"Chocolate" is the latest video by the late Yasmin Ahmad, released post-humously as a tribute to the acclaimed controversial director. The tribute to Yasmin Ahmad was not only associated with the surrounding issues concerning her "dark" past, again her crafts were much talked about after her passing.
More so than ever when all around, you would hear people shouting "Satu Malaysia", like some kind of mystical chants, whether they understand its meaning or otherwise (which is more like it).
This short video was casted with her regular actress, Sharifah Amani who played a demure, tudung-clad Malay girl, next to Hon Kah Hoe who played the racist character in the movie "Talentime". Tan Mei Ling loaned her voice over in the background as the shop owner, mother of the boy. It playacted racist sentiments from beginning till the end, the director didn't even conceal the theme in undertones. It was blatant observations of life in an urban multi racial (Malay+Chinese) society.
Several facts that Yasmin shared with us in her latest contribution:
1). Chinese shop owners having the upperhand and has the favour over the underhanded Malay buyers (shown here when the boy would not tolerate the 5 cents less of the price of a cadbury milk chocolate)
2) Chinese parent(s) are inculcating the racial sentiments to make the children aware of their fate in this country
3) The issues regarding education and job opportunities are 2 subjects that are considered still not favouring the other races
4) Love/Infatuation does not recognize "colours"
5) But in the end, racial sentiments still wins over passion/infatuation
Yasmin Ahmad presented again the facet of multiracial community life and risked the censure by the Malay viewers who still championed the cause of the "priviledged Malays". The fresh outlook which was always present in her films were the issues that were bared open instead of being swept under the carpet.
Closer to home, I must admit racial polarisation is very much evident in IPTAs although having gone through 5 years of medical school where 90% of students were Malays, I was fortunate not to suffer so much from it. May be I was spared, but I was the selected few. However, to a lesser degree, I could feel the resentment from my Chinese colleagues who had to go through 2 years of hardship at Form Six level while we Malays breezed through our Matriculation course. The Chinese "A" students were so bright and brilliant that when they joined us in our 2nd year of Matriculation, they went through it so painlessly.
The few Chinese students made up a minority (no doubt just fulfilling the sorry quota), among the sea of Malay medic students that they often walled up in their own small community - sharing lecture notes, past year questions, photostated "bible" text books, and other gems of medical curriculum. We were often confronted with blank looks when we asked for loans of these study materials, at best they shut us off with Chinese language as a clear indication that there would be no sharing there.
Yasmin has done her share by potraying the disease, symptoms and the repercussions of racism, favouritism and polarisation. I'm sure all of us have experienced the ugly facet of racism. Who benefits from this? NO ONE, we all lose in the long run if we allow this to continue. How long are we going to remain "sepet" to these issues? Have we become so myopic and keep turning a blind eye to these rising issues and let this fester like bushfire until it has done its irreversible damage?
Bakiah: is worried when her children keep referring to the next door neighbour as "Chinese sebelah rumah tu..."
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