Category: Entertainment

Fatimah Abu Bakar grew up having no notions about gender. The idea that women couldn’t do certain things never occurred to her. 

“I never had that feeling,” she states. “Maybe it was the way I was brought up. Although my father was very religious, he would never discourage me. It was only when I entered ITM, I started to question myself. I became more aware that girls were not supposed to do certain things but they were never there when I was growing up.” 

Nonetheless it was also when she moved to Shah Alam that Fatimah could immerse herself in culture. Her evenings were spent dancing and acting at Panggung Drama. It was also at that time that she met Datin Paduka Shuhaimi Baba and the late Mustaffa Noor. 

As an actress and more so, as a journalist at New Straits Times, Fatimah was always conscious about the need to portray women in a positive light.

I would not choose any role that were obviously derogatory to women. For example, if a woman is being hit, I would ask, why can’t she hit back?

Fatimah Abu Bakar

“I would not choose any role that were obviously derogatory to women,” she says. “For example, if a woman is being hit, I would ask, why can’t she hit back?”

At the newspaper, she also met other “like-minded” women who also worked to change stereotypes of women. 

“Malay Mail used to have a page 1 girl,” she says. “We fought the idea because it perpetuated the myth that women were merely a decoration. After a while it moved from page 1 to page to 3 to page 5 and eventually it disappeared.” 

This spirit has been passed on to her four daughters, who she says are all very vocal. She jokes that her eldest, Sharifah Aleya often refers to herself as Fatimah’s “eldest son.” Her other children are Sharifah Amani, Sharifah Aleysha and Sharifah Aryana, all actresses. 

At the New Straits Times, Fatimah wrote a column, I Am Woman. The idea behind it stemmed for the fact that a woman carries many roles – mother, daughter, friend, wife. Helen Reddy’s “I am woman, hear me roar, in numbers too big to ignore,” also played a part in the title. 

The Women’s section also pushed the agenda of women’s rights. She recalls the case of a high-profile divorce where the woman decided to defend herself, after finding the lawyer’s costs too high. 

“We dedicated a journalist to just follow her case. We followed it until the day she won the case. We put it on the front page, to show that although it was very hard, very tough, if you are really very determined, with the right support, you can help create your own destiny.” 

The objective of the column was to highlight intelligent, creative and brave women. “We felt that this was not reflected in the main newspaper. Every time a woman is featured in the main newspaper pages was when she was robbed, raped or whatever.” From an early age, Fatimah always wanted to be a journalist. It didn’t seem an odd choice for a woman.

I didn’t really know what it was about but in my mind, I thought it would enable me to go places and meet people.

Fatimah Abu Bakar

The much adored thespian, writer and acting coach continues to coach clients in communications and media relations. 

Erra Fazira first caught the attention of the Malaysian public when she became Miss Malaysia in 1992 at the age of 18. She was entered into the competition by a relative who believed that she could go far in the competition. Erra, a self-proclaimed tomboy at the time, was pretty annoyed that she been entered in the pageant. She hopped on a scooter and headed to the organiser to demand that her name be taken out. 

The organiser, however, pleaded with her saying that he didn’t have enough contestants and so she relented. 

“I am the kind of person who doesn’t know how to say no to people,” she says. “I don’t know if it’s an advantage or disadvantage. Even if I don’t want to do something, I will do it because I feel sorry for someone.” 

Thankfully, she did as it paved the way for her entry into entertainment. And as it turns out, the decision has also given her a place in pop culture history as one of the last Malay women to hold the Miss Malaysia crown. There are no regrets though as she sees participating in the pageant as very much being the “door” to her career. 

She is admittedly a planner but the pageant is something she did on the spur of the moment. 

In every industry there is a double- standard for women but don’t give up. If you see yourself as someone whose place is in the kitchen, then you will wind up in the kitchen. But if you see yourself as someone who has something to contribute, don’t underestimate yourself.

Erra Fazira

“Sometimes when you do things spontaneously, it has the potential of becoming something spectacular.” 

