Let’s leave our journalistic reserve aside: if it had been up to us, The Kahena would not have been the first candidate eliminated from Drag Race France. The Parisian drag queen, originally from Tunisia and who borrowed her pseudonym from the famous Berber queen, still had the potential to surprise and wow audiences. But Nicky Doll’s verdict – “Sashay, it’s over” – is like the sentence of Koh Lanta : irrevocable. 20 minutes received this Monday the reaction of the 29-year-old artist who was keen to represent Arab-Muslim culture.
Was being the first candidate to leave a scenario that you had anticipated?
No. Not at all (laughs). The scenario I envisioned was to be there until the end. Now, it’s the one that has come true, that’s how it is, and that’s very good too. I have no regrets, I wouldn’t change anything, for anything in the world. I am very happy to have presented what I have proposed.
How did you experience it at the time?
As I said on the show, I was quite surprised. It was obvious that I was not going to be in the top, but you always expect better. It’s harder to see reality when you’re in a bubble as intense as it can be. drag race.
You were Saturday night at Who’s Bar, in Paris, to watch the episode in public, with other candidates. Was it important to have them by your side?
Yes, I think that’s the most important point of the whole Saturday evening. See yourself in drag race, it’s still an extremely positive shock and it made me feel a little proud. To have been able to be surrounded by all my sisters, by all the public, by all these fans who were there and rather disagreed with my elimination (smile), it did me a lot of good and it made me feel better. in the heart.
On social networks, many people said that your elimination was unfair, that they wanted to see more of you… Is that a consolation?
I don’t particularly want to call it a consolation. I think it’s more of a gift, because when we leave, we all hope to have the chance to be part of the “robbed queens” [les candidates qui ont été injustement éliminées]. That the public puts me in this lot can only make me happy, necessarily, and proud of my work.
Before you left the show, you left, as tradition dictates, a lipstick message on one of the Atelier mirrors. You left a special note for Soa de Muse and the Big Bertha. Why them?
It meant a lot to me. The Big Bertha has been my sister for a while, she’s also my mother, my father, my brother, whatever you want, at the same time (smile). And Soa was my greatest discovery. I could have talked about other people but the mirror wasn’t big enough! There is also Paloma and La Grande Dame who are my whole life, the same for Elips.
You will go down in the history of the “Drag Race” franchise as the first Berber and North African drag race. You said how important it was to you. What did you want to show?
I wanted to say that the Berber, North African, Arab-Muslim and African representation as a whole is extremely important. These are cultures that are often portrayed in a negative way. This is the reason why I participated in this show. My goal was to represent them through art, to show the beauty of these cultures. I think my work spoke for itself and I managed to present a good part of it. Enough? Probably, probably not. I would have liked to show more. I received a lot of messages, comments, tweets, young queer people from the Maghreb or even people who weren’t necessarily queer but who were delighted to be represented on public service and simply represented in the media. It changes a lot of things, I think.
More than 900,000 people watched the first episode on France 2 on Saturday evening. What inspires you?
At the risk of repeating myself: a lot of pride. It’s a shock, but in a very positive way. It is a surprise. We expected it to work to a certain extent, but it greatly exceeds our predictions. It’s only positive to tell me that I was watched by nearly a million people on France 2, on a Saturday evening. It’s extraordinary.
What personality did you envision playing in the ‘Snatch Game’, which is one of the fans’ favorite events?
I won’t tell you because you’ll know soon enough and you have to keep a few little surprises in mind. On the other hand, my backup choices were Rachida Dati, Geneviève de Fontenay, Nadine de Rothschild… Baroness Brandstetter, too!
You will be part of the “Drag Race France” tour which will begin in September. But until then, where will the public be able to applaud you in the next few days?
I will be at the show this Friday King Chef and Drag Queens, with Paloma and La Grande Dame. The same evening, I will be at the bitch party at Faust (Paris 7th) for a special evening drag race. I will also participate in viewing parties [visionnages collectifs] Lolita Banana at Who’s Bar (Paris 4th) every Thursday. She will be accompanied each time by one of us.
Would you like to add anything?
I hope audiences will continue to watch the show just as much as Saturday night and the excitement will stay high. It’s an important program, which addresses topics that are rarely discussed in the mainstream space. [grand public]. As Daphne Bürki said, it’s an educational program. In addition to the show, the glitz and the glamour, there are a lot of important things that are said behind it. We have to keep watching. And to learn. We always learn in life.