Our golden girl of the big screen
Best known as lovestruck Sabariah Mansor opposite Tan Sri P. Ramlee’s Kassim Selamat in Ibu Mertua Ku, Datuk Sarimah Ahmad is remembered for her beauty and talent, writes Dennis Chua
OF the veteran actresses admired for their stunning youthful looks, Datuk Sarimah Ahmad a.k.a. Tok Mah easily stands out. The 75-year-old was first discovered by the late Tan Sri P. Ramlee and became one of his favourite leading ladies. She is best remembered for her role as Sabariah Mansor, the love interest of Ramlee’s blind saxophonist character, Kassim Selamat, in the 1960s film,
Born on April 28, 1942, in Pulau Rusa in Pahang, Sarimah has appeared in more than 70 films and television dramas.
Retired from acting in 2009, she remains alert with exercise and a diet of warm water, fruits and vegetables, and strict avoidance of fried dishes.
“I’ve been health-conscious from my teens, that’s what my mother taught me. Our regimen is to avoid cold drinks, to exercise, and have a balanced diet,” she said in a recent interview at the Malaysian Film Development Corporation (Finas) in Hulu Klang.
Not many moviegoers know that four years ago, the veteran was diagnosed with cancer, and her doctor feared for the worst. However, Sarimah resiliently fought the illness with natural foods including garlic, carrots, berries, broccoli and herbal teas.
“My children, grandchildren and great grandchildren were my bedrock during this trying time. They gave me all the love and support to fight and get well,” said Sarimah, who has four children, 32 grandchildren and four great grandchildren.
Her strong work ethic also kept her alert; for the last 10 years, Sarimah has been managing her own health and beauty products company, Primadona Worldwide. “I always believe we must be active as long as we can. We exercise our mind and body, and thus, develop positive thoughts and stay healthy.”
Sarimah has also penned a book,
Dedicated to singer Datuk Sudirman Arshad, her hero other than Ramlee, it was launched in 2005.
“It’s about my experience looking after my health and beauty. It’s easy reading for the benefit of all ages.”
Sarimah and P. Ramlee in Ibu Mertua Ku.
As a pre-teen, Sarimah did not dream of becoming an actress, because her parents encouraged her to take up a “traditional” profession such as medicine. When she was 20, she worked as a clerk in a Singapore company, but she soon bumped into Ramlee who was looking for an actress for his comedy,
Encouraged by colleagues, Sarimah auditioned for the role of Ali Baba’s (Datuk Aziz Sattar) slave Marjiana, and landed the role.
“There was one problem, though. I couldn’t dance for the duet with Leng Hussain. It was titled and thus, Ramlee had Normadiah do the dancing in distant, full-body shots,” she explained.
“My fellow actors, including Ramlee, teased me as ‘timber’, but he actually sympathised with me and taught me basic dance skills. These came in handy for our subsequentteam-upssuchas and
Describing Ramlee as her lifelong friend, Sarimah said she was devastated upon hearing of his death in 1973. “That was the saddest day in my life. It rained, as if the skies cried with all of us!”
He had inspired her to become a director, and she successfully made three films: and in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
earned Sarimah the award of Best Actress at the Malaysian Film Festival in 1981.
It also introduced her son, actor-director M. Jamil to the big screen; he won Most Promising Actor as her “bad boy” son in the tear-jerker.
and is the grandmother of model, actress and host Siti Nur Syahira Nabila Jamil, or She, of Astro Ria’s entertainment talk show
“While I didn’t encourage She to become an actress, I’m pleased with her hard work and commend her for doing a good job as a TV host. I guess talent runs in the family. First there was me, then Jamil and now, She,” said Sarimah, whose last film was
directed by Jamil in 2009. Sarimah remains active in artiste association work, and since 2000, she has been the honorary chairman of Persatuan Karyawan Malaysia (Karyawan).
dchua@nst.com.my