ASIA FORUM: CHAPTER 7-MALAYSIA: A Report by Dr. Bishakha Sarma

“Asia Forum-Chapter 7 MALAYSIA” which is an offshoot of Asian Literary Society and Journal of Asian Art, Culture and Literature (JAACL) took place on August 21st, 2021 at 1830 hours IST and 2030 hours MST on the virtual forum of Asian Literary Society Facebook Page.

The event involves a presentation of the various aspects of Malaysian Literature by the distinguished authors from Malaysia - Prof. Datin Dr. Ruzy Suliza Hashim,  Ms. Anuradha Chelliah, Jennifer Fernandez-Netto, and Dr. Paul Sebastian.

The session begins with a welcome note by Mr. Manoj Krishnan, the Founder of the Asian Literary Society and Editor-in-Chief of JAACL. Thereafter, the session was moderated by Dr. Bishakha Sarma, Linguist, and Administrator of the Asian Literary Society.

The discussion started with the Folk Literature of Malaysia and its Indian influence. Prof. Ruzy says “ The Malays have been influenced by numerous foreign countries, the most significant of which is India, which gave them three religions, a new magic and medicine, Hindu and Islamic law, the arts of sculpture, gold and silverwork, and silk weaving, two alphabets, and secular and religious literature replete with Sanskrit terms for abstract concepts such as danger, intellect, kindness, language, name, price, profit, property, religion, heaven, and hell”.

She also adds that the Indian diaspora writer K.S. Maniam incorporated rich Indian tradition in his tales and novels and adapts to the Malaysian environment. She suggests “Indian culture has been ingrained in the variety of Malaysian culture, and this is a natural outcome of the process of establishing an inclusive and flexible Malaysian country”.

Prof. Ruzy discusses in detail Malaysian Literature in English. She mentions that it started in 1930s; thrived in the 70s and 80s but became silent in the 1990s. Hence the writings were ‘sporadic’ in nature.

 

While discussing the ‘Literary realities of Malaysian women, she said “early Malaysian writers spoke of alienation of the immigrant races.….. While women have made great leaps in the educational and professional sectors, but they too suffer from alienation. Women writers are also more open with their depictions of taboo issues. Domestic violence, incest, mental health issues are aspects of womanhood…Their aggression in the professional world does not seem to augur well in a society still clinging to patriarchal ideals. Thus, broken homes and relationships form a canvas of women’s lives in many of these works. They attempt to undo conventional norms by showing how some women characters have the agency to change their lives and move on to better lives”.

Prof. Ruzy voices out the nature of Malaysian women's short story writers' writing in English. She opines that Malaysian women are not homogenous in their approach to conflicts in life. The writings of Fadillah Merican, Ruzy Suliza Hashim, Ganakumaran, and Raihanah MM represent “the socio-cultural change, economic, political change, and conflicts, big and small, humorous or with the tragic consequence, [have] affected and dislocated people”.

Prof. Ruzy informs that Malay chick lit is a booming genre in Malaysia that generates best-selling romance novels (some of which have been adapted into television fiction). She opines “they reflect common perceptions that are essentialist in nature to perpetuate and strengthen conventional gender relations”. 

Author Anuradha Chelliah speaks about her style of writing short stories. She works on the minute details of life to define the cultural identity in a multicultural setup of Malaysia. She volunteers “it helps in understanding the various differences among Malaysians to build a tolerant society…...my observance and the keenness to know the importance of these details gets me into putting them in writing”.

Author JF Netto spoke about the various perspectives she dealt with in her short stories. She also expressed her opinions on whether writers carry the voice of their own race better or is there a bias to it in regard to post-colonial or political literature. She says, “there are good writers who daringly aspire to be the voice of someone…. it takes a lot of courage to be such a writer - to have an exclusive level of respect for others and to bring out their story without championing their own race or religion….only hopes of creating a more inclusive world.  I believe knowing who the writer is giving us a chance to understand the intrinsic meaning of their writing. There’s always a part of themselves embedded in their work no matter which voice they carry”.

The discussion ends with Dr. Paul Sebastian's poem “Be a Blessing”.

The program concludes with an appreciation note by Mr. Manoj Krishnan.

Asian Literary Society and JAACL aim to further continue their pursuits in the promotion and preservation of Asian Art, Culture, and Literature.

The event has been archived on the YouTube channel of the Asian Literary Society and can be viewed through the following link: https://youtu.be/2t2rTRViV6A