This Precious Life

I believe there are many Malaysians and non-Malaysians who do not know who is Yasmin Ahmad. Being a copywriter and film director, Yasmin worked behind the scene. The only time she would appear in the news would be when she had won another Gold Lion at Cannes. Or when she had passed on.

But for those in her industry, we know her name very well. The first time I heard of Yasmin Ahmad was 12 years ago when I was trying to decide which course to take for my University degree. I have had some success with journalism, having had a few articles published in The Star, but friends advised against the choice.

“Why would you want to chase a story under the hot sun?”
“Why would you want to only be able to afford a junk car?” Words that had stung and stuck.

Feeling lost, I took a short course in Copywriting and got to know of a mysterious lady who have had success in the industry, Yasmin Ahmad. Lecturers would estimate how much she was making a month. They would enthrall us with tales of how Yasmin softened the hearts of hard-hearted clients. It seemed that everyone in the industry was somewhat starry-eyed. With her name as a source of inspiration, I decided to study Advertising instead of Mass Comms. After that, I wouldn’t hear of Yasmin Ahmad until I got to The Agency where I worked. The talk:-

“Did you know, at Yasmin Ahmad’s agency, breakfast is provided to encourage staff to come to work on time?”

“Did you know, someone high up questioned Yasmin Ahmad on why she cast an Indian boy and not a Malay boy in the Independance Day advertisement?
(this is the ad)

“And did you know how she answered that question? She looked at the person in the eye, and said,
“Oh, is he Indian? I didn’t notice! All I saw was that he is a MALAYSIAN boy.” Words that motivate and swell hearts. Yasmin Ahmad advertisements got me interested in social causes. Racism is one of the many Malaysian social issues that Yasmin cared a lot about, as evident in her many commercials. In a recent advertisement to promote understanding within marriages, she chose to cast an Indian lady with a Chinese husband. Yasmin herself is married to a Chinese man.

Over time, I would hear more Yasmin stories. Some sounded more like myths than facts.

“Did you know, Yasmin Ahmad is a shim?”
“A shim?”
“As in, neither a she nor a he but a shim.”

Another Malaysian social issue that Yasmin cared a lot about is loneliness of the elderly. I believe this came from her own love and concern for her Mum and Dad. For a Chinese New Year advertisement, she pictured an elderly lady passionately cooking for the annual Family Reunion Dinner. After having spread all the food on the table, no one came to eat with her. About that ad, I heard,

“Did you know, Yasmin Ahmad found the old lady in an old folks home? The son of the lady was so angry at her depiction of his mother’s aloneness that he threatened to sue. He insisted that she pull out the ad, which, of course didn’t intimidate her one bit.”

That reminds me of another story. Recently, I met an elderly lady in an old folks home near my house. Ironically, her reason for being placed in the home is success. Her three sons are doing so well, the eldest is working in the US, the middle child is in the UK and the youngest is in New Zealand. Her sons told her she would only be in the old folks home for a month but others told me she had been staying there for at least three months without any visits from anyone. She excitedly told me that her children will be coming to take her home any day now.

Yasmin Ahmad told a similar story here.

It depicts a group of elderly ladies hanging out, each boasting of their children’s success. The last lady had nothing to say about her child except that he is healthy and that he is coming to pick her up. The last line, “The love of family is the greatest gift of all. Happy Chinese New Year from Petronas.”

Not all Yasmin Ahmad advertisements make you weep. Here’s one that will put a smile on ya. It’s about a Chinese boy, Tan Hong Ming, and his special friendship with a Malay girl, Umi Qazrina.

The last line says, “Our children are color blind. Shouldn’t we keep them that way? Happy 50th Independence Day from Petronas.”

As a copywriter and film director, Yasmin Ahmad was hardly ever seen but her voice is heard. In the short 51 years of her life, she had created ads that evoke all sorts of uneasy feelings in us. She persuaded us to change our narrow-minded views through commercials paid for by private organisations, a rather uncommon method.

Her death on July 25th 2009 is a huge loss not just for us but the whole world.