Plan to make telemovie on hero of Opium Hill battle against Japanese
By: Tuminah Sapawi
Lieutenant Adnan Saidi and his Malay Regiment contingent fought for 48 hours, and he paid a terrible price for defeat
HE FOUGHT and died while defending Singapore 56 years ago.
He was Lieutenant Adnan Saidi, who led a 42-man Malay Regiment contingent in a fierce battle against the Japanese at Bukit Candu (Opium Hill), in Pasir Panjang, on Feb 14, 1942. They fought for 48 hours before being overcome.
While the other members of the contingent were shot, Lt Adnan was tortured and burnt to death.
Last year, the Minister for Information and the Arts, Brigadier-General (NS) George Yeo, announced the setting up of an information centre in a bungalow at Opium Hill in Pasir Panjang, near Kent Ridge.
This building at Pepys Lane, believed to be the
Malay Army Regiment base, will be a historical centreEfforts to remember the war hero have gone beyond that.
A Malay production house, Jasa Vision Network, plans to produce a telemovie based on his life story.
"We are still in the research stage," says its managing director, Mr Jamal Ismail, who produced the five-episode series on communist insurgents in Malaya titled Selatan Semenanjung (South Of The Peninsula) recently.
He is the perfect candidate to produce such a historical docu-drama after the success of Selatan Semenanjung, which scored on authenticity, pace, casting, plot and theme.
Research will take some time, he says, because it deals with history and it has to be as factual as possible, although there would be some artistic licence as far as the production is concerned.
Also, because Singapore is fast changing in terms of its landscape and physical environment, the production team would have to spend time looking for a suitable site for their on-location filming.
In Selatan Semenanjung, the crew spent 18 days in two villages in Indonesia. He would not discount a similar arrangement if it would result in creating the right mood and atmosphere.
The docu-drama on Lt Adnan is only one of several projects planned by the one-year-old company for this year.
Another programme which it will be working on is a series on psychic happenings.
Film tribute ... TV director Jamal Ismail (right) and actor
Jasmani Basri plan to produce a telemovie on the late
Lieutenant Adnan Saidi."We try to get away from mundane storylines like family quarrels and boy-girl relationships.
"In this psychic series, there will be a person with extra-sensory powers who will fight crime and any other evil goings on," says Mr Jamal, a former Television Corporation of Singapore producer.
After leaving TCS in 1994, he worked in Malaysia for two years producing documentaries for independent production houses. Early last year, convinced of the opportunities in Singapore, he returned home to set up Jasa Vision Network.
"Many people use Singapore's physical smallness as an excuse when they talk about the poor standard of production or when the same old themes keep popping up in the Malay drama series.
"Another excuse is that there is not much to write about when you are living in a flat, unlike neighbouring Malaysia or Indonesia where life is much more colourful with the kampung environment, together with the struggles and hardships of life in general," says Mr Jamal.
"But there are always historical happenings to document.
"Then there are the struggles and the ups and downs of successful personalities. These are materials worthy of portraying."
What is important, he adds, is to produce dramas that are Singaporean.
And the story of Lt Adnan definitely fits the bill.
First published in The Straits Times, Feb 19, 1998
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