Ever since she was a child, Erra had a feeling that fate would lead her to a career in entertainment. It is that she expected to make it as a singer instead of an actress. But after she was cast in Sembilu (1994), Erra’s film career started to take off. By the time Maria Mariana (1996) was released, her fate was sealed as a leading lady of film. She now has more than 40 films to her name, not including telemovies and several awards, 

“I just went with the flow because I didn’t expect my film career to be stronger than my music career.” 

Now she is taking things a bit easier having put in all the groundwork early on in her career. She is not “dreaming big,” she says. Perhaps, she did when she was younger. Now, she feels she is ready to take a step back. 

“I feel people who dream big are always chasing something,” she says. “For me, I am at a stage where I want to be relaxed. I don’t want to be pressured. When I was younger, yes. But now I need to put a full stop.” 

To aspiring actors and actresses, Erra advises to work on developing one’s craft. 

“If you are static and don’t develop, you will go nowhere.” 

20 years ago, Lina Tan had an epiphany. A successful producer at the time, with many commercials to her name, she was in the midst of shooting an ad for a detergent. While trying to get a shirt as white as possible for the shoot, she questioned whether this was what she wanted her career to be. It wasn’t. She walked away from it and went on to form RED Communications, a production house that would focus on issues to do with young women. 

“When I started RED Communications, one of the things that I looked at was that there were really no shows for myself. I was looking for content that I wanted to watch and I hardly saw it.” 

It was during that time that Tan conceptualised a women’s programme that was aimed at empowering young women on a variety of issues. She pitched it to Datin Paduka Marina Mahathir and 3R – Respect, Relax, Respond was born, RED Communications most memorable productions.

“It was a pivotal time because 3R ran for 15 years,” she states, explaining that she continues to own the brand. “It was crucial because as a producer back then, nobody owned their own brand. Everyone said it was impossible to own your IP (intellectual property).” 

With her background in advertising, Tan pitched the programme to advertisers, successfully convincing them to form partnerships with the brand. At the time, she asserts, there was nothing for young women. The issues for women were focused on fashion, beauty but there were no discussion on harassment, rape.

It was something that she felt young women would be interested in. Hence, the selection of the hosts—Low Ngai Yuen, Azah Azmin Yusof and Rafidah Abdullah – “real young women that other young women could relate to.” But it was there that she met her first hurdle as advertisers asked for more stereotypically “prettier” hosts. 

“A host with glasses (Rafidah) at the time was unheard of.”

But Tan was adamant that she didn’t want the typical ‘muka seri’ and ‘wajah ayu’ kind of stories that most local women’s programmes dealt with. She was also convinced she didn’t want the word ‘wanita’ in the title. Instead, she believed that Malaysians were ready to take on bigger issues. And she was right. 3R achieved tremendous success, with its hosts emerging as role models for many a young girl. 

“At the time, TV was the only medium and we used to get 10,000-20,000 emails and letters,” she exclaims. “And that’s how we knew we were connecting to the audience.” 

Some of these were pleas for help, detailing accounts of sexual abuse. The team then sought help from organisations like AWAM and WAO on how to intervene in such cases. Tan is also involved in HIV/AIDS and women’s NGO work.

“We took a strong stand,” she asserts. “Rape is rape. It is not the girl’s fault. People recognise the stance we were taking and it made it easier for young people to connect with us.” 

There was a time when the television used to dictate the way one’s day is spent. That was certainly true during the glory days of local TV station TV3. In today’s digital world, it is hard to imagine a time when millions would tune in to watch the news but that’s what happened when Puan Sri Normala Samsudin presented the evening news, Buletin Utama. Sunday afternoons too often revolved around Nona, which she presented weekly. That meant a lot of families were forced to have lunch at home as the women gathered round the TV for their weekly “meeting” with Normala. 

“I didn’t feel I was popular,” she says. “I was just focused on the job of delivering the news to viewers, so it was a culture shock to me.” 

It was after she stopped flying as a stewardess that Normala entertained the idea of working at a television station. She auditioned at RTM but was turned down, leaving her quite geram. It was when she won the TV3 competition Pengacara Jemputan Nona that her broadcasting career was launched. 

