On TV3's Raya Ad

How has your Raya been fellas? Mine was not that bad, thanks to the ever-so friendly atmosphere and wonderful families here in Sydney. I just came back from an open house in fact, and the food was simply fabulous. Thanks NAOMI!

Anyway my friend Hadi posted this year’s Raya ad by Proton on his blog not long ago, which kind of reminded me of another round of good ads coming to the Malaysian TV scene in conjunction of this round of festive season. I have to say that I am a huge fan of good TV ads, and just like in yesteryears I was looking forward to welcome this year’s ones. Now that the waiting part is done, I guess I am quite satisfied. The one by Proton was particularly brilliant in reminding people of road safety, while Petronas, as always, never fails to touch me gently by the heart albeit I still think the previous year’s ad was better. Anyway I was eavesdropping to a conversation by two friends the other day when their main topic shifted to these Raya ads, and soon after I listened to one of them grumbled about how he could not get to fathom the message tried to be passed by TV3 via its ad. Being nice, I chose not to interrupt. Nevertheless I could not hinder from smiling. On a different setting, my mom shared a similar story when I told her that the ad was shot at Kuala Kangsar- the bridge and the railway station were especially familiar to me. The point is, I believe many others are still puzzled by what actually TV3 wanted to convey, and I could not stop but feel obliged to share my personal view, which even though personal, is still valid in clearing the air and yelling the idea out loud, at least that is what I think.

Now, in case any of you has yet to see the ad, it is pretty much about a lady, played by Adibah Noor, who was on his way to balik kampung on a hot, sunny day of Ramadhan. She was incredibly tired and it was close to breaking fast I guess, and it seemed that everything she saw kind of reminded her, in exaggerating way, of good food. She bought some kuih at the railway station, and while waiting to board, sat next to this young Chinese man who smiled all the way while munching a similar kuih she previously bought. Feeling irritated, she snatched the packet of kuih and rushed her way into the train, only to realize that she had with her an extra packet of that kuih on the train. Yeah, pretty vague, I blame that to TV3. Now, the ad could not stop but reminds me of this poem;

The Cookie Thief

by Valerie Cox

A woman was waiting at an airport one night,
With several long hours before her flight.
She hunted for a book in the airport shops.
Bought a bag of cookies and found a place to drop.

She was engrossed in her book but happened to see,
the man sitting beside her, as bold as could be.
Grabbed a cookie or two from the bag in between,
Which she tried to ignore to avoid a scene.

So she munched the cookies and watched the clock,
As the gutsy cookie thief diminished her stock.
She was getting more irritated as the minutes ticked by,
Thinking, "If I wasn't so nice, I would blacken his eye."

With each cookie she took, he took one too,
When only one was left, she wondered what he would do.
With a smile on his face, and a nervous laugh,
He took the last cookie and broke it in half.

He offered her half, as he ate the other,
She snatched it from him and thought... oooh, brother.
This guy has some nerve and he's also rude,
Why he didn't even show any gratitude!

She had never known when she had been so galled,
And sighed with relief when her flight was called.
She gathered her belongings and headed to the gate,
Refusing to look back at the thieving ingrate.

She boarded the plane, and sank in her seat,
Then she sought her book, which was almost complete.
As she reached in her baggage, she gasped with surprise,
There was her bag of cookies, in front of her eyes.

If mine are here, she moaned in despair,
The others were his, and he tried to share.
Too late to apologize, she realized with grief,
That she was the rude one, the ingrate, the thief!

