When a fire breaks out in a strict girls’ school, Hayat, the school principal, takes it upon herself to investigate the accident. In From the Ashes, Shaima Al Tayeb plays Hayat.
Hayat is the principal of Secondary School 2300 for Girls. However, more often than not, she is absent from school.
Hayat and her husband separated years ago. Although her husband now has another family, he still wishes to remain close to their daughter, Rana.
Hayat is bitter about her ex-husband’s prolonged absence, leading her to prevent him from meeting or talking to Rana.
She demands that he pay her six years’ worth of expenses, even though she has sufficient wealth of her own.
Hayat and her ex-husband find themselves embroiled in legal battles that require her presence in court every other day, thereby keeping her away from school.
Neglecting responsibilities
Hayat keeps leaving Seham, the vice-principal, in charge of the school when she is away, but she never takes any of Seham’s suggestions.
Seham insists that Hayat take action against the school bullies, but Hayat never does, believing that the bullying will only make the students tough.
One day, when Hayat is away, a fire breaks out in the school. Rana is among the students who are trapped inside the building, but she manages to survive.
Rana’s best friend, Amira, and a teacher lose their lives in the accident, and Amira’s mother holds Hayat responsible for failing to ensure her daughter’s safety.
Although Hayat has never shown concern for any of her students, she visits injured students and teachers in the hospital.
In the hospital, Mashael’s mother tells Hayat that she will be able to find the person who is responsible for Amira’s death, as Rana knows what happened that day.
When the staff was helping students evacuate the building, Rana informed Mashael’s mother that Amira was in the storeroom.
The fact that her daughter’s actions caused Amira’s death disappoints Hayat. She then decides to find a way to save Rana, even if it means ruining other students’ lives.
Finding a scapegoat
When the school reopens, Hayat starts investigating the accident to find out who locked Amira in the storeroom.
She claims that she is rectifying her mistake of not taking action against the bullies, when in fact, she is attempting to frame someone else for Amira’s murder.
Apart from threatening Mashael’s mother to stay quiet about Rana’s involvement, Hayat intimidates Heba, Mona, and Mashael, turns them against each other, and expels them.
She succeeds in framing Heba for Amira’s murder. Heba goes to prison, and Hayat is relieved that Rana’s involvement in the crime is buried forever.
Hayat expects Rana to be the best student, but no matter how hard Rana works, she is not able to satisfy her mother.
Hayat gives Rana a hard time about her perfectly good grades. It was Rana’s desperation to make her mother proud that led her to lock Amira in the storeroom.
When Rana realizes that her mother sees her as a failure and a disappointment and that she does not regret falsely accusing Heba, Rana stops trying to win her approval.
Unlike her mother, Rana regrets her actions and wishes to take responsibility. She brings the truth to light. As a result, Rana goes to prison, and Hayat loses her job.
Also Read: Rana: From the Ashes character explained
