Actor Farid jumped at the chance to play Anwar in a movie

Actor Farid Kamil was a young university student in 1998 when the Reformasi wave hit Kuala Lumpur and he was all set to join the thousands of Malaysians gathered at Dataran Merdeka for a major rally led by Anwar Ibrahim.

Farid never made it to Kuala Lumpur from his campus in Shah Alam as he heeded his father's warning to stay away, fearing possible repercussions after Anwar was ousted as deputy prime minister

Now, years later, Farid (above) is the leading man in ‘Anwar, The Untold Story’, a movie set between 1993 and 1998, a crucial time in the current prime minister’s political career that included a series of events leading to his first incarceration.

According to the movie’s executive producer, Zulkiflee SM Anwar Ulhaque - better known as Zunar - four other Malaysian actors turned down the role, citing various reasons, including not being interested or too afraid. 

The movie was instead shot in Jakarta and Kalimantan, Indonesia, with a cast and crew that were predominantly Indonesian, including director and screenplay writer Viva Westi.

“I got an offer from Zunar over the phone. I accepted without thinking too much about the cause and effect,” said Farid who was well aware of how challenging the role was upon reading the script.

“When I read the script and I asked my mother’s permission, she said ‘go ahead, make this film’, because it shows in the film, that a person like Anwar still exists in Malaysia, an anti-corruption figure, a person who raised the value of Islam in a completely different perspective for Malaysia at that time,” said Farid.

Farid said his father, a retired government doctor, also became an Anwar supporter despite initial resistance in the early Reformasi years.

‘Public enemy number one’

The actor noted that many still considered Anwar as “public enemy number one” when the movie began shooting in late 2021.

“I was not even sure if I was going to be able to return home after shooting in Indonesia and if they would let me come home. Would they stop me from returning for my shoot in Indonesia?” pondered Farid, adding that he had never experienced such a conundrum throughout his career.

Farid feels that today, 24 years after events depicted in the movie, not many Malaysians know what happened during that fateful time and the movie attempts to answer that.

He also admitted that playing such an iconic figure is a challenge. 

“Five months ago, the situation was different. Anwar is a famous political figure in the world and the situation at that time was dangerous.

“If the filming was done in Malaysia it was highly likely that we would have been detained or arrested,” he said.

In Indonesia, the production crew was only somewhat aware of the political situation in Malaysia.

“As a Malaysian, I understand the political situation very well and I have personally experienced the cause and effect when an ordinary person like me talks about politics,” Farid explained.

Getting into character

Farid met Anwar during a dinner arranged by Zunar but felt it was not enough to get into the skin of the character he was to portray. 

So, he arranged another meeting, during which the PKR president removed his spectacles. 

“I saw the lack of muscle near his right eye, the one that had bruises during his time in jail. He is not the kind of man who would hurt himself on purpose,” said Farid who had seen the medical reports on the injury.

“I needed to portray what was special about this person,” he added.

Determined to give his all in portraying Anwar, Farid said: “He is a fighter. He suffered so much but did not shed a tear. He is not vengeful. But when he holds the microphone and delivers his speeches, his character becomes dynamic.”

The script contains some of Anwar’s iconic speeches and the actor watched old footage of Anwar’s fiery talks in the 1990s to understand the subtle nuances of how the politician speaks.

“I had to repeat his words a hundred times to get things right,” he said.

Farid said Anwar is not much of a talker when it comes to his past ordeals. “When I asked about the lock-up, he smiled. We know he was handcuffed and blindfolded. I tried to ask about sadness but I couldn’t see it,” said Farid about the short, second meeting.

An ‘educational’ film

Farid is confident that the movie will be used as an educational tool.

“I am sure that the movie will be used as a source of historical information as it will be studied,  and will be scrutinised by young people today. 

“There were not many details about our 10th prime minister because, in the past 24 years, we were not told the real reasons he went to jail. 

“This film might be an excellent benchmark in terms of the development of Malaysian films. We should make films that will educate future generations,” he said.

They were still filming when Parliament was dissolved to pave way for the 15th general election last year. Farid had to fly back to Malaysia to vote and then return to Indonesia for more shooting.

Though the film was going to be made, regardless of the outcome of the 15th general election, there was always trepidation.

When Farid posted that he was playing Anwar on social media, at least 70 percent of the comments accused him of one thing or another.

However, he had great memories of shooting the film in Indonesia, especially the high level of preparation and professionalism on set.

“My heart has been travelling to Indonesia for the past 10 years. I wanted to go to university there. In 2022, I got the opportunity to go to Jakarta and stayed there for almost 50 days. 

“The preparation on set is amazing. I kind of went there as a traveller carrying the identity of Anwar Ibrahim, a person who doesn’t run away from who he is.”

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