Sounds familiar? I believe that TV3 was trying to implant the idea acquired from this poem to their ad, but in trying not to be looked like plagiarizing, they modified and added up a tad here and there, and the result, as we saw, is a letdown. I personally think that the earlier part of the ad was not necessary, that they should put more focus on the interaction between the lady and that Chinese guy thus putting the idea straight. Anyway I first encountered the above poem from Chicken Soup of the Soul, and from my quick research on Google I came to the knowledge that the idea had been put up everywhere; in fact there is a short movie on YouTube inspired by the poem under a similar title, which I have not had time yet to watch. The poem in itself gives some pretty good lessons and is a pleasure to read anyway, and has been one of my favourite since that first encounter. Back to the original note, I believe that there is nothing wrong with TV3 trying to convey those lessons in their own way, but the way they did it, from what I see, could be improved next time as not to leave their staunch viewers perplexed on the morning of Raya watching the ad while enjoying ketupat and rendang, thus ruining their mood.

Politics and Sports Do Not Mix

It seems that after every round of flop in our sporting field, an immediate wave of change is sent in the hope of rectifying the root of the problem. Foreign coaches brought in, foreign coaches kicked out. We need you back, local experts. What happened to your team idiot? You, pack your stuff, out. Back off senior players, let us give this bunch of youths a chance to shine. And so on and so forth. The latest, which perhaps is the biggest, most shocking decision ever made in a decade, is shoving off political leaders from playing their hands in the managerial matters of sporting bodies. Quite obviously the idea was formulated in the wake of yet another disappointing slump of our national football in the recently concluded Asian Cup, with such a poor display that qualified us to be labeled as the only non-competitive team in the tournament by a prominent daily newspaper in Australia. The question being, why didn’t we show those sporting team managers cum political figures the exit door long, long before, before the little bruise that we had could turn into an incurable illness?

Malaysians from every part of generation have long questioned the credibility of these parliament dwellers in getting involved in our professional sporting bodies, let alone being the most influential figure in them. Apart from the suspicious lots who argue that these leaders are merely carrying political agendas in stepping up the managerial ladder of those bodies, the others who politely accept their integrity remain doubtful over their ability to bear the huge responsibility of leading a globally-acknowledged sporting body. Blame not the doubters, as we recognize the hard work needed in running such bodies which strive to continually produce top-notch athletes.

Recent headlines on this issue came as a laughing cause for me especially when you think about how easy those figures decided to pen down letters of resign upon listening to nationwide call for them to do so. From a logical point of view, I see that no one should be you willing to give off their top-notch position in those bodies if they love them so much, or if they are indeed committed in working with the sporting bodies. Because what happened is the opposite, my conclusion is pretty simple; they indeed did not enjoy being a member of such bodies let alone committing themselves in full swing, and perhaps it is not too much if I choose to concur with public view that says they indeed have unique agenda being in such position. Of course I am not aiming the whole bunch of those leaders by saying this. In every situation, I believe that there must be a good apple amongst the rotten ones. Unluckily the latter had gone overboard thus posing serious threat to the good few.

We cringed, cried in agony upon watching Hafiz Hashim fell shamefully in the hand of Lin Dan on the badminton arena. But little did we know that the Chinese fellow is a successful product of the system in China, where promising youths at the early age of eight, nine-year-old are brought into the sports school that exist in every province. I mean every province. Now, how big is China? We, on the other hand have only two nationwide. The similar case happened to Yao Ming, the first Chinese basketball player to shine in the NBA whose unusual height was traced two generations back, before he was even born. And we continue to wince when it was the football team’s turn to lose 1-5 to the mighty country. Of course the comparison I have made is unfair, but what I have in mind is that we need great people to come with this kind of idea in order to improve the quality of our sports. Like most of you, I believe that these people are definitely not politicians. Not intending to belittle them, but after all, what can you expect from a man who runs the floor of the parliament in the morning when what we are talking about is finding quality athletes? Quite simply the two cases do not run on a parallel ground.

Of course things are far from resolved even after those leaders give up their seats. The quest for success is not a short-term one; one cannot expect to shoot a bow and get immediate result. Act early, and make amend on things along the way. What we need right now is past athletes to come back and lead. In this matter, an article in The Star last week provided ample reasons and justifications why such step is deemed instrumental if we are to look forward for a brighter future of our sports scene, one of which includes a look at the international football governing body in FIFA which is piloted by none other than the game’s legends. On the local scene, the appointment of Marina Chin as the new head of Bukit Jalil Sports School is seen as an excellent early move to realize our dream, at least for me.

