I would assume thousands of TV-watching Malaysian music lovers could never forget that fateful night on December 30th in 1986 when music history was etched in our country through the live airing of the ‘Pertandingan Akhir Muzik Muzik’ or the ‘Muzik Muzik Grand Finale’.
Now rebranded as the ‘Anugerah Juara Lagu’, the show currently stands as the nation’s longest-running song competition and is, unfortunately, the only remaining credible local awards show that recognizes and acknowledges outstanding Malaysian songs.
No exception to the crowd on that same night, a very young eight-year-old me can still clearly recall the presence of local legendary star Francissca Peter being on stage, demurely dressed in a modern white ‘baju kurung’ with pastel and turquoise shades as she serenaded the auditorium with her unforgettable hit ‘Sekadar Di Pinggiran’.
Her beautiful voice captivated everyone who watched the show, regardless of whether it was from their TV sets at home or live from the prestigious Merdeka Hall at the Putra World Trade Centre in Kuala Lumpur.
That night, her song, which was composed by Manan Ngah and lyrics penned by Lukhman S., was crowned the overall winner or ‘Juara Lagu’ of the ‘Pertandingan Akhir Muzik Muzik ‘86’.
Without many realising it, that historic victory also uniquely symbolised our Malaysian identity, where race and religion were never seen as barriers in celebrating talent when it was due.
That evening, Fran (as she is affectionately known by her fans), a Malaysian of Chinese and Indian descent sang a song in Malay, dressed in traditional Malay attire, while competing in a large-scale Malay song competition for the very first time and made the moment sweetly memorable.
In fact on the same night, another hit by Fran, which was also composed by Manan Ngah, called ‘Aku Kehilanganmu’ won second place alongside Alleycats’ ‘Sampaikan Salam Cintaku’ which took home the third prize.
Once more, Malaysia’s multi-ethnic and multi-cultural persona was placed centre stage as all three of these popular tunes were spectacularly performed by Malaysian artistes of non-Malay origin who did not speak Malay as their mother tongue.
Those who are not familiar with the Malaysian social background may ask what is so special about these accolades? After all, aren’t we all Malaysians, speaking the same language?
Well, we do use the same official language as a medium of instruction in all national public schools (not vernacular ones), but not all of us necessarily speak the language at home and use it on a regular basis.
Fast forward to present day Malaysia, how often do you see non-Malay performing artistes steal the limelight in mainstream Malaysian pop culture?
Aside from the singers I cited, the eighties and nineties also saw a slew of talented non-Malay female actors like Nancy Foo, Susan Lankester, Louisa Chong, Alice Voon and a few others carving their names in the local entertainment arena.
Their male counterparts like Param, Ayappan and Accappan (who are all of South Indian descent) were only limited to comedic roles providing side humour for amusement.
What does that say about our industry then? (We shall leave that discussion for another day).
Now, in a time where ethnic inclusivity is all the rage in the west, Hollywood is trying their best to make a difference by giving actors of various racial backgrounds a chance at helming the most coveted roles on the big screen.
I mean no one would have ever thought that soon we will see a James Bond and a Little Mermaid played by people of colour, but hey, that is the world we live in today.
If such measures are taken so seriously by our friends on the other side of the hemisphere, why aren’t we trying our best to do the same?
Are our non-Malay friends just not interested in pursuing a career in local entertainment which predominantly consists of artistic productions governed by the Malay language?
Apart from the local theatre scene which often offers more productions in English (usually to cater to the urban English-speaking Malaysians) you would rarely see local TV shows or movies in English.
The reason why this occurs is simple demographics. The country’s largest population consists of Malays and our official language is after all, Bahasa Malaysia (or Bahasa Melayu).
Thus it is only natural that local production set-ups would choose to churn products catered to the majority of the population, with hopes of reaping some profit from their hard work. (It is a business in the end).
However with that said, what will it take for us to see more inclusivity in our local entertainment scene? Where are our non-Malay stars hiding (or going)?
No doubt it is slightly difficult for those who do not speak Malay as their first language to hone their artistic crafts using the language, but if they were encouraged and given more chances, perhaps more will step up and participate.
Admit it, it was exciting to see our first-ever winner of ‘Malaysian Idol’ come in the form of a beautiful and amazingly talented Malaysian of Indian origin and our first ‘Akademi Fantasia’ champion, a Malaysian of Chinese and Caucasian blood.
Yes, Jaclyn Victor and Vince Chong were both praised and adored by Malaysians of all breeds who probably never expected such results to begin with.
Having followed their journeys on both of these international reality franchises from the west, many would have assumed the ‘majority’ would have had ‘their way’, but instead we were all pleasantly surprised.
Jac and Vince certainly paid their dues after that, producing hit after hit and claiming their places as familiar household names within the Malay market.
While the Malay stars like Siti Nurhaliza, Dayang Nurfaizah and Misha Omar continued their reign over Malaysian pop music, Jac and Vince added the relevant colours our country needed, representing the nation in various international performances.
Over on the big screen, fans lusted over Hans Isaac, the local Eurasian heartthrob who made his rounds on countless TV dramas and feature films, just like his more senior peer Susan Lankester, who not only created an impact on screen but also released a full Malay studio album.
These stars took their chances and accomplished great feats during the peak of their careers by even winning local awards that truly acknowledged their gifts.
Sadly today, I can only spot a handful of non-Malay artistes who have successfully broken into the Malay dominated industry.
Familiar names like Keith Foo, Sean Lee, Elizabeth Tan, and Neeta Manisha are among those who are paving the way for others who aspire to be like them.
But is there a new breed of ‘them’? We have yet to find out since not many non-Malays have made their debut into the scene as of late.
While I am personally happy to know that we no longer need and have an award for ‘Most Popular Non-Malay Star’ to give props to the ‘token non-Malay’ player (yes as embarrassing as it sounds, we actually had such an award created at the ‘Anugerah Bintang Popular’ many years ago), I am a tad disappointed seeing so few non-Malay talents in the present Malaysian showbiz circuit.
Being an ardent fan and observer of the local entertainment industry, I get excited knowing that there are more non-Malays who can fare just as well in the game.
When I was studying abroad almost two decades ago, I was always promoting the diversity of my country to my foreign acquaintances and kept telling them how my closest friends from school back home consisted of Malaysians from different ethnic groups who spoke several languages and yet when they watch our local TV shows, this isn’t really the case.
So here I am paging for all our undiscovered non-Malay talents to come out from their hiding spots and make themselves known.
Help us prove that our ‘Malaysia Truly Asia’ is more than just a branding façade for the outside world.
Bring back great acts like Alice Voon, Ben Nathan, Roy Sta Maria, Fredo, Carol Oormila, and many others.
To my Malay brethren of the scene, let’s give Elvira Arul, Amelia Henderson, Santesh, Alvin Chong and the rest of the gang who are trying their best, a better chance before we lose them to a ‘more welcoming world’ away from our shores. – The Vibes, January 3, 2021
Shah Shamshiri is an award-winning lyricist for several Malaysian and Singaporean singers
