The late Yasmin Ahmad's movies, such as 'Muallaf', waded through the dangerous terrains of racial relations in the country. Photo: Filepic
In one popular recent Indonesian film Tarung Sarung, Deni Ruso (Panji Zoni), a spoilt young man from Jakarta, questions his own faith. When he first meets Pak Khalid (played by the hugely popular silat proponent, Yayan Ruhiyan) in Makassar, he bluntly tells him how he feels about religion.
Pak Khalid does not chastise him, but in fact allows him to stay in his madrasah and teaches him the Bugis art of self-defence known as tarung sarung or sitobo lalang lipa.In one of their conversations about God, Pak Khalid tells him: “God doesn’t need you but you need God. Even if you don’t believe in His existence, He’s still the Almighty.”
Deni Ruso hesitates initially.
But the way he is treated changes him. His obsession to learn more about tarung sarung drives him closer to Pak Khalid. At the same time he rediscovers the religion that he hardly understands.
It is a plausible plot that makes an interesting film.
The final duel between him and the local bully Sanrego (Cemal Faruk) is more than just about the Bugis concepts of ade (adat or traditional customs) and siri (shame or self-worth).
It is also about reinforcing his religious belief. Deni Ruso the rich but lost kid from Jakarta rediscovers faith, self-esteem, respect and potentially even gets a wife.
Indonesian cinema is full of such interesting storylines – Muslims questioning their faith but becoming stronger after a lot of soul-searching.
There have been a number of movies about inter-faith conflicts that end in better understanding of religions.
Indonesian cinema has been tolerant in many other ways.
At the helm of the 2012 movie about the first local bishop, Monsignor Albertus Soegijapranata, was renowned Muslim director Garin Nugroho. The lead actor playing the bishop was Nirwan Dewanto, who’s also a Muslim.
The film Soegija did raise eyebrows among conservative Muslims, but no more than that.
How would the 2018 movie 'Orang Itu' be received in today's climate?
In 2019, Maudy Kusnaria Koesnaedi, a Muslim, plays a Catholic nun who falls in love with a pastor in the movie Ave Maryam.The director, Ertanto Robby Soediskam is, like Nugroho, a Muslim.
I am not expecting such “openness” in Malaysian cinema.
Under current circumstances, there won’t be any. You can never imagine the remake of Raja Bersiong (King Of The Fanged Wings), the 1968 film directed by Jamil Sulong.
It was the first Prime Minister of the country, Tunku Abdul Rahman – a great statesman and a man of many colours – who suggested that the story be filmed.
Raja Bersiong was the costliest movie in the history of Malay Film Production (MFP) at Jalan Ampas, Singapore.
It’s said the studio spent RM750,000 at the time, easily RM15mil in today’s money.
The film bombed. And it was blamed as one of the reasons for the winding up of MFP.
The actors playing their parts were shown praying to Buddhist deities. After all, it was about a ruthless blood-drinking king (literally) in pre-Islam Kedah.
No one really kicked up a fuss at the time. There was no decree by any religious authority.
The wisdom at the time was, they were just acting. Acting is not about believing.
Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan and the other two famous Khans (Salman and Aamir) have been playing Hindu characters in Bollywood films.
Again, the belief is that when an actor plays a role, he or she lives in the character but never becomes one. The Khans, especially Shah Rukh, have a massive following in the Muslim world, including here in Malaysia.
I have never heard a decree against them playing non-Muslim characters.
I am not expecting the kind of tolerance as posited in the golden years of Malay cinema.
During those years, things were a lot simpler.
No actresses donned a tudung or hijab in any of the Malay films of the 1950s, 60s and early 70s.
I don’t even envision the 1954 film, Iman (directed by K.R.S. Shanstry) could be tolerated now. Iman saw the legendary actor Haji Mahadi playing Satan. The dialogues cast a lot of discussion about faith and belief.
Johan Jaaffar was the Head Jury for the Asia-Pacific Film Festival in 2005.I can’t imagine Batu Belah Batu Bertangkup (1959), Jamil’s directorial debut, could be screened without controversy today.
The film is based on a well-known folk story about a mother surrendering herself to the feared human-eating cave because of kempunan (when one is deprived of food that one craves).
I suspect many of Yasmin Ahmad’s films will create waves if shown today.
Yasmin had demonstrated us the rainbow colours of Malaysian cinema.
From Sepet to Muallaf and Talentime, she waded through the dangerous terrain of racial relations in the country. Perhaps a decade or so ago, religiosity had yet to rear its ugly head the way it has now.
How I wonder if the gem Orang Itu (2018), directed by Low Ngai Yuen and starring Sofia Jane, Carmen Soo and KK Wong, would be received now?
We are perhaps witnessing the beginning of the saddest state of the nation’s culture and the arts. Ironically, this is during the reign of the 10th Prime Minister, one who is known to appreciate culture and has a better understanding towards artistic expressions.
He is known to make a strong stand on works of literature deemed unsavoury by certain quarters based on convoluted and biased perspectives.
He has spoken about the need to nurture works of art and literary creations. He believes a nation that has little respect for creative endeavours is one without character and devoid of soul or worse.
His administration must act fast to ensure the eco-system for creative expressions is respected and protected. Creativity is under threat. That includes films, TV dramas, performing arts and visual expressions.
The institutions entrusted to protect the creative industry must do more to help.
Two years ago, Datuk Ramli Ibrahim was not allowed to speak at a university on how dance transcends race. It was not an isolated case.
And it was the culmination of a trend that have been going on for years. Intolerance has been creeping into the world of arts and culture for some time.
Ramli called it “religious thuggery” when arts are suppressed in such a manner.
Just look at how the movie Pulau is conceived by certain quarters. The hue and cry is all about the attire. You don’t expect women not to wear bikinis diving around an island, do you?
What happened to Mentega Terbang is an eye-opener.
The filmmakers and actors are harassed and the state apparatuses are being used to make life tougher for all involved.
At the rate things are going, the road to creative independence is being made more difficult by politicians and administrators who are complicit in derailing it.
Johan Jaaffar is a veteran newspaperman. He was involved in writing, acting and directing plays when he was younger. He was the Head Jury for the Asia-Pacific Film Festival in 2005.