“I felt very insecure because I wasn’t from a mass communication or journalism background but I learnt a lot. My Bahasa Malaysia was good and I was able to write good scripts.” 

Over the years, Normala went on to host various programmes on the channel – Seulas Pinang, Warna-Warna Malaysia, Wanita Hari Ini, Malaysia Hari Ini eventually becoming the face of Nona and a coveted spot as one of the presenters of Buletin Utama. 

As a presenter you need to learn a lot, every day, whatever error you make, you just proceed and try to do your best.

Puan Sri Normala Samsudin

Of the various programmes, she enjoyed Warna-Warna Malaysia as it allowed her to travel across the country. It also suited Normala’s sporty nature as it required a lot of physical activity. This set her apart from the other female presenters at the time. The crew often talked about a “hand-gliding scene” during which Normala landed and immediately started talking to the camera, proof of her professionalism. 

But it is Nona which she holds dear to her heart as it allowed her to speak to women all across the country on a range of issues from current affairs to entrepreneurship to fashion. 

“What we wanted to show women at the time was that although we are soft, we can also be tough.” 

Off-camera, Normala was known to be an absolute professional in terms of her craft, while at the same also a friendly face to those around her, setting a perfect example to other aspiring women of television. 

To young women today, she advises, “Be positive in anything that you do. Never think negative of other people. Do good.” 

In 1990, when Datuk Sheila Majid performed at Stadium Negara, some 14,000 fans turned up to celebrate her jazzy tribute to the late Tan Sri P. Ramlee. A week earlier, Gloria Estefan and the Miami Sound Machine only managed to pull in half the number. It was an era that she misses, admits the petite artist, who celebrates 36 years in the music industry this year. 

“Everything was vibrant,” she reminisces. “It was my favourite period when CDs were selling, concerts were everywhere. Meriah.” 

When Sheila released her debut album Dimensi Baru in 1985, she brought a new perspective to the Malaysian music scene. At a time when Malay music was largely dominated by ballads and lovelorn themes, Sheila “crossed-over” to an urban audience who were taken by the upbeat sound of the album. From then on, her appeal continued to grow. Warna (1988) experimented with a new electronic sound while Legenda (1990) took on ‘legendary’ status. In fact, as a testament to Sheila’s status, the special edition (Japan version) of Legenda in vinyl is currently worth a couple of thousand ringgit. 

“I did not know that,” she remarks. “I am very grateful that people still value my music until today and there are people who are willing to pay extra to attain it. I am flattered actually. I never thought I would go so long in this career.” 

Being the youngest in the family of eight, you have to get your voice heard to your parents. You better make sense, you better know what you want.

Sheila Majid

Sheila now has nine studio albums to her name, the latest being Boneka, released in 2017. Her entry into music, she says, was just for “fun.” But music was a part of her. She started playing the piano at just four but when she was offered a recording contract at just 17, she had to “strategise” about how to convince her father to give her the go ahead. Haji Majid was among the first generation of Malay gentlemen to be educated at Oxford University. He initially associated the music industry with elements that were “dark” and “bad.” But after he observed Sheila was passionate to succeed, he gave her his blessing, even accompanying her when she performed at the Java Jazz Festival in Jakarta. 

When Sheila first entertained the idea of a recording contract, she was just intrigued with the idea of hearing herself on “cassette.” But after Dimensi Baru generated international interest and she was signed on to EMI, things started to develop and then she just “went with the flow.” But although she might not have planned her career, Sheila was pretty adamant that she wanted things to be done her way. 

“I don’t think anyone can control me,” she says, when asked if there were attempts to pressure her to conform to the mainstream. “I had to be tough because this is my livelihood, this is the direction I wanted my music to be!” 

Now the chairperson of Recording Performers Malaysia Berhad (RPM) along with other prominent recording artists in Malaysia in the board of directors, Sheila aims to protect the welfare of today’s artistes and musicians in the face of threats such as piracy.