautiful people!!
Min Litazez is absolutely brilliant! Unparalleled writing and acting of a surgical sociopolitical satire! Wish Behailu and team the very best. Wonder if there is a link to donate for this important and courageous work.
በሃይሉ ጠንቋይ ነህ ወይ! በዚህ ኢንተርቪው ያነሳኸውን ሃሳብ ዛሬ ስሰማው ምን አይነት አስተውሎት እንዳለህ አሳይቶኛል!
It is Very sad to see the repressive gvt allows Oromo radicals to spread their hatred day and night and working toward the destruction of the country
However silence any dissent or opposition ideas and those working towards unity and advocating Ethiopianism.
@@SASA-un7ix well oromos seem to be fighting for the region and their superiority over the region oromia also to control a city all Ethiopians raised from the ground while most others are fighting for unity and a stronger united Ethiopia by creating united parties not Ethnic ones. While the other side is focused on oppressing the freedom of speech of people living in it's region playing the victim burning the churches and ethnic cleansing
No word,to express my filing.
Third
Inspired by the story....
Oh can't wait to c it again
The best, brilliant and funny satire ever! I wish if it continues by having sponsorship!!
You are amazing ❤❤
ምን ልታዘዝ ማለት ሕይወታችንን ኑሮችንን ያለንበትን ሁኔታ...... የዛሬ 20፣30 ዓመት ሳይሆን አሁን ያለንበትን አሁኑኑ ቁልጭ አድርጎ የቀረበ ገመናችን ነው
I am a fan of your show, keep up the good work bro.
This show no longer airs. The government made it discontinued. 😞
I love this show. Please come back
I still watch the sitcom it should not be stopped
ጀግና ደራሲ ነክ በሀይሉ ዋሴ
Wow... impressive!
Keep up the good job. 👍👍👍😍😍😍😍
Ethiopian Government blocked sponsored agencies like Awash Bank standing for the ruling party 😢😢😢😢
what a brilliant you are wase? I admire u for your contributions.
Love your story. True Ethiopian.
Egzabher yestek I am so Proud of you.
I swear just ditch tv all together and focus on youtube you are already getting 100k views a video that will for sure grow. You can make way more on youtube ditch tv
Thanks 🙏 aljazira
በቡዙ ተስፋ የምጠብቀው ኮኮባችን ደራሲ ቡዙ እጠብቃለን
በጣም ነው የማድነቀው
This is awesome!
ዋጄ ጀግና ነህ የምር በርታ አባቴ
Brilliant!
Nice video 👍
Melkam Addis Amet 🌼🌼🌼
👍 Min litazeze its our daily life ❗the government know it but they didn't solve the problem we needs fresh mind .
ዋጄ ነፍሴ አድናቂህ ነኝ ። እንግሊዝኛ ባትደባልቅ ስታወራ ጥሩ ነው። ምክንያቱም ለሀበሻ ነው የምታስተላልፈው
Semi Tse Semi you are right but He was trying to tell to the Aljezera journalists what he exactly feel. Thank you
በርታ ዋጄ !!
Correction Ethiopian Christianity starts not 4 century it starts 0034.
ሁለተኛው አዲሱ ምን ልታዘዝ ውስብስብ ነው ፤ ሌቦቹ መሪዎች ነን ባዮችም ገበናቸው ተገልጧል አሁን ፤ እግዜር ከእውነተኛው ( ከወቅቱ) የእስር አብዮት ይጠብቃችሁ እሱን ነው የመኝላችሁ !!!
Waje please find any means may be on jossy show or create your own you tube We got you you had all Ethiopian people behind your back if they had a brain they would have benefit from it it didn’t happen forget those who is in the same chair but different people it is a matter of time please we need show
Al Jazeera, Go back and do a documentary again, Now Behailu is doing and broadcasting another extremely popular SitCom like " Ethiopia's Prison Society" ....go and do Part II documentary....
Superstar. Amazing artist.
What I liked the most about this show is the messages intended to pass are ironic and contemporary to the current politics of the country. I would also like to appreciate the crew working with low facilities but yet good shots. However, the idea is not truly original. It is inspired by the tv sitcom named '2 Broke Girls'. Such issues as using cafe by itself, character development, and major casts behaviors (role) are some of the aspects taken from the sitcom. It takes a courage and artistic capacity even to do that though. So, keep going guys.
Aw my favorite writer! I am so proud of you! The only Ethiopian sitcom I watch is urs! Thank you Al jazzera for giving him the coverage, he really deserves it! He is full of talent, and very courageous! We are grateful that u are Ethiopian! Thank you again!
This satire comedy show was extremely chock full with brilliant and awesome ideas regarding the current poletical, social and economical situations of ETHIOPIA but, banned with the dictator and corrupted, government.
👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽
Really minletazez is very nice sitcom.
ጀግና
interesting, about the drama i liked it at the beginning then it become too politicized lot, and the fun and teaching part become what we call it "dereke hone"
I am proud because I am Ethiopian
Keep up good job u are so brilliant Wajay 👌🏾
number 1
I hope min litazez continues as it's currently banned from air by the state owned TV station.
I just can’t thank you enough Al jazzera for giving him this coverage, it means a lot to us (Ethiopians! ) the sitcom speaks for us( Ethiopians) ! It is literally our life! Oh I am so happy for you! I am gonna start watching Al Jazzera from now on😂 seriously guys we appreciate it!
Staaaayyyy bleeesseed behailu!!!👍
antem yana ethiopiawii nah ena kante buzu selmintbkiiii be strong bro l gize ena l genzeb bota endatsete b/ce uwnatun yatifal ena keeep it imisss mn litaziz cafeeee
The government interfered and banned this sitcom drama. He was also prison for days. Now the TV channel is start new drama on the same time. Our government is so dictator than all time.
Brilliant Behailu Wase
Great man
Congratulations
keep telling the truth, even if its challenging!!!
still we are suffering with this prime minster
We Love you waje!
በሰላም ነው ጠፋችሁ እኔ ደግሞ ታስራችሁ ነው ብየ ስለካፌ እሚያወራውን በሙሉ ስለሚያሰቃይ
Respect