An obvious icon for 1Malaysia

Yasmin Ahmad has contributed more than most politicians in creating better understanding and acceptance among Malaysians.

The simple but emotive messages in her TV commercials tug at our heartstrings. Her films traverse race, class and age barriers with themes and scenes that are so contrary to the trite.

Her touching tales on love, friendship, respect, dignity and forgiveness make us laugh, cry and kindle our capacity to think.

Yes, Yasmin Ahmad let us see the hidden threads that bind us.

She was scorned at home by the usual bigots and self-proclaimed cultural puritans but her works won global acclaim and numerous awards.

Unlike them, she could always see the big picture. And she tried her darndest to make us colour blind to see it more clearly.

If the idea of 1Malaysia needs an icon, she can be it.

A scrutiny of her work might help better define the concept that still appears to be foggy to many both within and outside the Government.

Her movies and ads prove that Malaysians can easily relate to each other when it comes to core feelings and values.

In terms of numbers, her body of work might not be big but it is certainly prodigious in significance, especially with political and ethnic ruptures widening as never before.

Yasmin had done much to promote better understanding and empathy among Malaysians, especially the younger generation.

She had succeeded remarkably in being the first film director to reach out to all ethnic groups through the medium.

She did so by blending romance with comedy and tragedy, but mostly by embracing the country’s cultural diversity and using the power of our rich languages, dialects and accents.

Along with it, she challenged old mindsets and exposed obvious hypocrisies.

She may be gone but there is much that we can all learn from what she has left us.

Politicians who tend to see through racially tinted eyes, need just watch her moving Petronas advertisements to open up their minds.

Compulsory screening is also highly recommended for those running the Biro Tata Negara (National Civics Bureau).

If stories related by those who had to undergo racism-tinged courses are true, Yasmin’s movies and ads might help remove the blinkers that they have been wearing.

Datuk L. Krishnan, the 87-year-old doyen of the Malaysian film industry who uncovered and nurtured the careers of early Malay film actors, including the legendary (Tan Sri) P. Ramlee, are among those in the industry who feel that a bright light had been snuffed out so suddenly.

As he put it, she ventured boldly where others would not dare to tread.

Describing her as “far ahead of the rest”, he said he would not have risked touching matters deemed too sensitive in his time.

It was a shame that many in the industry did not understand, or chose to deride, her efforts when she was alive and some are still bent on doing so by trying to mar her image.

But many Malaysians who have been profoundly touched by her work despite not knowing her personally, have been able to get an insight into what she was like through her blogs – The Storyteller (http://yasminthestoryteller.blogspot.com/) and The Storyteller, Part 2 (http://yasminthefilmmaker.blogspot.com/) on which she made her last post on July 22, three days before her untimely demise.

They know that she remained humble to the end.

In one of her recent postings, she wrote: “Today, after making about 50 television commercials and six feature-length films, after winning 11 international awards, I often feel like I don’t know the first thing about filmmaking.

“But I know this much: If your intentions are pure, if you apply your craft with a view to observe humanity and, ultimately, God himself, very often something powerful will surface.”

Strangely, just 10 days before her death, one person made an ominous posting about her being recognised only after her death.

The person wrote: “Kat Malaysia ni Kak Min, minta maaf cakaplah, kalau dah mati baru orang nak appreciate. (In Malaysia, Kak Min, sorry for saying, people are only appreciated after they die.)

“How’s Datuk Yasmin Ahmad sound to you? Probably nothing... Coz you(‘ll) probably (be) dead by then!

“Pemergiannya merupakan satu kehilangan besar pada negara. Beliau telah membuka mata kita pada erti sebenar perfileman. Bagaimana seni, penceritaan dan aspek komersil boleh bergabung menjadi satu...”

“(Her demise was a great loss to the nation. She had opened our eyes to the true meaning of film. How art, storylines and commercial aspects can be merged into one…)”

Her response was succinct: “Saya tak pernah mengejar title. Takut riak. (I have never chased titles. I fear becoming proud).”

- THE STAR