The Deepavali commercial by the National Film Development Corporation (Finas) has nothing to do with religious conversions and it should not be taken out of context in the way it was conceived and acted out in the commercial.

NONE Finas director-general Mohd Mahyidin Mustakim ( right ) said that the commercial was aimed at promoting 1Malaysia in the spirit of various races and families celebrating the different Malaysian festivals.        

“This commercial is a follow-up to the commercial we had during Hari Raya when Muthu marries the Sarawakian, Rina.

“So we are portraying how Malaysians of different races celebrate their festivals and we will also have another follow-up during Christmas and Chinese New Year.

“This is a work of creativity and should not be mixed with politics.

“The advertisement was certainly not conceived to put down any race and the idea of conversions was not on our minds at all.”

Mahyidin was responding to senator S Ramakrishnan who had questioned the message the commercial’s producers were trying to put across.

NONE The storyline, he added was similar to a Bollywood drama where there is conflict in the beginning and eventually it all ends well with a happy ending. When the commercial ends it shows a positive and happy mood among the two families.

The 30-second film - said to have appeared on RTM and Astro - shows how a male member of a Hindu family faces reluctance on the part of his siblings to accept his marriage to a Muslim girl.

 

The Muslim girl, on her part, shows reluctance to partake of the meals prepared by her in-laws. She concedes, however, after being assured the food is halal by a friend of the family.

It is only after the Muslim girl has given birth that her in-laws warm up to the fact of their marriage and display affection toward the new-born child.

Ramakrishnan noted that the Finas advertisement showed the hostility of the Hindu family while neglecting to address the compulsion on non-Muslims to convert before marrying Muslims.

Mahyidin said the advertisement was actually projecting tolerance and caring feelings among the different races. It demonstrates the various races showing respect for one another even when food is served and this is visible in the way the halal food is prepared for the visitors.

Given hyper-sensitivities, best to leave religion out

Deepavali ad video l 2.30 mins