Jit Murad Plays

by Jit Murad

Jit Murad Plays is the much-anticipated anthology of works for the stage by Jit Murad, described by the late theatre doyen, Dato’ Krishen Jit, as Malaysia’s 'contemporary penglipur lara, the teller of tales about our social and personal manners here and now, and the soother of our neuroses’.

Jit Murad is considered to be one of Southeast Asia’s finest – and funniest – playwrights. His plays have a distinctive wit, warmth, and originality. This collection includes some of the playwright’s favourites: Gold Rain & Hailstones, Visits, The Storyteller, Malam Konsert, and Spilt Gravy on Rice. The latter won four Boh Cameronian arts awards and has been made into a film, directed by Dato’ Zahim Albakri.

The anthology also contains notes by the playwright and directors, as well as reviews and photos that illustrate how the writing formed part of an innovative and exciting period of development in Malaysian theatre.

An insightful essay by widely respected theatre scholar, Dr. Susan Philip, also sheds light on the themes and value of Jit’s work.

421 pages, Paperback

Published November 24, 2017

Reviews

[Fadillah · Rating 4 out of 5]

It would appear that over the decades, borders and margins have become an ingrained part of the social framework in Malaysia. Many Malaysians accept impositions of racial, religious and linguistic identity, or have learned to negotiate with these impositions in such a way as to create a small space which accommodates a different identity. Jit Murad's plays offer an example of how difference is explored and negotiated at a small, personal level, which nonetheless also resonates at a much broader level. What many of his plays do is to look at people who are marginalised or othered because their identities do not fit the dominant narrative. He does not attempt to offer slick solutions to an entrenched problem - rather, he provides a space for exploration and discussion, something generally missing in the public sphere. Jit Murad would not at first glance appear to be the most obvious choice of spokesperson for the marginalised. A privileged, upper-class, educated Malay, he would instead appear to be part of the country's racially-defined elite. However, through his plays he uncovers subtleties in the process of othering as it happens in Malaysia, which may not be recognised in a society that is habituated to thinking in broad categories and stereotypes.
- Marginality and otherness in Jit Murad’s plays by Dr. Susan Philip (Jit Murad Plays)
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‘The others’ here in Jit Murad Plays - mostly the one that did not fit in. The character can be homosexual, the one that wear tudung, the divorced woman or the one that changed their name to make it sound more western. Jit Murad wrote his plays most in english but there are plays that was done in mixture of both Malays and English - hence manglish. He did share that he was being criticized, ridiculed and shunned for it, that his Malay Identity were being questioned simply because the language used in the play. I was also surprised to see LGBT theme in some of his plays - not in a bad way but more on how he managed to skip censorship considering Malaysia is a conservative country. At the end of the day, I wish i can see these plays now that i finished reading it - even if its recorded video, i just wanted to see how it played out. Note that i never watched any of these plays. I only rated it based on the play that has been revised accordingly by Jit Murad and some of his good friends and directors of his play like Ida Nerina, Zahim Albakri and Krishen Jit. Here is my Individual Rating for each play :
1. Gold Rain & Hailstones (1993) - My Rating : 4/5. The play narrated the stories the t20 Malays. The ‘english speaking’ Malay community that thrived on the connection and networking, the one that can afford to go to overseas for bachelor degree and once returned, continuously lived in their bubble. They are aware of their Malayness but they whined saying that they dont really belong.
2. Visits (1993) - My Rating : 5/5 - The play is about 3 women that has different aspirations, lives and purposed yet they judged each other for not pursuing the right path - indicating that their own path is the correct one.
3. The storyteller (1996) - My Rating : 3/5. The play brought us readers into the story of King Untong and His subjects in fictitious of Kampung Tak Mandi. This reimagined Kampung managed to capture Kampung lives in truly its realest form.
4. Malam Konsert (2003) - My Rating : 3/5. The play revolved around divorced couple’s conversation. They argued, fought, making jokes and eventually exposed the secret that they did accidentally sleep together after the divorce.
5. Split Gravy on Rice (2002) - My Rating : 4/5 - The play told the story of 3 kids and their disillusionment of their father. We shifted each kid’s point of view in understanding their relationship with their father.