Berbicara Tentang Bahasa

Saya terpanggil untuk menulis dalam Bahasa Malaysia, bukanlah sangat kerana mahu berlari sejajar dengan panggilan kerajaan yang kembali memilih untuk menggunakan frasa ini menggantikan Bahasa Melayu yang tiada salahnya dan saya kira lebih kepada suatu bentuk sindiran buat Anwar Ibrahim, tetapi lebih sebagai suatu bentuk kepuasan buat diri sendiri serta bukti jelas saya masih boleh menulis dalam bahasa ibunda dengan baik.

Acap kali kita dengar suku-sakat penulis dan blogger Malaysia yang memilih Bahasa Inggeris sebagai medium bicara dikecam hebat kerana gagal memberikan contoh tauladan terbaik memelihara bahasa ibunda yang kian dipinggirkan. Kata mereka, golongan ini ghairah mengagungkan Bahasa Inggeris sedangkan Bahasa Malaysia mereka sendiri lintang-pukang. Saya bukanlah mahu sepenuhnya bertindak melawan arus, membangkang usul ini, ternyata ada juga benarnya. Tetapi saya kira tidak adil bagi mana-mana pihak melabel dan menyalahkan pihak lain secara total tanpa ada usul periksa. Tidak wajar menujukan tuduhan ini kepada keseluruhan penulis bilamana fakta mengatakan cuma beberapa kerat yang berada dalam situasi seperti digambarkan. Samalah, tidak wajar melabel golongan lelaki sebagai gatal dan sewenang-wenangnya melupakan bekas isteri apabila Pak Lah membuat keputusan berkahwin lagi. Jelas logiknya di situ.

Menyentuh tentang blog saya sendiri, saya ingat saya ada berjanji dengan seorang rakan baik, Chicha untuk cuba menulis dalam Bahasa Malaysia walaupun saya kira janji tersebut bukanlah apa sangat pentingnya. Alhamdulillah, dengan post ini maka telah tertunai janji saya. Secara peribadi saya lebih gemar mengiyakan pandangan seorang lagi rakan, Hadi yang merasakan blog patut lebih bersifat global dan dalam konteks ini, Bahasa Inggeris menjadi keutamaan. Bukanlah mahu memperkecilkan Bahasa Malaysia sendiri, tapi kita akui yang mana satu menjadi pilihan, menonjol di mata dunia di zaman ini. Andai tiba-tiba esok segalanya bertukar dan komuniti global mahukan Bahasa Malaysia di hadapan, tentunya akan wujud arus baru dalam kalangan penulis dan blogger ini dan Hadi sendiri akan menukar pendapatnya memilih Bahasa Malaysia pula. Apabila Hadi menyifatkan blog sebagai global, saya kira ia tidak lain menggambarkan aspirasinya untuk sentiasa maju ke hadapan. Samalah halnya dengan warga penulis, blogger lain yang mahu sentiasa melihat kemajuan. Kita akui kita perlu ambil kira pandangan masyarakat dari benua lain, wilayah lain bila kita mengutarakan sesuatu pandangan, dan dalam proses ini satu-satunya tindakan berkesan ialah menggunakan Bahasa Inggeris. Mampukah agaknya kita menjemput rakyat Britain atau Sri Lanka untuk duduk semeja berbincang tentang dunia, jika terlebih dahulu kita mengharapkan mereka belajar bahasa kita?

