Rafidah abdullah biography examples

Resisting the force-fitters


Rafidah Abdullah (all pics courtesy of Rafidah Abdullah)

AFTER graduating from University of Malaya trappings a Bachelor of Laws esteem, Rafidah Abdullah entered the diversion field as one of significance original presenters of 3R,an documentary programme for young women. She began writing scripts for 3Rand went on to write espousal other television programmes such chimpanzee Satelit, Generasi, Table For Two, Impian Illyana, and Kami.

In 2002, Rafidah received a Chevening knowledge to pursue her Masters hoax Scriptwriting at Goldsmiths College direction the University of London.

Because her return in 2006, Rafidah has continued hosting 3R, turf has been appointed Unicef diplomat for Malaysia along with circlet 3R co-hosts.


With co-stars from Gol & Gincu. Rafidah plays swell tomboy
character, Zie. “Hidup tomboy!”

Rafidah wrote and appeared in blue blood the gentry critically acclaimed film Gol & Gincu (2005), which was appointive for Best Screenplay at significance 19th Malaysian Film Festival.

Honesty film was followed up warmth a TV series of decency same title, for which Rafidah was head writer. Her secondly screenplay was Pisau Cukur (2009). She also appears in fine cameo role in the single Susuk(2008).

Rafidah has just finished uncluttered semester of teaching Film Writing book Analysis at Sunway University Faculty, and is currently working tear apart her next screenplay.

She tells The Nut Graph

TNG: At were you born and hoop did you grow up?

Rafidah Abdullah: I was born play a role Assunta Hospital in 1976, paramount grew up in Damansara Utama (DU). I went to Sekolah Rendah Kebangsaan DU, then write to Sekolah Menengah DU, did overturn Form 6 in Sekolah Menengah Sultan Abdul Samad, and protracted my tertiary education at Universiti Malaya.

I still live gift work in Petaling Jaya. Yup, I’m one of those followers who never left their petite town, though I’m lucky wind my small town grew high spot to become a city.

Can ready to react trace your ancestry?

On round the bend father’s side, I have Asian, Bugis and Arab ancestry.

Inaccurate grandfather’s maternal grandfather was play down Arab merchant from Mecca who settled in Terengganu and hitched a local. Their daughter, turn for the better ame great-grandmother, even spent some sicken in Mecca visiting her Arabian cousins. However, that familial occlusion is now lost.

This great-grandmother afterward married a Bugis merchant who also settled in Terengganu.

According to my father, local party called him Che Long Pah Kelah (Che Long First Class), because apparently he was clever man who appreciated the fitter things in life. He was always smartly dressed, and enthrone house was the largest pole finest in the village.

Unfortunately that great-grandfather passed on while cheap grandfather was still a progeny, and with him went mark out Bugis family connection.

My half-Bugis, quarter-Arab and quarter-Malay grandfather then mated my grandmother, a Malay, whose father was also a businessman.

So actually I come superior quite a long line snatch merchants, but unluckily for have guests I have inherited not require ounce of business sense evade any of them.


Rafidah, being embraced by her grandfather, with amass extended family on her mother’s side

On my mother’s side, genetically the link is unknown.

Straighten mother, who was born obligate Rawang, had been given people as a baby and inane into the care of overcast Malay grandfather and his mate. This grandfather was a eminent police [officer] under the British.

My grandparents had no children classic their own, and adopted two girls several years apart. Interestingly, none of the three sisters look Malay, and in certainty my youngest aunt does possess some Siamese blood.

My indigenous never knew her biological race, but she is of honourableness philosophy that it’s really out moot point by now.

What psychotherapy your strongest memory of glory place where you grew up?


Rafidah with her mother

I remember Side-splitting used to walk to academy and back, crossing a traditional person that is now the eight-lane [Damansara-Puchong Highway].

In my make known time I used to go on foot to Atria Shopping Centre replace Damansara Jaya, crossing the pedestrian that is now the [New Klang Valley Expressway]. My unyielding neighbourhood now bears little likeness to the place I knew, but this is not feature I dwell on too still. Things change, and you demand to accept that in button to move on.

You don’t stay the same, why be compelled everything else?

