B
Photo of Biyouna

Biyouna

Actor, WriterBorn September 13, 1952 (72 years)
Baya Bouzar (Arabic: باية بوزار; born September 13, 1952), known by the stage name Biyouna (بيونة), is an Algerian singer, dancer, and actress born in Belcourt, now known as Belouizdad, Algiers, Algeria.

Having a very early passion for singing, she was a member of several groups : first in Fadhéla Dziria's group where she played tambourine, another that she directed with her partner Flifla, and finally her own where she was the main vocalist and became sought after for wedding receptions.

At the age of 17, she began performing in some of the biggest cabarets in the city and at 19 started dancing at the Copacabana.

That same year, the director Mustapha Badie gave her a singing part in his first soap opera, La Grande Maison (1973), where she played Fatma. This show was adapted from a novel by Mohamed Dib. She became well-known thanks to this role.

She appeared in two Algerian films : Leila and the others, by Sid Ali Mazif in 1978, and The Neighbor, by Ghaouti Bendedouche in 2000. She also performed some one-woman shows. In 1999, Nadir Moknèche offered her the role of Meriem in Madame Osmane's Harem which she produced in France. This film was followed by Viva Laldjéri in 2003.

Between 2002 and 2005, Biyouna had success with a trilogy based on the theme of Ramadan called 'Nass Mlah City.

She appeared in the last film of Nadir Moknèche, Délice Paloma, where she played the main character, a mafiosa named Madame Aldjeria. In 2006 she performed the role of Coryphée in Sophocles' Elektra beside Jane Birkin in an opera directed by Philippe Calvaio. In 2007 she had a small role in the Algerian film Rendez-vous avec le destin.

In 2009, she played La Celestina at the Vingtième Théâtre in Paris. For Ramadan, 2010, Biyouna was one of the stars in a sitcom broadcast on Nessma TV, Nsibti Laaziza.

Meanwhile, she was continuing her singing career and in 2001 issued the album Raid Zone, produced with the composer John Bagnolett. After the success of this album and her participation in Jérome Savary's Opéra de Casbah she brought out another album called Blonde dans la casbah. She had been planning this album for some time. Biyouna took her time, carefully choosing a Franco-Algerian repertoire which explored both cultures.

She lives with her husband and four children in a suburb of Algiers

Known For

  • The Source
  • Belleville Cop
  • Viva Laldjérie
  • I Still Hide to Smoke
  • Délice Paloma
  • Bacon on the Side
  • Wrestling Queens
  • The Harem of Madame Osmane
  • Mohamed Dubois
  • La planque
  • Holiday
  • Cheba Louisa
  • The Age of the Stateless
  • Family Shake

Filmography

2019
Family Shake (TV Series) · as Khaddoudj
2018
Belleville Cop · as Zohra
2018
Les déguns · as La Mère De Nono
2018
Neuilly Yo Mama II · as Fatima
2018
2017
The Red Band Society (FR) (TV Series) · as Grand Mère Nour
2016
2014
Take-Away Romance · as La Grand-Mère D'amelle
2014
Les trois frères, le retour · as Grand-Mère De Sarah
2013
Before the Winter Chill · as La Mère De Lou
2013
Wrestling Queens · as Fadela
2013
Cheba Louisa · as Zohra
2013
Mohamed Dubois · as Djamila
2012
La baie d'Alger · as Bibi
2011
The Source · as Vieux Fusil
2011
Arab on the City · as La Mère De Khalid
2011
La planque · as La Voyante
2010
Holiday · as Eva Lopez
2010
Bacon on the Side · as Houria
2010
Nsibti Laaziza (TV Series) · as Barisa
2007
La Commune (TV Series) · as Hanifa Houbeyche
2007
Délice Paloma · as Zineb Agha / Madame Aldjéria
2006
Beur blanc rouge · as La Mère De Wassila
2004
Viva Laldjérie · as Papicha
2002
Nass Mlah City (TV Series) · as Bayana Jones
2000

Take Plex everywhere

Watch free anytime, anywhere, on almost any device.
See the full list of supported devices