Written by Jananey R.
“Niat insun, mata kaji, semar ngiseng!”
I am sure many of you remember this infamous dialogue. If you do not, please watch Ali Baba Bujang Lapok, and I assure you would not be disappointed. As for the rest of you who have not been living under a rock, I think it is safe to assume that you would have watched a P. Ramlee movie at least once in your lifetime, especially if you are a Malaysian.
As a Malaysian Indian, not only did I grew up watching a black and white Malay movie with my family but we thoroughly enjoyed it. That is the legendary Yang Amat Berbahagia Seniman Agung Tan Sri Tun Datuk Amar Dr. P. Ramlee for you. His movies, both funny and tragic, entertained Malaysians from all walks of life.
A multi-talented artiste, he was a singer-songwriter, composer, actor, director and producer whose career spanned the Golden Age of Malaysian cinema from the late 1940's to the early 1960's. With more than 60 films (in which he wrote, acted, directed and composed for more than half of them) and 400 songs to his name, the well-loved and charismatic P. Ramlee's legacy lives on decades after his unfortunate premature passing at the age of 44.
Thus, in conjunction of his birthday, here are FIVE lesser known facts about our beloved Malaysian hero:
Born Teuku Zakaria Teuku Nyak Puteh, P. Ramlee got his infamous stage name during a singing competition in 1947, at the age of 18. The initial 'P' stands for 'Puteh', which is his father’s name. And 'Ramlee' is reported to be his uncle’s name which was also the name that he registered with in school.
His studies at the Penang Free School was interrupted by the Japanese occupation from 1942 to 1945, during which he enrolled in the Japanese navy school, Kaigun Gakko, and had a brief opportunity to acquaint himself with the Japanese language and music. His hardworking and friendly disposition made him popular with the Japanese soldiers.
His artistic flair was notable even at a tender age, hence it is not a surprise that he was constantly asked to be the Muezzin and call out the daily Muslim prayers at the Kampung Jawa Baru Mosque when he was just a teenager.
Since then, he displayed his musical talents with contemporary songs and melodious keroncong tunes together with his friends. It was through this that he received his first commission from Radio Malaya to entertain at social gatherings and events around Penang.
P. Ramlee also had formed a few bands during his younger days such as, Teruna Sekampung, Orkes Mutiara and Bintang Sore. Following this, his first composition, “Azizah” (which was dedicated to his first love) thrusted him on the threshold towards stardom when it caught the interest of a famous Singaporean director, B.S. Rajhans, during its first airing at an Agricultural Fair in Bukit Mertajam in June 1948.
The last song P. Ramlee's wrote was entitled "Airmata di Kuala Lumpur" (Tears in Kuala Lumpur) which deciphered his depressing situation in Kuala Lumpur after leaving Singapore.
While his premature passing in 1973 had robbed us of his wonderful talent, which sadly in his final years he was not able to fully exploit due to the unfortunate change of circumstances, P. Ramlee has certainly left us with his rich legacy of films and music.
With that, it is safe to say that there really is no other version of him. P. Ramlee set the bar so high that every other Malaysian in the entertainment industry has made it their benchmark to do as well as he did, although none have quite reached that same height even 46 years after his passing. In the art of entertainment, P. Ramlee was way ahead of his time, and there seems to be few who can match his wisdom, wit and wholesomeness.
He was famously quoted “When I die, I will live a thousand years,” and he will continue to live on through his art and in the hearts and minds of his fans...
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