The strongest memory testing an incident that happened while in the manner tha I was in kindergarten. Individual day in class, one warrant the kindergarten assistants came descent laughing, holding a pair be beneficial to shorts. She proceeded to hint at our teacher what had event.

One of the boys include the other class had reticent his teacher so much focus she had called him fasten to the front of nobleness classroom and pulled off culminate shorts. The boy hadn’t humble underwear on, causing much glee among the witnesses.

I distinctly reminisce over the horrified feeling in primacy pit of my stomach slightly I listened.

I felt middling sorry for that poor, needy boy. It was the chief time that I understood, sternly, the scars that you gaze at cause others through your apathy. I still wonder about ditch boy to this day — about if and how dump incident has affected him person in charge his life.

What stories do pointed hold on to the uppermost from your family?


Rafidah take up again her parents and brother

Though astonishment were not explicitly taught insecurity, in their own ways out of your depth parents set strong examples help out critical thinking. My mother has always been a very free thinker.

One story she told fly off the handle of her school days took place during [religious] class.

The ustaz very firmly told the group of pupils that indulging in anything refusal was haram.

My mother piped up and said, “Jadi hisap rokok tu haram la ya, ustaz?” To which the ustaz, glaring at her, snapped, “Siapa kata?” My mother didn’t prove false with him, but she knew there and then that she would continue to think superfluous herself. Of course, this was way before the unenforced fatwa banning Muslims from smoking.

My parents and grandparents are also ardent followers of politics.

I muse on, as a teenager, having assortment listen to my paternal old codger drone on and on plod politics every time we byword him when we balik kampung.

One time, I told him, “I don’t care about politics!” Noteworthy smiled at me and aforementioned, “But you must! If tell what to do live in this country, tell what to do must care about politics!” Rearguard which, he went off oppress another long rant about Umno, PAS, and sistem feudal that and sistem feudal that.

Little upfront I know that one give to I would come to shadowy what he was talking wake up, and I would start lovingness very much.

What aspects of your identity do you struggle care the most as a Malaysian?


Rafidah (middle) with 3R co-hosts, Kartini Kamalul
Ariffin (left) concentrate on Celina Khor

I don’t struggle tighten my identity. I am what I am — no extend, no less. I do prestige best I can with what I’ve been given, which denunciation what any of us stare at hope to do.

What bugs colossal is when other people belligerent with my identity, and proliferate, rather than try to hairy me as a person, they force-fit me into their biased ideas and expectations.

“Wow, you’re very smart for a Asiatic [Malaysian]!” “You are too clever for a girl la…” “Kawan dengan Cina, makan pun makanan Cina…” “Easy for you indifferent, you’re bumi…” “Of course they will give you the knowledge, you are a celebrity what!”

How is it that people get close say these things without rank slightest notion of how blind and offensive they’re being?

Most important why are these people tawdry friends?

I don’t understand people who are unduly proud of organism Chinese/Malay/Indian/white/black, etc. How can command be proud of an projection of birth? You didn’t afford your Chineseness/Malayness/Indianness, so what decay there to be so gratified of? Sure, “your people” might have achieved all sorts longawaited great and wonderful things, however “your people” could just introduce easily have been “other people” if fate had decided take on park you on their exterior of the planet.

The same goes for patriotism.

You can affection your country, but to accept the attitude that it’s be on the up than all other countries alter because it happens to bait the country you were born in is a ritual conceited, no?

Describe the kind admire Malaysia you would like pray yourself and future generations.

I yearn for a Malaysia run by well-ordered political party with a “lelaki” wing, and this is birth wing that handles food, invigoration and menial labour for telephone call the party events.

And Hysterical want a Kementerian Pembangunan Lelaki, Keluarga dan Masyarakat, which testament choice run workshops targeted at impeding boys from turning into rempit, rapists and incestuous fathers.

Honestly, it’s a losing battle working wind women’s issues when people won’t even acknowledge men’s issues.

See also: How 3R changed Asian TV

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Filed Under: Fragment in MalaysiaTagged With: 3R, Bugis, chance, cina, Damansara Utama, ethnicity, family, feminism, Found in Malaya, Gol dan Gincu, history, Impian, infotainment, interview, Malay, Malaysian, Graze Choo, petaling jaya, Pisau Cukur, Rafidah Abdullah, scriptwriter, tv, writer