KUALA LUMPUR – The Malay blockbuster film Mat Kilau: Kebangkitan Pahlawan (Mat Kilau: Rise of the Warrior) should only be promoted as a work of pure fiction and should not serve as a reference for the nation’s history, says Ranjit Singh Malhi.
The independent historian, who has written 19 books on Malaysian, Asian, and world history, said this is because the film is littered with factual and historical inaccuracies, which could mislead the public into believing that its scenes depict actual events that transpired in the past.
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For example, one of the glaring factual mistakes in the movie is in the opening scene showing British officer H.C. Syers and Sikh military policemen mounting an attack on Pahang Malays at Kuala Tembeling while pursuing three “rebels” in 1890.
Ranjit pointed out that Syers had gone to Pahang only in 1891, and that no such brutal attack by Syers and his men ever took place.
Furthermore, he said, other scenes, especially those involving the silat martial arts style of fighting and the weapons used are incorrectly portrayed.
The ‘rebels’ at the time did not use the keris (traditional Malay dagger) and silat to fight. They used parang (machetes), firearms and guerilla tactics,” he told The Vibes when met yesterday.
“Most of the attacks by the rebels (on the British colonisers) also took place during the break of day, either early morning or late evening, as widely documented.”
Ranjit also refuted the reported assertion by producer Abdul Rahman Mat Dali, of Kembara Studios, that 60% of the film is based on true events.
On the contrary, Ranjit believes that less than 10% of the film is accurate and that the disclaimer at the beginning of the film about the fictionalisation of events is not sufficient.
“Not everyone who watches the movie will see the disclaimer,” he said.
So the normal person will see some scenes, such as Sikh police officers kicking a pregnant woman, as realities of the cruelty that took place then.
“That is very far from the truth, as that kind of conduct (by Sikhs) is against their code of conduct. Sikhs are exhorted not to attack the unarmed or the weak, and to treat women with respect.”
Ranjit said he had “no problem” with the film if everyone accepted it as fictional work, although the characters are based on real people.
He also noted that some repeated messages in the film, such as those promoting “ketuanan Melayu” (Malay supremacy) and the upholding of Islam, were rooted in a “hidden agenda”, and not the real motivations behind the Pahang Uprising of 1891-1895.
Ranjit cited the case of prominent Malay chiefs in Pahang, such as Dato’ Bahaman, who opposed British rule due to personal reasons – such as his demands for his monthly allowance to be increased from $70 to $500, instead of the struggle for race and religion.
He also said much of the movie contained racial stereotypes and tropes of the Sikh and Chinese migrants of the time, which also misled viewers.
“Of course, many viewers would see it as a work of fiction, but there are also a number of those defending the film’s ‘accuracy’ on social media, and this is a problem because they think this was reality,” he said. – The Vibes, July 12, 2022
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