JULY 26 – The first Yasmin Ahmad movie I watched was “Mukhsin,” curled up on my couch with my friends in the Middle East.
Seeing the old Malaysian school buildings and the green padi field scenery made me homesick for the comfort of yellow glutinous rice and chicken curry, the smell of earth right before it rains, and the bustle of cousins and grandparents all around me.
Yasmin Ahmad pierced right through the new life I surrounded myself with abroad, away from the warmth and humidity of Malaysia.
One of the first things I did when I returned to Kuala Lumpur this summer was watch another movie by Yasmin Ahmad. “Sepet” had me all choked up and contemplating the ethnic divides and unity of Malaysians.
With a Chinese grandmother and a Malay grandfather, I was partly sepet myself, and wholly besotted with Yasmin Ahmad’s directing and heart–wrenching thematic story lines.
It became a new obsession with me, finding all her movies and exploring the themes she addresses in them.
“Gubra” was a more mature and darker movie with a closer look at relationships.
Still capturing the essence of what made “Mukhsin” and “Sepet” great hits, “Gubra” took the complexities of marriage and human emotions and weaved them into a masterpiece that tightens the heart for the people around you.
By then, I was asking my friends and family to keep a look out for anything Yasmin Ahmad, be it movies, commercials, or even a radio jingle.
Soon, she became the topic of any discussion I had, and before long people were suggesting me more movies, videos, and even Youtube clips.
I think it was one of those moments where life imitates art when I heard about her stroke. I reacted to the news of her stroke the way Sharifah Amani reacted to the news of her father having a heart–attack in the movie “Gubra.”
I was panicked and worried. I followed the news of her stroke avidly, hoping that she would make it. I felt like I had just found her, it’s completely unfair that we should lose her when there are so many movies left to do, so many issues left to address.
“KUALA LUMPUR, July 25 (Bernama) –– Renowned film and advertising director Yasmin Ahmad died here at about 11.25 pm Saturday night.”
The words resounded in my head. Just like that, she slipped away.
For the next week the papers will be splashing her smiling image on their front pages, and the politicians whose policies she poked fun at will express their deepest condolences for losing one of Malaysia’s top film directors.
I feel like her death is resonant of the somber tone of her movies, quite poetic in its anticlimax.
There was no rain or lightening on Saturday night near the Damansara Specialists Hospital. She passed away quietly. They fold the hospital sheets in “Gubra.” Orkid climbs into her father’s car to the airport. The leaves rustle in Mukhsin’s dream.
Rest in peace, Yasmin Ahmad. You took the heart of what makes Malaysia unique and gave it back to the world through your talented film directing and your unabashed way of tackling social issues.
You blazed the way for Malaysian filmmaking and left some big shoes to fill for the next generation of Malaysian filmmakers.
I think that I can speak for all the fans when I say that we will miss you dearly.
* Khalisah Stevens is a student of International Studies at the American University. of Sharjah, United Arab Emirates.
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Thank you for the beautiful write up on our beloved Yasmin. To Mr. Abdullah Tan my deepest condolence. RIP Yasmin. Alfatihah.