Benar, seperti yang saya katakan sebelum ini, ada juga golongan yang terus bertindak mengabaikan bahasa ibunda. Ini yang tidak tidak sepatutnya terjadi. Tetapi dalam masa sama, jangan kita asyik mahu bersengketa dan melupakan golongan yang masih utuh mendukung aspirasi menggunakan Bahasa Malaysia, di samping fasih berbahasa asing. Saya sendiri ada kenalan yang memilih untuk menulis blog dalam Bahasa Malaysia, dan tidak kurang juga ada yang lebih gemar mencampurkan lain-lain bahasa dalam bentuk entri berlainan. Yang memilih untuk menggunakan Bahasa Malaysia, bukan sahaja bahasa mereka terpelihara malah terlalu bagus jika kita amati. Contohnya kenalan baru saya Syuk, ataupun rakan di MCKK seperti Ainan, Syafiq Marzuki ataupun Zaim, yang akhir itu kehebatan Bahasa Malaysianya membawanya hingga menjuarai pidato di peringkat kebangsaan. Pada pandangan saya, golongan inilah yang patut kita angkat. Selama ini kita asyik mahu mencari, menyelar yang silap padahal yang kesilapan itu langsung tidak jelas.

Ternyata, soal bahasa dilihat sebagai agak sensitif, tidak ramai yang mahu membincangkannya secara serius. Saya cuma membawa perkara ini ke ruang yang lebih terbuka dengan hasrat untuk menegakkan kebenaran yang asyik disalahkan.

Of Issues Pertaining Teenagers and Making A Difference

We are severely surrounded by worrying issues concerning teenagers these days. Mat Rempit here and there. 7-year-old boy sniffing glue, sleeping amongst the debris on the street. Partying around, sex everywhere; they call it liberal way of living. University dropouts on the rise, whilst the list of jobless graduates never ceases to increase. Lack of concern towards the community. Not respecting the elderly. Resulting in the former Yang Di-Pertuan Agong stood up and voiced out his concern to the public. Now, that is serious.

Then we see how people’s apprehension was aired, extensively publicized public forums were held, and countless organizations were organized, but the result?

What good is brought when a distinguished youth’s organization decided to call a troop of Mat Rempit for the North Pole’s free fall exploration? A good way to finish people’s money I guess, or perhaps to squeeze in some good names into the record book and open the apathetic public eyes, which in turn leads to more votes during the election. In the end, my predict says those Mat Rempit would go back to their racing lanes, bohsias in their cuddle, boasting about how they deceived those people to bring them thousands of miles away to do the silly, futile exploration, purportedly bringing the good name of the country. And the organization people, on the other side of the scope, would walk proudly in the middle of the city amongst throngs, claiming that in doing such so-called feat they had triumphantly helped the country. Well, probably not a reality, merely a wild guess which apparently might be wrong.

Being a teenager myself, my thinking is, everything starts from our own selves. Not denying laudable efforts from the others, but simply telling that we ourselves ought to change if good results are to be expected. How? Simple. Read daily newspapers. Help an old blind man crossing the road. Go to the nearby soccer field to support you local team, not jeering at them. Stop watching porn. Ask your father if his car needs to be washed. Get to know the name of your neighbour next door. Make a difference. In this sense, I truly agree with TheCicak for their article on ten things we can do to make a difference. Also, the government does not pay to send you overseas to see you partying with chicks, do they? Nor did your parents expect to accompany you at the hospital bedside following an injury from a series of night rempiting when they give you a Honda Cub on your 18th birthday.

This does not mean the other side of the community circle, non-teenagers alike can simply sit down and stop doing their parts though. There are still plenty, plenty of works that can be done. Members of the parliament, stop pointing fingers and rambles on trivial issues. Bocor sana, bocor sini, what the heck? There, your child is left at home contemplating on which road to rempit on tonight, or which pub to go, you never know. Believe me, their action is only inviting laughter from the global audience having watched them on the YouTube. Change, again that is the key.

From shoulder to shoulder, let us make a whole different world, starting from our own selves. Then only we can improve as a whole unit of community, and the jobless will finally get jobs, and so on and so forth.

The most difficult part, of course, is to change.

A reminder to self: Stop lazying around and resting on the laurel of past success, the final exam is will be up on the horizon soon.